Pilot recovered 734 abandoned shopping carts; staff cautions state law changes and costs will affect city program design

City staff reported the results of a shopping-cart recovery pilot conducted Aug. 14'Nov. 14. The pilot focused on two areas and recovered 734 shopping carts (202 in Area 1; 532 in Area 2). Staff said vendor route design and retailer engagement improved recovery rates; roughly 6% of collected carts contained personal property, requiring coordination with other departments.

Financials and next steps: The pilot was funded internally using staff savings; staff estimated an annualized cost of about $128,000 to maintain the pilot citywide. Scaling to a permanent program had estimated initial start-up costs of roughly $686,000 (including vendor costs and one new analyst position at $123,000). Staff cautioned that recent state law requiring a 48-hour notice period and limiting recovery fees to $100 per container will reduce recovery volumes and revenue assumptions, and that the law also prevents cost recovery for inaccessible carts.

Councilmembers emphasized the value of using pilot data to engage large retailers that accounted for the majority of abandonments and to consider near-term steps that can be taken without full program funding.

What happens next: Staff will survey participating retailers, continue analysis and consider a citywide procurement if Council directs funds in the budget process.