Reader report: Sunrise Heights alley deluged with dumped pumpkins

Illegal dumping is a problem at multiple spots around West Seattle, but what that photo shows in a Sunrise Heights alley is something we haven’t seen before. An area resident sent the photo and this report:

Sometime after 4:30 pm yesterday someone dumped upwards of 100 pumpkins in the alley between 32nd and 34th SW, cross street is Kenyon. Going to file an illegal dumping report with City of Seattle.

HERE’S HOW TO REPORT ILLEGAL DUMPING, PUMPKINS OR NOT: You’ll find an online form and telephone hotline on this city webpage. If you have the city’s Find It, Fix It app, you can use that too.

Robert November 2, 2015 (9:39 am)

THIS IS RUNAWAY STUPIDITY, why not just take them to the zoo? they are allways looking for feed products for the animals..

Ray November 2, 2015 (9:40 am)

What a waste. All that effort to move/dump and they could have been taken somewhere where they could be mulched.

Marathonmom November 2, 2015 (10:03 am)

Good idea Robert !!! Did you see the video the Oregon zoo posted the other day of the elephants and the pumpkins <3 ?

Chris November 2, 2015 (10:06 am)

Thanks for leaving all that behind my house. I was standing there at 6am half asleep asking myself.. “am I seeing what I am really seeing here.. a bunch of pumpkins?”

I call my friend over and we stand there for a good 10 minutes.

I thought I was dreaming.

This is probably the silliest thing I’ve seen being that the dump station is maybe 5-8 miles away.

Alan November 2, 2015 (10:28 am)

@Chris – 3.3 Miles. Almost a direct shot. Less than 8 miles round trip. Maybe they were trying to avoid the $20 minimum ($110 per ton) fee for clean yard waste. They were risking a $150 (first time) fine.

I am scratching my head as to how they picked your alley to dump. It isn’t remote and they must have made a fair amount of noise while dumping. Too bad they didn’t get caught.

Wes C. Addle November 2, 2015 (10:29 am)

This looks like a Halloween prank more than it does illegal dumping. My 2 cents.

sam-c November 2, 2015 (10:39 am)

who would have that many un-carved pumpkins to offload? doesn’t seem like a prank, seems like someone didn’t sell as many pumpkins as they thought they would ?!?! who knows what happened here. Bizarre.

Fiwa Jcbbb November 2, 2015 (10:51 am)

@ Robert and Marathon Mom: Woodland Park Zoo’s elephants are now in Oklahoma City, like The Sonics.

@ Chris: I was wondering why Safeway was out of pumpkins on Halloween…we found 2 at QFC, but one of those was rotten already. Who takes the rotted pumpkins away? An independent contractor? I do think the transfer station’s $20 minimum for 380 lbs of yard waste/$110 per ton and $30 minimum for garbage encourages some to dump….wherever they can get away with it.

Craig November 2, 2015 (11:14 am)

I’d take a few pics of the tire tracks before they get washed away, as evidence. Plus then keep an eye out for matching tires on local trucks. New ties? Wide tires? I’m imagining a small time operation that sold pumpkins locally to a slightly up level income customer base (judging by the decorative pumpkins tossed along with Jack O lantern ones) getting rid of its excess inventory. Feels like the logic of kids (teenagers). Perhaps an adult said “Go take these to the dump in the truck, here’s $30 to pay the fee” and the kids said I have a better idea and we can keep the cash! Total conjecture of course.

Jissy November 2, 2015 (11:40 am)

Come on… You all know they were going to the pie factory!! Seriously though, that sucks.

Rick November 2, 2015 (12:03 pm)

I’d call them “dumpkins”. Sorry,had to.

chemist November 2, 2015 (12:17 pm)

I’m not sure I’d go as “CSI” as craig, but I wonder if someone was selling pumpkins at farmers markets or roadsides and didn’t want to pay the tipping fee.

trickycoolj November 2, 2015 (12:21 pm)

Craig — you’re probably on to something. Since they’re uncarved maybe they were a decoration for a school dance or other activity for youth. I could totally imagine being a teenager being voluntold to go get rid of these decoration pumpkins and laughing hysterically chucking them over those blackberries. (I grew up in a rural area my grandpa would have said to chuck them over the bank into the swamp!) What’s the large building in the background at the end of the alley in the picture? Might be a good place to start investigating.

WSB November 2, 2015 (12:23 pm)

That’s the EC Hughes Elementary building, which is currently vacant and likely to remain so until 2018.

Bell61 November 2, 2015 (12:29 pm)

Just a little making “lemonade” thought: at least one of those looks like a Cinderella pumpkin – they are great for pies and other pumpkin baked goods. Sorry that this happened.

Chris November 2, 2015 (12:48 pm)

I don’t know about the exact distance of the dump station but I think this is a calling. Time for me to carve out all the creatures of lord of the rings now. Thanks for the pumpkin delivery!!!

Sofia November 2, 2015 (2:34 pm)

Bell61, I took your advice and went and rounded me up some pumpkins! I’m going to can them and then have something convenient to use for my pumpkin bread, pumpkin pies, and pumpkin lasagna! Sorry that this happened. I hope that taking some will help just a little bit. There are plenty of good cooking pumpkins left, and even the orange ones have tasty seeds.

I. Ponder November 2, 2015 (2:59 pm)

Perhaps someone is trying to attract elephants.

Cory November 2, 2015 (4:25 pm)

My chickens LOVE to eat pumpkins! Unless someone has already called dibs or cleaned them up I’ll come by with my truck and load up a whole bunch this evening.