The Anchorage Woodlot is scheduled to open on Thursday in a new location for the season.

The municipal snow dump near C Street and 100th Avenue, which has served as the site for the past three years, is piled with snow and debris as a result of the record-setting snowfall this winter and the pile is expected to last well into the summer, said Ryan Stencel, operations manager with the Anchorage Soil & Water Conservation District, which manages the program.

The new location will occupy about an acre of the South Anchorage Sports Park. To get there, drive south on C Street to the curve at Klatt Road. Follow the curve and turn right.

The site accepts all natural wood, meaning tree and brush parts, limbs, logs, stumps and so forth. The purpose is to reduce fire danger due to dead wood. It costs $10 to drop off a load. Hours will be 9 a.m. -7 p.m. Thursday through Sunday until the end of September -- longer if weather permits.

Residents may take firewood from the site free of charge. In addition, some 2,500 tons of the material is ground into mulch suitable for landscaping, trail covering or erosion control, and that is also free to members of the public.

"We get about 6,000 drop-offs a year," Stencel said, "and probably 2,000 pickups. It will be about three weeks after opening when we do our first grind and have mulch available."

As of Friday, Stencel had an eye on conditions at the new location, which need to dry out before operations can begin there, but she sounded optimistic.

"We'll install fencing on Tuesday," she said. "There's a small chance that we'll have to open the week after, but the site is looking really good."

-- Anchorage Daily News