Trying to get a handle on the problem of stolen and abandoned shopping carts, Albany passed a law in 2008. The law was amended in 2021 and then, in a reorganization of the city code, passed again in 2022. What has been the result?
“Shopping carts continue to pose a big problem,” City Manager Peter Troedsson said in his weekly report to the city council on Friday, March 7. “By law, stores are responsible for their carts but that doesn’t stop them from being removed from store lots.”
The report went on: “When complaints are received, the parks maintenance staff end up taking action, but they spend a significant amount of time hauling carts back to stores. We’re looking into methods for better enforcement. Fred Meyer has locks on their carts that keep them in the lot. As can be expected, parks staff find very few Fred Meyer carts.”…