Garbage & Recycling

Garbage & Recycling

Curbside Collection on Schedule

Curbside collection is on schedule

MAKING SHEBOYGAN SAFER, CLEANER, & GREENER

We are working to make Sheboygan safer, cleaner, and greener with our new automated garbage and recycling program! Not only are your carts safer and easier to use, but they keep seagulls and other critters from littering our streets.

You can do your part to make Sheboygan a greener community with our recycling resources. If you’re not sure what you can and cannot put in your recycling cart, visit our How Do I Get Rid Of? page.

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The sign of the City of Sheboygan Resident Recycling Center.

City of Sheboygan's Residential Recycling Center

The Residential Recycling Center is available for residents to drop-off certain items not collected at the curbside with garbage and recyclables. When available, free woodchips may be picked up by residents.

2026 New Jersey Avenue
Sheboygan, WI 53081

Monday 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Thursday 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Friday 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

If you have additional questions, please call 459-3440 weekdays between 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

  • Grass clippings, leaves, branches, brush, and yard waste
  • Waste/used motor oil (no containers over 5 gallons)
  • Cooking oil (no containers over 5 gallons)
  • Anti-freeze (no containers over 5 gallons)
  • Scrap metal, non-freon appliances, and automobile batteries

Materials brought to the Residential Recycling Center may be accepted or rejected at the discretion of the site attendant.

  • Please keep children in your vehicle while dropping items off.
  • Materials brought to the Residential Recycling Center may be accepted or rejected at the discretion of the site attendant.

These items must be taken to Private Garbage & Recycling Resources:

  • Electronic waste such as TVs, computers, printers, microwaves
  • Furniture, mattresses, couches
  • Paint, plaster, drywall (sheet rock), shingles, or roofing materials
  • Brick, stone, concrete, gravel, tires, or porcelain
  • Commercial garbage or hazardous waste
  • Items too large for residential pick-up
  • Any freon (CFC) appliances, dehumidifiers, refrigerators, air conditioners, or freezers
  • Wood

HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT AUTOMATED GARBAGE AND RECYCLING?

The Department of Public Works is here to make the transition to automated garbage and recycling easy. Contact us to see how you can help make the City of Sheboygan safer, cleaner, and greener.

Questions about garbage and recycling?

Common questions regarding the automated garbage and recycling program and your carts can be found below.

The City needs to meet the industry requirements that are banning plastic bags for recyclables that pose problems at the recovery facilities.

For a very long time, residents have dealt with litter because plastic bags break when not placed in carts for collection. Bag breakage was common due to being dragged, the disposing of large and sharp items, and seagulls. By using carts with lids, we no longer face these issues as all trash and recyclable material will be contained.

Additionally, the previous collection program required Public Works employees to manually lift every bag of trash and recycling. An automated system significantly improves worker's safety while ensuring trash and recycling are picked up. [Examples – employees slipping on ice to collect bags, back injuries due to lifting heavy bag]

The carts are on wheels, making them easy to maneuver and navigate to and from the alley or curb.


Every Sheboygan household will receive one trash cart and one recycling cart. The carts are gray with a black lid on the trash cart and a blue lid on the recycling cart.

Effective January 1, 2020, the City of Sheboygan implemented a $4 per month recycling fee or $12 on the quarterly water bill. The purpose of this fee is to cover the costs of the recycling portion of the Automated Collection Program that provides every resident with two collection carts – one garbage and one recycling. This program brings the City of Sheboygan in line with the industry providing a safer and efficient collection of waste and recyclables. In addition, the City needs to meet the industry requirements that are banning plastic bags for recyclables that pose problems at the recovery facilities.

This fee is in addition to the existing $5 per month garbage fee or $15 per quarter. Overall, the City of Sheboygan is excited to begin this next chapter in providing clean and efficient garbage and recyclable collection for the residents of Sheboygan.


All the carts are on wheels and can be easier to manage than carrying bags to the curb or alley. If you have trouble moving your carts, ask your neighbor or a loved one for help. If you know your neighbor might need help moving their carts, offer to give them a helping hand.


If there is not enough space for the two carts in the garage, look for an area along the side of the garage or house where you can set the carts and easily place your trash bags and loose recyclable materials in them.

