Spring Cleaning

New Arkansas-side bulk hauling service a welcome addition

Well, here we are, a few weeks into spring and everyone knows what that means: Time for a cleanup around the house.

It’s an old tradition, possibly dating back the ancient Jewish custom of cleaning the house in anticipation of Passover.

It has a practical purpose, too. Before modern devices such as air conditioning and vacuum cleaners, spring was when the doors and windows could be opened, dust swept away and soot from coal or wood heaters cleaned from the walls.

Theses days it is more of a whim, a nod to the old term passed down through generations. Some do, some don’t.

But in recent years here in Texarkana there has been a problem associated with a thorough spring cleaning: What to do with all the stuff you haul out of the house. Some items are small enough to be packed into garbage bags for the refuse collectors to take away. Some items have a bit of life in them and can be donated to some worthy cause. But there are always a few things too big and too worn to be of any use or thrown in a trash can. What can you do with an old couch or mattress, for example?

Texarkana, Ark., used to have a free service that would pick up such items but that grew too costly and was ended in 2012. That meant residents pretty much had to take the stuff to an approved dump site themselves or find someone to do it for them. Well, thanks to the Arkansasside Board of Directors, the service is coming back. Not free, but at least easy.

On Monday the board voted to bring back the service, with a fee of $30 per cubic yard up to a maximum of $110. A cubic yard is roughly the size of a washing machine or a large recliner. If more than one trip is needed, a flat fee of $110 for each trip is charged. Commercial rental properties will be charged more. The service should be up and hauling within 60 days.

Waste Management handles bulk items on the Texas side. Depending on the size and amount, they may be included in regular pickups or an additional fee may be charged.

The new Arkansas-side service may not be free, but it seems to us the cost is within reason. And it will certainly be convenient to have the option available with just a phone call.