I'm kind of the queen of alley shopping.
I have rescued 23 chairs in total in the last couple of years that I have taken to one of the dog parks that I frequent. One here, two there, three here and there, 12 in one place alone. All of these chairs were great chairs, and only three were technically dining room chairs. Two of those dining room chairs are still great after a couple years. This dog park had about 30 chairs that people had donated over the years, but when the city decided to do some work and put in permanent round tables with benches, they loaded up all of those chairs and took them away. Those benches were placed out in the blazing sun. The sun can be very intense in Colorado and people are always looking for shade. Those chairs get moved around and are used all of the time.
Our dumpsters were replaced with rolling bins a few years ago, and there was lots of discussion about not leaving garbage in the alley. One day someone posted a photo of a French Provincial dresser that someone dumped in their alley. It is a 9 drawer dresser. I drove over and with the help of a couple men who were working in the alley, got it loaded into my car. I got it home, repainted it because it needed to be, and now it is in my entry way, holding things like hats and gloves, keys, etc. It sits against the long side of the winding staircase and is perfect in my Victorian home. BTW, people sell these things for lots of money. They are highly sought after.