Public Works

Responsibilities

Public Works is comprised of a number of city departments responsible for specific maintenance functions in city right-of-ways.

Work Request

Public Works has online capabilities for you to submit a Work Request 24 hours a day and seven days a week, instead of having to make a telephone call during business hours only.

Street Department

The Street Department is responsible for items such as:

  • Maintaining storm sewers / drainage ways
  • Roadside mowing
  • Snow removal
  • Street cleaning
  • Street patching
  • Street signs and markings
  • Turf restoration

Forestry Department

The Forestry Department is responsible for the care of parkway trees, including trimming, removal and new plantings.

Past Project:  The City supported Openlands and key partners, The Morton Arboretum and Chicago Region Trees Initiative, to plant 150 native trees on public and private properties through funding from the US Forest Service. This was a successful project and an excellent example of team work between agencies.

Openlands Trees Program gets underway

Electrical Department

The Electrical Department is responsible for city-owned traffic signals and street lights.

Curbside Leaf Collection

Unbagged leaf collection takes place in the Fall of the year. Guidelines listing wards and dates is available here.  Waste Management collects bagged yard waste from March 15th through December 15th. Additional information is here.

Tree Removal Permit

Tree removal is covered in Tree & Shrubberies - General Provisions in the City Ordinance.  Here is the Application for a Tree Removal Permit. The approval process takes approximately five business days.

Garbage Collection Holidays

Whenever a holiday falls on a day during the week, the scheduled pickup day is always going to be delayed by one day.  Click here to download the list of holidays.

  • New Years Day
  • Memorial Day
  • 4th of July
  • Labor Day
  • Thanksgiving Day
  • Christmas Day

Adopt-A-Road

The City of Waukegan Adopt-a-Road program gives community groups the opportunity to adopt portions of streets and roads to assist with litter control.  Participating groups agree to adopt their desired location for a period of two years. Waukegan Public Works will provide garbage bags and will remove filled garbage bags after collection.  Complete the application to Adopt-a-Road.