You could also look in the Yellow Pages under "scrap metal" and you'll probably find reputable companies there that will take the stuff from you for free.
Or, if you do the idea of hiring someone to move the stuff out of your property and place it outside next to your house, in your driveway, etc. Then you can easily get people to come and take it away for free without going into your building -- even Craigslist people.
Or, you could call a light moving company, maybe from the Yellow Pages, and have them move it for you. There will probably be a reasonable charge, but instead of them moving it to another location or paying someone on the other end to take it, they will probably just junk the stuff themselves and get paid for the scrap metal.
If you can't move the stuff yourself, you are left with having to rely on someone to come into your building and move it for you. It doesn't have to be an anonymous Craigslist person and it can be any reputable person or company that you can find.
Although there are issues about Freon etc., if you put anything out there that has Freon in it (an AC, a fridge, etc), people will take it in a heartbeat for the scrap metal. None of the many people that I have seen take those items in the past has had any interest in whether or not the appliances work -- they just junk them for scrap metal whether working or not. I have even put items out next to the curb that I put a sign on that said "Works" and they just throw it on top of their pickup truck and scrap it anyway.
I used to have a guy who had a garage (just a garage on an empty lot) next to me and he hauled junk and scrap metal for a living. Whatever I gave him -- working or not -- including lawn mowers, bikes, AC's, washers, dryers, etc. -- all went for scrap metal. The property owner eventually tore the garage down and built a home on the property, but I learned a lot about how they do the junk and scrap metal business while the garage and junk and scrap metal guy was still there.
Good luck.