Volunteers recover thousands of shopping carts in Federal Way

Stolen, abandoned shopping carts are an eyesore in many communities, but Federal Way has come up with a solution: the Cart Recovery Team.

In the past year, the team of five volunteers returned 3,456 usable shopping carts to more than 40 retailers. At $140 per cart, that amounts to $483,840 worth of recovered property. They also recycled 2,690 pounds of scrap metal from damaged carts.

The Federal Way City Council praised the clean-up effort this week. The Cart Recovery Team members are Frank Gabreluk, Dan Goede, Mari Ikeda-Gomes, Lottie Kinney and John McLaren. 

The team picks up about 400 shopping carts each month. Federal Way residents can report abandoned carts by calling the city's cart hotline at 253-835-6774, or contact them online at www.cityoffederalway.com/shoppingcart.