Evanston, IL Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)
Key Facts
- Single-family & ≤5-unit buildings
- Once-per-week City collection
- Condo/co-op/townhouse 6+ units, 75%+ owner-occupied
- Twice-per-week via contracted private scavenger
- Curb set-out window
- 6:00 p.m. day before to 7:00 a.m. pickup day
- Removal deadline
- 7:00 p.m. pickup day or 12 hrs after collection
- Collection-site violation fine
- $50 first, $150 second, $250 third offense
- Sunday business pickup order
- $350.00 invoice per occurrence
Summary
Evanston's Public Works Department collects municipal solid waste once a week from single-family homes and multi-family buildings of five units or fewer, and twice a week from owner-occupied condo, co-op and townhouse complexes of six or more units via a contracted private scavenger. Carts go out no earlier than 6:00 p.m. the night before and must come off the curb by 7:00 p.m. collection day.
(A)The City shall provide municipal solid waste collection service, not including the collection of construction debris, on a once per week basis when practicable, to the following:1.All single-family detached homes. For purposes of this Section, a structure commonly called a "coach house" or "carriage house" is considered to be a "single-family detached home" separate from the principal house on the same lot.2.All multiple dwellings of five (5) or fewer units...(B)1.For condominium, cooperative apartment, townhouse, or row house dwellings with six (6) or more units, the City shall provide municipal solid waste collection service via private scavenger under contract with the City...on a twice per week basis when practicable, to each unit...which is at least seventy-five percent (75%) owner occupied for the entire housing complex.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 21).
Full Breakdown
Evanston City Code § 8-4-9-1 sets out exactly who gets the City's weekly cart service and who must contract with a private scavenger instead. Subsection (A) puts all single-family detached homes, including detached "coach houses" or "carriage houses" treated as separate dwellings, and any multi-family building of five units or fewer, on a once-per-week collection when practicable. Subsection (B) moves condominium, cooperative apartment, townhouse and row house buildings of six or more units onto a twice-per-week schedule, but only if the complex is at least seventy-five percent (75%) owner-occupied and the City's contracted private scavenger, not City crews, does the pickup. Everyone else, including universities, hospitals and most businesses, falls outside City service under Subsection (C) and must arrange franchise or private hauling.
Placement is governed by Section 8-4-8(D): carts must be secured at the curb, or at a designated alley collection site under Subsection (C) for properties that abut an alley, no earlier than 6:00 p.m. the evening before pickup and no later than 7:00 a.m. the day of pickup, and every container must be off the curb by 7:00 p.m. that same day or twelve hours after actual collection, whichever is later. Property owners are also responsible for clearing snow and ice from around receptacles so trucks can reach them, per Subsection (G).
Oversized items that will not fit in the City cart trigger a Special Pickup request under Subsection (H); an unrequested oversized item gets tagged with a non-collection sticker and, if the owner does not call within forty-eight (48) hours, the City performs the pickup and bills the property. Waste left in a street or alley long enough to become a nuisance can also be collected as a Special Pickup charged back to whoever caused it, under Subsection (G).
Violations & Fines
Section 8-4-14 fines collection-site violations under Section 8-4-8, such as containers set into the ground or left out past the curb window, at fifty dollars ($50.00) for a first offense, one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) for a second, and two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) for a third or later offense. Nearly every other violation of the chapter, including improper set-out or nonpayment of a Special Pickup invoice, draws a flat two hundred fifty dollar ($250.00) fine, and each day a violation continues counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often does the City of Evanston collect trash?
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What happens if I leave an oversized item out without calling for a special pickup?
Are universities and hospitals covered by City trash collection?
Sources & Official References
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