1 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot
Program Status Report
City Council
December 16, 2025
Item 7.2
Chris Burton, Director, Planning Building and Code Enforcement Rachel Roberts, Deputy Director, Planning, Building and Code Enforcement 2 Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
SB 753 Introduced
in Senate
SB 753 Approved in
Senate
SB 753 Approved in
Assembly
SB 753 Signed by
Governor
February 4, 2025, City Council
meeting: the City Council considered a
menu of policy options and provided
direction on pursuing changes to state
law, amending the City’s regulatory
ordinance, and pursuing a contract
cart retrieval service.
May 6, 2025, City Council meeting: the
City Council approved a revised
regulatory ordinance.
Pilot Program Implemented December 16, 2025, City
Council meeting
Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Efforts Over the Past Year
3 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Pilot Program Evaluation
0 10
20 30
40 50
60 70
Week 1Week 2Week 3Week 4Week 5Week 6Week 7Week 8Week 9 Week 10 Week
11 Week
12 Week
13 Carts Retrieved During Pilot Program by Week and by Pilot Area, August-November 2025
Area 1 Area 2
• Pilot operated from August 14 – November 14
2025
• Operated in two pilot areas
• Collected 734 carts in total
• 202 from pilot area 1
• 532 from pilot area 2
• Code Enforcement staff used ride-alongs to
observe the contractor’s efforts and work
with the contractor to improve the
effectiveness of the service over the course
of the pilot.
4 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Pilot Program Evaluation
Pilot Area 1 Cart Retrieval Location Map Pilot Area 2 Cart Retrieval Location Map 5 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Pilot Program Evaluation
Retailer Pilot Area 1 Pilot Area 2 Total
Costco 72 132 204
Whole Foods 2 135 137
Walmart 29 79 108
Safeway 5 78 83
Target 18 7 25
Real Produce 1 17 18
Trader Joe's 1 16 17
Sprouts 3 8 11
La Plaza 10 0 10
TJ Maxx 0 9 9
Top 10 Retailers Among Carts Retrieved in the First 10 Weeks of the Pilot 6 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Pilot Program Evaluation
Key Conclusions
Collected a significant
number of carts.
• Code Enforcement’s staff used ride-
alongs to help the contractor
improve effectiveness.
Pilot Area 2 saw more carts
retrieved than Pilot Area 1.
• Difference in retrieval could be
because Area 2 is a smaller
geographic area with a high density
of carts.
Retailer data could be useful.
• Tracking retailers with high cart
abandonment rates could inform
and improve Code Enforcement’s
oversight of Cart Management
Plans.
Relatively small number of
carts had trash or belongings.
• A small number of carts could not
be collected because they contained
personal belongings or trash,
highlighting the need for
coordination across departments.
Multiple reasons why carts are
abandoned.
• Data suggests cart abandonment
may be due to carts being used by
unhoused individuals and carts
being used to transport purchases
from nearby stores to apartment
complexes within the pilot areas.
More interdepartmental
coordination still needed.
• Many improvements were made
during the pilot but more
streamlining and solving for gaps
would be needed for permanent
program
7 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Pilot Program Evaluation
Cost Analysis
Pilot Costs
3-month Pilot Annualized
Total Pilot Cost $ 32,239.26 $ 128,957.04 Cost Per Service Zone $ 16,119.63 $ 64,478.52 Number of Service Zones 2
Opportunity Costs
87 staff hours
No activity for the Fee for Service Abandoned Shopping
Cart Program in October/November=
• 62 proactive/complaint driven inspections
• 10 citations
• 30 Abandoned Cart Prevention Plan Reviews
~1740 staff hours
372 proactive/complaint driven inspections
60 citations
120 Abandoned Cart Prevention Plan Reviews
Start Up Costs for City-wide Program
Citywide Cost $ 563,112
+ 1.0 FTE Analyst I/II $ 123,330
Proposed City-wide Cost Estimate $ 686,443 City-wide Program Cost Recovery Fee Estimates
Annual Estimated Carts Retrieved 12,821
Fee Cost per cart $ 100.00
Estimated Fee Revenue $ 1,282,053.33
8 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report State Legislation
• Notice Required: Cities and counties must provide retailers with 48 hours notice before retrieving a cart.
• Inaccessible Carts: City cannot recover costs to retrieve “inaccessible” carts.
• Cost Recovery Fee Cap: Cost recovery per cart is capped at $100.
Staff believes that it’s possible to develop a service with per cart fees below that limit.
New State legislation gives the City the ability to operate a cost recovery cart retrieval program, but does impose a few requirements:
9 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot Program Status Report Proposed Workplan
• Complete Customer Survey
• Review Lessons Learned/Potential Ongoing Improvements • RFP Process: A request for proposal (RFP) will be needed to select a contractor to provide the service on an ongoing basis.
• Funding: Funding for start-up costs would need to be allocated. Staff will seek cost recovery, but initial funding is needed to start and staff the program, for example to oversee interdepartmental coordination, vendor oversight, and retailer billing.
• Proposed Timeline: If start-up funding is likely in Spring 2026 via the Proposed Budget, staff will aim to complete the RFP by June to enable service implementation soon after Fiscal Year 2026-2027 begins.
10 Abandoned Shopping Cart Retrieval Pilot
Program Status Report
City Council
December 16, 2025
Item 7.2
Chris Burton, Director, Planning Building and Code Enforcement Rachel Roberts, Deputy Director, Planning, Building and Code Enforcement