Regardless of what time collection normally happens in your neighborhood, occurrences such as weather or different drivers may cause collection to occur at different times. We do not want to miss picking up the cart, so be sure it is set out by 7:30 a.m. on your collection day and left out all day or until it is collected.

Your carts can be placed at the curb or the alley as early as 5:00 p.m. the night before your collection day. Be sure to set out your carts by 7:30 a.m. on collection day. Carts need to be moved from the curb or alley by 6:00 p.m. on collection day.

NOTE: Individual pick up times may differ during the first weeks of the collection as drivers learn new routes and how to use automated trucks.

Place the cart parallel to the roadway, alley, or your driveway with the cart's numbered side facing the street. Do not place your cart in the right-of-way. Be sure the carts are four feet apart from each other and four feet away from other objects such as mailboxes, trees, parked vehicles, etc. According to the current ordinance, no pickups will be made from atop or from behind a snowbank. Please clear a four-foot area on the terrace around each of your carts. Collection days will not vary by season.

Carts need to be on a level surface clear of snowbanks, which can be trickier when it's winter. A few tips to avoid a missed collection:

  • Do not leave the carts behind snowbanks. The truck's automated arms cannot reach the carts.
  • When possible, shovel an area at the front of your property line to set the carts at the curb or alley.
  • If your driveway is clear, set the carts at the end of the driveway.
  • Be sure there are at least four feet of space between any obstacles (cars, mailboxes, etc.).

Unless the City has announced delayed service, trash and recycling collection days do not change based on the weather. If you are not able to get the cart(s) out on your regular collection day, the City will pick up the cart(s) on your next collection day.

Your carts need to be placed in your garage or along the side of your home or garage. They cannot be in front of your house.


If your cart is lost, damaged, or stolen, please contact our office at (920) 459-3440. Replacement of carts will happen on a case by case basis.

Unfortunately, you cannot purchase an additional garbage or recycling cart.

Not at this time. The 96-gallon trash and recycling carts are the only options available. Be sure you are recycling all available materials, leaving the trash cart just for trash.

There are a few tips that you can use to help get the most use out of the space in the carts:

  • Do not bag recycling materials.
  • Break down and flatten cardboard boxes.
  • Ask your neighbors if you can place a bag of garbage or recyclables in their carts.

No, we use a "single-stream" process, which means all acceptable recyclable materials can be placed into the 96-gallon container.

  • Recyclable materials need to be empty and rinsed out.
  • Break down and flatten cardboard boxes.


With the carts, bags are no longer needed. Recycling is mechanically separated at the recycling center, and bags can get stuck in the machines, which can cause jams and even damage the equipment. The Wisconsin Material Recovery Facilities will soon stop accepting bagged material for those reasons. Not using bags for recycling will reduce resident's costs as the special recycling bags are no longer needed.

No. Moving to the automated trash and recycling trucks, the carts used have to be able to be picked up by the automated arm, so the only option is the City-provided cart.

The carts remain an asset of the City's collection system, just like the garbage and recycling trucks. Each cart has a serial number and a RFID (Radio frequency identification) tag and will be assigned to each address. The carts should stay with their assigned address. If a resident moves, the carts should remain with the property.

In accordance with City Ordinance, Chapter 102, refuse shall be placed for weekly collection in accordance with the following regulations. They are intended to maintain an efficient collection, minimize neighborhood nuisance and protect public health.

  • Garbage must be placed at the curb by 7:30 a.m. on collection day and not before 5:00 p.m. the day before your scheduled collection.
  • Recyclable material is not to be placed in garbage carts.
  • Carts must be placed at and parallel to the curb or alley. If necessary, an area should be cleared of snow for placing materials. Do not place on top of snowbanks.
  • Items that are too large for residential pickup will have to be disposed at Private Garbage & Recycling Resources (see below).


In accordance with City Ordinance, Chapter 102, recycling shall be placed for every other week collection in accordance with the following regulations. They are intended to maintain an efficient collection, minimize neighborhood nuisance and protect public health.

All recycling materials must be rinsed clean and labels may be left on. All recycling must be placed loose in the cart. Do not bag your recyclables.

