Student Moving Season!

While the environment is not just one person's responsibility, please make an effort to divert your items from landfills! By leaving them on the curb, landfill is the most likely outcome. I am personally a huge fan of hunting at thrift stores and on Facebook Marketplace, as well as curbside window shopping. 

Items left on the curb will not be collected regularly after August 21. Please discard accordingly.  

Donating

Support Madison's unhoused neighbors by donating to Neighborhood House Community Center just south of UW Campus this week on 29 N Mills St between 10am-6pm. They're looking for eatingware, cookware, cleaning supplies, paper products, laundry baskets, and monetary donations. With these items, people can transition to stable housing more easily!  

Today (August 14) from 8am-2pm is Madison's first Moveapalooza! Donate clean, usable items at the Alliant Energy Center to Vincent de Paul and Habitat for Humanity. Mattresses can be donated to be specially recycled at $20 each.  

Getting Items for Your New Home

Of course, while you're dropping off the great table that doesn't fit in your new apartment, you can also find a dresser that fits in your closetless room while saving money. It's a busy week at supermarkets and double check if that package you're grabbing has your name and address on it.  

Recycling

The triangular arrow on an item doesn't always mean it's recyclable. Check with the excellent Madison Recyclopedia look-up tool to see what you should do with your old containers! Fun fact, aluminum is one of the most recyclable materials while Solo cups have to go in the trash.

Curbside Stacking Large Items – Dos and Do NOTS!

This is important for the recycling and waste management teams who have a lot going on now! As a general rule, keep things tidy, don't block walkways.  

• DO separate large items (unrecyclables like furniture, wood, rugs, mattresses) from appliances (recyclable components in microwaves, air conditioners, dehumidifiers, etc.), metal items and other special items (tires).  
  •  Different crews collect large items for landfill, while another team collects the other items for recycling. Mixing them up makes their lives way slower!
•  DO NOT put electronics on the curb (computers, TVs, printers). Instead, take them to a City of Madison drop-off site for free, or another reputable electronics recycler.
•  DO neatly stack what you are discarding. If you have taken apart a bed frame or desk, a neat stack really helps.
•  DO NOT pile bagged trash and recyclables on your large items  
•  DO keep items 5 feet away from fire hydrants, utility poles, street signs and other obstructions
•  DO NOT place items under overhead obstructions like low-hanging wires and low tree limbs

Based on personal experience, it's usually quieter moving early in the morning, at night, and during weekdays rather than weekends. There's less competition for your apartment elevator and fewer cars moving around. Later next week, people will have settled down more. Thursday should be less hectic than Monday!  

Parking is a stressful part of life year-round, but especially when you're under pressure to manage an entire van of furniture in 30 minutes. Fortunately, parking enforcement is more lenient this month but still be considerate and move your vehicle out of prime parking spots when you can.  

• Minimize time blocking traffic, bike lanes, sidewalks, and handicap features.  
• It may be better to load your entire vehicle quickly and then park further away, otherwise consider finding a parking spot that doesn't inconvenience others so you can take your time.
• Metered parking spots are still enforced now but try to find unmetered spots where the time limits are posted on signs. These are in less busy areas, and you are less likely to be ticketed.  
• Different private lots inherently have different levels of enforcement and is building dependent.