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Public works to add two electric garbage trucks; code enforcement reports tool-loan and mattress-collection gains
Summary
Public Works reported the Board of Public Utilities approved the purchase of two demo electric garbage trucks and installation of movable chargers; Code Enforcement said its tool-shed program has served 276 households since Feb. 2025 and reported 823 mattresses collected since Nov. 2024 along with recent encampment removals.
Public Works and Code Enforcement gave brief updates to the Tulare City Council on Tuesday, highlighting fleet electrification and recent compliance and cleanup work.
Electric trucks and charging: The Board of Public Utilities approved buying two demo electric garbage trucks; staff said the vehicles are demo units expected to be on the road by February, that movable chargers will be installed at the corporation yard and that chargers will be transferable to a future corporation yard. Staff said they will send photos when the trucks are deployed.
Code Enforcement programs and results: Manny (Code Enforcement) reported that the department's tool-shed program has had 30 appointments in the past 30 days and 276 households have used it since February 2025; the mattress-collection program collected 75 mattresses in the last month and 823 mattresses since November 2024. Manny also described encampment outreach and removals (25 encampment contacts in a short operation, with county and partner assistance) and said crews removed 12,500 pounds of trash and illegal dumping in a recent 36-hour operation.
Graffiti and enforcement: Council and staff discussed a potential graffiti-reward program; police noted many taggers are juveniles, prosecutions and public cooperation are limited and the department would need to assess how rewards align with prosecutorial and community-safety objectives.
Quote: "So far in the last month, we received 75 mattresses. And since November 2024, we received 823 mattresses," Manny reported.
What's next: Public Works will install chargers and deploy the demo electric trucks; Code Enforcement will continue outreach and enforcement and will coordinate further with police on graffiti and encampment strategies.