  • Glass: Recyclable bottles and jars only. No ceramics, ashtrays, drink glasses, light bulbs, window or mirror glass, chemical bottles, medical containers or laboratory glass.
  • Aluminum: Rinsed food trays, foil and beverage cans only.
  • Bi-metal: Steel and tin food cans. No aerosol or paint cans.
  • Plastic Containers: Recycle codes #1, #2, and #5 are acceptable. No Styrofoam, plastic grocery bags, or hazardous chemical containers.
  • Newspaper and magazines
  • Corrugated cardboard: Boxes need to be flattened and placed in recycling cart. No waxed coated corrugated cardboard.
  • Miscellaneous paper products: clean paper products such as cereal and soda boxes, office paper, envelopes, gift boxes, and junk mail should be placed in the recycling cart. Shredded paper should first be placed in a paper bag and then in the recycling cart for collection. Paper products that have been contaminated with food such as paper coffee cups, used paper towels and pizza boxes are not recyclable and should be placed in the garbage.

Please refer to our recycling search tool for a more detailed list of recyclable items.

  • Paper & cardboard
  • Glass bottles & jars
  • Plastic bottles & jugs
  • Cartons
  • Metal cans

Please refer to our recycling search tool.

  • No paper that has been contaminated with food (including pizza boxes)
  • No tissues or paper towel products
  • No gift wrapping paper
  • No bows, ribbons, or foil gift wrap
  • No empty paint cans
  • No kitchen glassware, Pyrex, or ceramics
  • No window glass
  • No light bulbs
  • No plastic bags (return to participating retailers)
  • No motor oil or other automotive product containers
  • No pesticide or herbicide containers
  • No styrofoam food containers
  • No medical supplies
  • NO batteries
  • NO propane tanks

You can always visit the City's website and social media accounts to learn about changes to the collection. It is rare that collection is canceled for the day, but as soon as it is announced, it will be on the City's website and social media channels.

Holidays will move collection back one day. For example, Friday collection will be picked up on Saturday. If the actual holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, there will be no changes to the regular collection schedule that week. The following holidays do not affect your collection schedule: Martin Luther King Day, President's Day, Columbus Day, and Veterans Day.

To see your specific holiday collection day, you can refer to the 2024 calendar here.

Leaves are collected seasonally in fall and updates will be posted on the website to announce the beginning of leaf collection.

To view your collection day, please refer to our Leaf Collection Schedule.

PRIVATE GARBAGE & RECYCLING RESOURCES

The Department of Public Works is dedicated to providing garbage and recycling resources for our residents. However, there are times when the help of a private resource is needed. Utilize our suggested private sources to dispose of your additional waste.

BATTERY DISPOSAL

Batteries used in many household products, office products and motor vehicles contain various materials that can harm human health and the environment if improperly handled. Make sure you dispose of your rechargeable and alkaline batteries safely.

Find an electronics collection site near you or a mail-back program here.

CHRISTMAS TREE PICKUP

The City of Sheboygan’s annual Christmas tree recycling pickup begins just after January 1 and continues through the end of January. Trees are picked up on the same day as your garbage pickup. Wreaths are picked up with normal curbside garbage collection. Christmas trees are picked up at the curb, there is no alley pickup of Christmas trees. Remove all ornaments and decorative lights. Do not place trees in plastic bags.

Christmas trees can also be disposed of at the Recycling Center at 2026 New Jersey Ave; place trees in the area normally used for branches. Trees are recycled by grinding them into wood chips; these chips are available to the public for free.

Garbage & Recycling

Division Contacts

Joel Kolste

Superintendent of Streets & Sanitation

Mark Wilhelm

Operations Supervisor

Shawn Soucheck

Sanitation Foreman

News & Updates

Recent Garbage & Recycling News & Updates

Road Closure – Zimbal Avenue (North 7th Street through North 8th Street)

As part of the ongoing improvements at the City of Sheboygan’s Uptown Social, Zimbal Avenue between North 7th Street and North 8th Street will be closed on October 8th between the hours of 7:00 AM and 12:00 PM.

Read More

Department of Public Works Announces Start of Fall Leaf Collection Program

Beginning Monday, October 7, 2024, and continuing through Friday, November 22, 2024, City residents are allowed to rake leaf piles into the street gutter for easier and faster pickup by City crews.

Read More

REQUEST SERVICE

Is there a pothole that you would like to see fixed? Or a city tree that needs to be trimmed?

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