LOS ANGELES — Most Americans have closets packed with clothes, some of which they’ve never worn. That’s about $300 worth of brand-new pants, T-shirts and dresses, according to a 2022 study from Stitchfix, which also found that 80% of people routinely wear the same clothing items again and again. 

Anyone looking for a good excuse to declutter their closets and repurpose their castoffs has an opportunity through the annual LASAN clothing drive.

Starting Monday and running through March 3, the city’s Environment and Sanitation Department will accept donations of new and gently used clothing for men, women and children.

“There’s a big need out there for almost everything,” said Jennifer Pinkerton, assistant division manager for LA’s Citywide Recycling Division. For the past five years, LASAN has held public donation drives to collect toiletries, clothing, blankets, food and toys for various charities at designated times of year. 

This winter’s clothing drive will benefit the St. Francis Center to provide support to homeless and extremely low-income Angelenos, as well as LASAN’s Livability Services Division, which provides mobile hygiene units, clothing and a tent exchange to the homeless community.

As the city department tasked with managing trash and recyclables, LASAN donation drives match people in need with people that have things they no longer want.

“It’s the right thing to do,” Pinkerton said. “It’s inherently wasteful to just throw things away because you no longer need them.”

The donation drive is a small step toward the city’s zero waste goals. As part of the LA Green New Deal, the city is targeting 90% waste diversion from landfills by 2025 and zero waste by 2050. The city is currently diverting 76.2% of its waste, according to the latest data from LASAN. 

“It’s an aspirational goal, but we want to encourage people to reuse things as opposed to throwing them away,” Pinkerton said. “It’s not that difficult a thing to do: buy less, use things longer. If you no longer want things, promote reuse by donating those items.”

The recycling rate for clothing and shoes is just 13%, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Every pound that is donated, Pinkerton said, helps move the city toward its zero-waste target. Last year’s LASAN clothing drive collected 5,963 pounds.

The city is accepting everything from sweaters and jackets to shirts, pants and socks. LASAN asks that clothing items be washed and clean before dropping them off at the agency’s taking part district yards.

The following collection sites will be open for clothing donations from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays:

East Valley District Yard 
11050 Pendleton St.
Sun Valley, CA 91352

West Valley District Yard
8840 Vanalden Ave.
Northridge, CA 91234

North Central District Yard
452 San Fernando Rd.
Los Angeles, CA 90031

West LA District Yard
2027 Stoner Ave. 
Los Angeles, CA 90025

Harbor District Yard 
1400 N. Gaffey St. 
San Pedro, CA 90731

Public Works Building
1149 S. Broadway - Lobby
Los Angeles, CA 90015