La Crosse city council vote against large-item removal disappoints members supporting hauling service

When the La Crosse city council approved a 2025 budget Monday night, it turned down a plan to restore funding for hauling away furniture and other large items.

That pickup service was cut a year ago to save money.

On an 8-4 vote, council members opposed the addition of $105,000 to the city budget for the service.

One of the four voting to revive the program included Chris Woodard, who called into WIZM’s La Crosse Talk on Tuesday. He argued that the program would only cost the average city resident the price of a cup of coffee.

“It may not be an issue for some people,” Woodard said, “but if we look at it in the city, it’s kind of hurting the people” who are less advantaged.

La Crosse Talk airs weekdays at 6-8 a.m. Listen on the WIZM app, online here, or on 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska). Find all the podcasts here or subscribe to La Crosse Talk PM wherever you get your podcasts.

Backers of the idea wanted to have large-item removal scheduled in May each year, as local college students move out of housing for the summer.

Woodard was hoping to help city residents of all ages.

“I had a resident in my neighborhood who had a mattress and a box spring dumped on their property,” he said. “They had no means to get it to the dump,” and they were older and on a fixed budget.

Woodard noted he personally helped that neighbor haul away the mattress.