A discarded mattress and box spring sat outside Bob Coward's home in Mt. Washington for more than two weeks in early September — ignored by garbage collectors and drawing scorn from his neighbors. The city's Bureau of Environmental Services told Coward to leave out the bulk waste until workers could pick it up, but another city agency threatened to cite him over the curbside mess. The Bureau of Building Inspection sent Coward a warning letter to remove the bedding or face a fine. "I don't want to have any problems, but it doesn't seem one hand knows what the other one's doing," he said. Pittsburgh City Council members said Tuesday problems with bulk pickup remain an issue months after residents began complaining about the refuse being left along streets this summer. The matter was supposed to be resolved after the mayor's office hired five workers and a consultant to reorganize the agency. Public Works directors said most of the problems have been resolved and they disputed council's complaints as isolated incidents. The Bureau of Environmental Services has been operating its regular routes and paying employees overtime to collect additional bulk items. "There may be an isolated problem here or there," Public Works Director Guy Costa said. "For the most part, the trash is getting picked up every day, the recycling is getting picked up every day, and the bulk waste for the most part is picked up every day." Costa did not attend yesterday's legislative meeting, at which council members introduced bills and took final votes but did not talk with members of the administration or other witnesses. Council members agreed to ask the administration to submit within five days a report on bulk waste collection and the reorganization of the Bureau of Environmental Services, which collects refuse in the city. "There doesn't appear to be a solution to the problem," said Councilman Alan Hertzberg, who represents Mt. Washington. "I don't believe there are any solutions to the problem." Council President Gene Ricciardi agreed that "the magnitude of the problem is very serious," and said his office has received several complaints about bulk pickup. "The bulk of those complaints say, 'refuse, refuse, refuse,'" Ricciardi said. The city had problems collecting all of the bulk garbage in July and August when it didn't have enough active employees to run all the routes. It has since hired the five new employees, who are already working, and intends to hire three more, Costa said. The bureau needs 127 of its 185 employees to show up for work to run all of its collection routes. Thirty-six of those workers are on disability pay or transitional duty, meaning no more than 22 people can call in sick or take vacation on the same day. Jim Cosman, the consultant who has been running the agency while helping to find a permanent director, said other changes could take place later this year. He recommended to council last month that the city put three workers on each collection truck and make bulk pickups every week. At present, two workers are on most refuse trucks, and the city sends out a separate truck to collect bulk items such as furniture, most appliances or anything else that one person cannot carry. The department has purchased a software program to create new collection routes, and it could have the three-person crews in place by early December, Costa said. Cosman also wants the administration to buy a dozen new refuse trucks at a time when the city desperately needs to cut costs. Mayor Tom Murphy has said the city faces a budget deficit next year of $40 million to $50 million. The administration will recommend buying six new trucks next year and will refrain from making budget cuts from the environmental services budget, Costa said. Like all city agencies, Public Works must cut its budget by 5 percent — or about $1.5 million — but those reductions will come from the operations division rather than environmental services. Public Works also still plans to hire a permanent director to replace Cosman, who received a $100,000 consulting contract last month. Costa said the city will look internally first for a new director. In Mt. Washington, city crews picked up Coward's bedding on Sept. 17. The Bureau of Building Inspection did not follow through with a fine. Coward put out an old couch and child's mattress Monday for bulk pickup, but it remained on his curb a day later. Crews arrived late yesterday afternoon and collected the refuse. Anyone experiencing problems with bulk pickup can call a city hotline at (412) 255-2773.

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