2019/04/16 - Mayor's Column: Spring Time Updates

“An Open Door to O’Fallon”
A Weekly Note from Mayor Herb Roach
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When you are working in your yards this spring, please be courteous to your neighbors, and properly dispose of your yard debris.

If blown and left in the street, leaves, grass clippings, and other lawn debris can clog storm drains, resulting in street and private property flooding. In addition to potential harm to your property or public streets, you may also be creating a safety hazard. Clippings and leaves left in the street or on the sidewalk can create a slippery and dangerous surface for traveling motorcyclists and bicyclists. When finished mowing, please be sure to use a blower, broom, or rake to clean up any debris that have inadvertently made their way into the street, sidewalk, or storm drain.

You may also choose to bag your clippings, the City’s trash hauler, Waste Management, will help you dispose of them.

Weekly collection of yard waste is included in the standard service and will be collected on the same day as trash. Unlimited amounts of yard waste will be collected year-round.  Yard waste includes grass clippings, leaves, vines, hedges, shrub and tree trimmings, smaller tree branches, household and yard plants, and holiday trees.

Tree limbs and branches less than six inches in diameter must be tied in bundles no larger than four-foot long and 24 inches in diameter and weigh no more than 50 pounds.  Yard waste does not include dirt or rocks.

Yard waste may be disposed of in paper bags or plastic trash cans.  Cans used for yard waste must be clearly marked with the words “Yard Waste Only.”  Residents may also request an additional 96-gallon cart at an additional cost of $2.50 per month for yard waste. Yard waste will not be accepted in plastic bags.  Free “Yard Waste Only” stickers may be obtained from City Hall or by calling Waste Management.

In addition to yard maintenance, this time of year also brings in the threat of severe weather. We have already had our first instance of severe weather and the activation of O’Fallon’s emergency alerting system.

To help you protect your family and loved ones during severe weather conditions, the City of O’Fallon uses an Emergency Alerting System composed of nine (9) sirens strategically located throughout O’Fallon.

In addition to a tornado warning, we also alert the community of the presence of a severe thunderstorm warning that may generate straight-line winds in excess of 58+ m.p.h. Damage from severe thunderstorm winds account for half of all severe reports in the lower 48 states and is more common than damage from tornadoes. Wind speeds can reach up to 100 mph and can produce a damage path extending for hundreds of miles.

It is important that our residents are alerted especially those that may be in the path of the storm, are currently outside, or those living in mobile homes. The alert sirens are not designed to be heard from inside your house and over the noise of your television. If there is severe weather in the area, you should not rely only on the emergency alert sirens.

The wide variety of variables involved in predicting the weather make it impossible to determine the exact set of conditions necessary for an alert; therefore, we will always error to the side of caution when making the decision to activate the system. That said, we will endeavor to make the most judicious use of the system so that we do not create a climate of complacency.

When the sirens are activated, residents are encouraged to proceed to an interior room on the lowest level of their home or business and monitor local television, radio, weather alert radio or other source of current weather data for the most up-to-date information. O’Fallon’s system features only one alert signal, a constant siren, and we do not sound an “all clear” alert following system activation.

As residents of O’Fallon, you should always be able to reach out to your elected officials and ask questions about what is happening in O’Fallon. Having open communications is important to me and something I care very deeply about. Thank you for reading, and please remember, my door is always open!