Bowie work session advances Public Works budget: compost expansion, street projects, water/sewer rate and capital loans

City staff presented Public Works operating and capital budgets to Bowie City Council on April 21, outlining plans to expand curbside composting, continue street, stormwater and fleet investments, and to borrow for water- and sewer-infrastructure rehabilitation.

Solid waste: Public Works staff proposed a $750,000 line in the FY2026 solid-waste budget to expand voluntary compost pickup to roughly 3,200 households (about one quarter of the city), combining food waste and yard waste pickup on the same day. Staff said the figure includes roughly $100,000 for compost bins and contractor costs; vendors reported per-household rates of $10–$15 per month in neighboring jurisdictions. The expansion would initially be contractor-operated, freeing city crews for other tasks and allowing scalable growth if the program succeeds.

Council members asked about vendor contracts, geographic coverage, procurement lead time and whether the city could piggyback on county facilities or contracts; staff said the pilot would be a separate city contract and estimated a 60–90 day lead time for bins and mobilization. Council directed staff to return with options that include a 25% and 50% city-coverage menu for cost comparison.

Truck fleet and garage: The equipment-maintenance division described goals to build in-house hydraulic-hose workstations and to ensure mechanics are trained on electric-vehicle basics; staff said limited EV experience so far shows lower routine maintenance but that larger fleet data are still limited.

Streets and stormwater: Staff reviewed a multi-year LED street-light upgrade program and a plan to replace wooden signposts in Northridge over two years. The city also reported continued work on a five-year stormwater facility and pond-maintenance program; specific projects mentioned included bank stabilization at Melford Pond and pipe-cleaning work at Midley Avenue.

Water and sewer: Finance and utility staff proposed an 8% combined rate increase for water and sewer for FY2026; the new proposed unit rates are $7.11 per 1,000 gallons for water and $10.20 per 1,000 gallons for sewer. Staff said the average quarterly household bill would rise about $15.48 under the proposed rates. The presentation included a multi-year cash-flow forecast that assumes no use of fund balance in FY2026 but anticipates additional borrowing to fund capital projects.

Capital projects: Staff proposed borrowing for a continuing water-main recapitalization program and a $1.5 million phase of sewer-pipe lining and rehabilitation; planned FY2026 water- and sewer-related capital outlays total several million dollars across projects including filter-system replacements, storage-tank maintenance and valve replacement work. Council asked staff to produce a project-level summary (neighborhoods, lengths, costs and funding sources) for the water-main recapitalization effort dating from program inception to the present and showing anticipated work for FY2026.

Next steps and council direction: Council asked staff to return with more detailed cost options for composting expansion (25% and 50% coverage scenarios), a neighborhood list for the planned compost expansion, unit costs for wooden-post replacement and a neighborhood-level accounting of water-main rehabilitation to date and proposed future work. Staff agreed to provide these details for upcoming budget sessions.