All Dare County offices and facilities will be closed on Monday, January 19, 2026 in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

These closures include the Dare County C&D Landfill in Manns Harbor, the Buxton Transfer Station and the Manteo Recycle Yard, which will be closed Monday, January 19, 2026 and will reopen and operate with regularly scheduled hours on Tuesday, January 20, 2026.

REMINDER: The C&D Landfill side of the facility in Manns Harbor will be closed on Saturdays until further notice; however, the Transfer Station side of the facility will remain open during this time. Contractors who typically dispose of C&D materials at the landfill on Saturdays will still be able to dispose of those materials at the Transfer Station, which operates on the same property at 1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor.

Residential trash collection for the week of Monday, January 19, 2026 through Friday, January, 23, 2026, will be as follows:

• Monday, January 19, 2026: Closed - No trash collection

• Tuesday, January 20, 2026: Kitty Hawk, Colington, Buxton, Frisco and Hatteras. 

• Wednesday, January 21, 2026: Manteo, Wanchese, Skyco, Manns Harbor, Mashoes, East Lake, Stumpy Point, Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo and Avon.

• Thursday, January 22, 2026: Kitty Hawk, Colington, Buxton, Frisco and Hatteras. 

• Friday, January 23, 2026: Manteo, Wanchese, Skyco, Manns Harbor, Mashoes, East Lake, Stumpy Point, Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo and Avon. 

Commercial dumpster collection for the unincorporated areas of Dare County and the Town of Kitty Hawk will take place on Tuesday, January 20, 2026 and Friday, January 23, 2026.

Dare County Public Works will be modifying trash can collection procedures for four roads located off Old Lighthouse Road in Buxton beginning Monday, December 15, 2025. These changes are necessary due to severely deteriorated road conditions, including sand buildup and low-hanging tree limbs, which have made sections of these roads too narrow or unsafe for collection trucks to access.

In order to ensure safe and reliable service and to minimize damage to county equipment, residents are asked to follow the updated placement guidelines below according to their road.

As a reminder, please place your can out the night before collection and return it to your home after collection.

Ocean Drive 

All trash cans must be placed on the north side of Ocean Drive. This allows the truck to safely back down the road, collect all cans on one side, and then pull straight out. The truck can only back as far as the Cape Hatteras Seashore cottages before the road becomes impassable.

Cottage Avenue 

All trash cans must be placed on the north side of Cottage Ave. The truck will back down the road, collect cans on the same side, and pull out. The truck can safely back nearly the full length of the road before reaching sand buildup.

North Tower Circle Rd.

All trash cans must be placed on the north side of North Tower Circle Rd. The truck will back in, collect cans, and pull straight out. The truck will proceed only as far as conditions allow before reaching sand.

South Tower Circle Road 

All trash cans must be placed on the south side of South Tower Circle Road. The truck will pull in forward, collect cans, and then back out safely. The truck will travel only as far as it can before sand prevents further access.

Tower Circle Road  (Connector Road)

This road, which connects North Tower Circle and South Tower Circle, is no longer accessible by truck from either direction due to severe sand and road narrowing. Residents on this stretch must take their cans to North Tower Circle Road or South Tower Circle Rd. and follow instructions provided above, or take cans directly to Old Lighthouse Road.

Due to significant staffing shortages resulting from long-term medical leave and vacant positions, Dare County Public Works has announced that the Construction & Demolition (C&D) Landfill located at 1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor will be closed on Saturdays beginning Saturday, November 29, 2025, and continuing until further notice. This temporary schedule adjustment will allow Dare County Public Works staff to continue operating efficiently and effectively during weekday business hours while ongoing hiring efforts actively continue.

Transfer Station to Remain Open During Landfill Closures

Although the C&D Landfill side of the facility in Manns Harbor will be closed on Saturdays until further notice, the Transfer Station side of the facility will remain open during this time. Contractors who typically dispose of C&D materials at the landfill on Saturdays will still be able to dispose of those materials at the Transfer Station, which operates on the same property at 1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor. 

However, contractors should note that the tipping fee at the Transfer Station is  higher ($94.04 per ton) than at the C&D Landfill ($73.16 per ton) because materials must be transported offsite for disposal. 

Dare County Public Works appreciates the community’s patience and understanding as the department works to fill critical vacancies and restore full operations as soon as possible! 

Questions? Contact Dare County Public Works at 252-475-5844.

To prepare for the upcoming reconstruction of the Dare County Public Works facility located on Driftwood Drive in Manteo, the Recycling Department at this site will be temporarily closed and relocated as the existing buildings are scheduled to be demolished. Originally constructed in the 1970s, the Public Works facility has become outdated over the past several decades and is being replaced as part of Dare County’s Capital Improvements Plan to create a more modern and efficient complex that will better serve the Dare County community for years to come.

The Recycle Department at the Public Works facility in Manteo will be closed from Monday, October 27, 2025 to Saturday, November 1, 2025 in order to move to two new temporary locations—one in Manteo and one in Manns Harbor—and be ready to reopen at those new sites on Monday, November 3, 2025. 

The Manteo site is located across the street from the current Recycling Department location and adjacent to the Dare County fuel island; its address is 1035 Driftwood Drive. The second site is the Dare County Landfill, which is located at 1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor (see map for details). These new locations will be operational for the duration of the new Dare County Public Works project, which is slated to take approximately two years to complete.

Please see below to find out which of the two sites will accept specific items:

• Electronics: 1035 Driftwood Drive in Manteo
• Waste oil: 1035 Driftwood Drive in Manteo
• Batteries: 1035 Driftwood Drive in Manteo
• Tires: Landfill (1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor)
• Bulk cardboard: Landfill (1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor). This applies to the towns and commercial businesses that bring cardboard in by truckload.
• Glass: Place in compactor at 1035 Driftwood Drive in Manteo 
  • (Crushed glass will no longer be available until the new site and glass crusher machine are operational.)
• Plastics: Place in compactor at 1035 Driftwood Drive in Manteo
• Cardboard boxes: Break down and place in compactor at 1035 Driftwood in Manteo. This applies to homeowners who only bring in a few boxes at time.
• Paper: Place in compactor at 1035 Driftwood Drive in Manteo
• Yard debris/brush: Landfill (1603 Cub Road in Manns Harbor)

Questions? Contact the Dare County Public Works Department at 252-475-5844. For more information about the new facility being constructed for Dare County Public Works in Manteo, visit DareNC.gov/Projects.