Do I need a permit to place a dumpster in Hampstead?
Yes, and it is written down — which is rare. By-law 815 allows a container on a private lot « for the duration of construction, demolition or renovation work, and this conditional upon a permit having been issued in respect of that work » (s. 5.1), and its section 7 specifies: « Container: Permit required, free of charge ». So the job site is what governs. The town requires a building permit regardless of the value of the work as soon as you touch the structure, the exterior appearance, the plumbing or the electrical system, and a certificate of authorization for all work of 2,000 $ or more that is not subject to a building permit. Allow up to 14 days for minor work and up to 30 days for major work, through hampstead.edemandes.com. In doubt about your case? Planning department, 514 369-8200.
Can I have the dumpster placed on the street in front of my house?
No. By-law 815 is one line long: « No container may be installed on the public roadway except for the carrying out of municipal works » (s. 5.3). And if one sits there anyway, « no formal notice is required and the town may proceed with removal without notice or delay », at the owner's expense (s. 8.2 d). We must report that two other by-laws of the same town do name containers among the objects of a permitted occupancy of the public domain — construction by-law 1003 (s. 44 2°) and by-law 1035 (s. 13 2°), which caps temporary occupancy at 30 non-renewable days and requires liability insurance, occupancy of a public right-of-way being priced at 104 $ per vehicle per day. We do not arbitrate between three municipal texts: we deliver on your land, or we call the town together at 514 369-8200.
Why can't the dumpster sit directly on my driveway?
Because the construction by-law forbids it, in plain words: « A waste container may under no circumstances be placed directly on the ground » (by-law 1003, s. 44). In Hampstead, protection under the box is not a comfort option, it is what makes the placement compliant. Every one of our dumpsters arrives fitted with the PROTEC-O-SOL system, built-in planks that spread the load — nothing to supply, nothing extra to pay. Just as well: zoning allows only concrete, paver, grass-paver and asphalt in driveways, and prohibits gravel, sand, river stone, crushed stone and stone dust. In other words, every driveway here is a hard surface that can be marked. Our drivers' tip, for full protection: four flattened cardboard boxes, or a thin sheet of plywood, on the chosen spot before the truck arrives.
How many dumpsters can I have on my lot at once?
One. « Having more than one container on a private lot is prohibited », states section 5.2 of by-law 815 — and section 3 adds that no acquired rights are recognized for those already installed before the by-law came into force. On a job site producing more than one box, the answer is therefore not to line up two, but to pick the right size and the right swap cadence: a 10 yard holds 7.6 m³, a 20 yard 15.3 m³, a 40 yard 30.6 m³. We organize the swap rather than the pile-up, and the 50 $ Libération Express credit applies when the box is freed up within 48 hours of delivery, from March to October.
What hours can you deliver and pick up the dumpster in Hampstead?
Never at night, and the by-law describes the exact move our truck makes. It is prohibited « to deliver construction materials or goods […] by vehicle during the night, from 9 p.m. on a given day to 7 a.m. the next » and prohibited « to load or unload a transport vehicle during the night » (by-law 795-2, s. 6.1 and 6.2). So the useful window is daytime. If the job site runs around the delivery, factor in the noisy-work hours: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, and nothing at all on the holidays of schedule 1-B — Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are among them — nor on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the month of August, as the town sums it up on its own planning page. It publishes those dates: its 2026 collection calendar marks the « no construction permitted » days. That is the document to open before setting a date with us.
Can the drop-off centre replace a dumpster for my Hampstead job site?
For a car trunk, yes. For a job site, no — and Hampstead does not even have a drop-off centre: the town refers residents to Montréal's, « without managing them in any way », and names the nearest, Côte-des-Neiges, at 6925 chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges. There, « no mechanical means (e.g. tipping trailer) may be used to unload materials » and « drop-off centre staff do not help with unloading »: everything comes out by shovel. Agglomeration residents get 12 m³ of construction debris free per year — about 15.7 yards, less than a single 20 yard dumpster — then 31 $ per cubic metre, capped at 15 visits a year; construction companies pay 31 $ per cubic metre from the first one. Add that Hampstead's municipal collection takes neither construction materials nor soil, stone, asphalt or cement, and the arithmetic is quick.
Where can my car sleep while the dumpster occupies the driveway?
It is the most useful question on this page, because in Hampstead the street is no free fallback. Parking there is limited to eight consecutive hours between 7 a.m. and 1 a.m., and prohibited between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. without a valid permit (by-law 1036, s. 5.5). The town offers 6 free overnight permits per licence plate per calendar year, valid one night at a time, bookable on the citizen portal — and granted « to residents and non-residents alike ». Its parking page names « repaving your driveway » among the accepted reasons. A tolerance also applies every Friday evening of the year and on the eve of every statutory holiday. Careful: a Hampstead permit is never valid on Côte-Saint-Luc Road, « under the exclusive jurisdiction of the City of Montréal ».
What does my security deposit have to do with the dumpster?
Everything, and that is specific to Hampstead. The town « requires, as a precondition to issuing a permit or certificate, security deposits » meant to cover damage to sidewalks, streets, trees, fire hydrants and lampposts: 2,500 $ notably for a driveway, landscaping or front-façade work, 10,000 $ for a new build or a major extension. And the text is direct: « If the work soils the sidewalks or the public roadway, the town may seize all or part of the security deposit […] to cover cleaning costs. » The deposit is returned only « if no damage […] is noted by the municipal inspector ». With 58 km of sidewalks against 29 km of roadway, every delivery crosses one: hence the planks under the box, the metre of clearance from the sidewalk and the clean load.
