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Solid waste director says supplemental-cart rollout slowed, points to one-time vehicle repairs and WTE retrofit costs
Summary
Solid waste director told council FY27 projections were lowered by delayed supplemental-cart billing and a one-time spike in vehicle repair costs tied to automated truck arms; the department expects the supplemental-cart program to fully launch in FY27 and cited $4.1M for remaining WTE transformer work.
Larry Washington, director of solid waste, told Tampa City Council members that several revenue variances in the solid waste enterprise fund were temporary and programmatic rather than structural.
"We anticipated 1,500,000," Washington said when describing supplemental-cart revenue assumptions that did not materialize this fiscal year because of integration issues between billing (Kayenta) and routing (Routeware). He told council a pilot was successful and that a full launch of supplemental-cart billing is planned in the next fiscal year.
Council members also pressed Washington about a spike in motor-pool expense tied to repairs on automated-collection equipment. Washington said the department replaced aging lift arms on many automated trucks instead of rebuilding them — a concentrated, multi-year repair cycle whose cost will smooth over time. He listed a replacement cost around $244,000 per affected vehicle for major rebuilds. "That's a one-time thing," Washington said of the concentrated repairs.
Washington reviewed the Mackay Bay waste-to-energy retrofit and related costs, telling council the remaining transformer work is about $4,100,000 as staff finish upgrades to power the peninsula. He also said hauling waste to landfill during a full-year shutdown would cost roughly $45,000,000.
Council thanked Washington for his department's responsiveness; several members noted they receive few complaints about trash collection. Washington and the administration plan to return with more detail in upcoming CIP and budget materials.
Next steps: solid waste will complete systems integration for supplemental-cart billing, monitor motor-pool cost smoothing, and provide a detailed accounting of WTE retrofit and recent shutdown-related costs.
