POULSBO — Before the city of Poulsbo spent $275,000 for a new garbage truck, Public Works Director Jeff Bauman had another, less expensive idea: Spend $105,000 for a used garbage truck, an accessory and new 32-gallon garbage cans for all its residential customers.

The significantly lessened amount will allow the city to get the benefits of an automated solid waste system on a trial basis without making a large financial commitment, Bauman told the council’s finance/administration committee July 5.

The retrofit could play a role in the city’s final decision as to whether or not it will retain its current solid waste service or contract it out to a private company like Bainbridge Island, Bremerton and other cities, he said.

“Buying the accessory for $18,000, which can be moved from truck to truck, will take the city to the next level,” Bauman said.

In order to move into the world of automated garbage pickup, the next step is to replace all of the city’s existing residential garbage cans with 32-gallon containers that can be lifted by the accessory, he said.

“I think we can replace the cans and then we can use this equipment for a period of time for much less than buying a new truck,” he said.

During his department’s exploration of the solid waste issue, Bauman said public works staff contacted the city of Shelton about the lease of its backup garbage truck.

“We should be able to get it for $15,000, and it gives us a chance to see how things work,” he said.

Those three expenditures should give Poulsbo a clearer idea of what the future of its solid waste service should be at a minimal cost, he said, noting that even if the service is given to a contractor, new cans would still be needed.

The city council unanimously approved the $105,000 tab last Wednesday night without discussion.

Before the council meeting, Bauman presented another piece of the solid waste puzzle to the public works committee, which focused on finding a location for a transfer site.

The city of Bainbridge Island is ready to begin hauling Poulsbo’s solid waste to the county landfill in Bremerton, but in order for that to happen a suitable transfer site must be found, he said.

Currently, Poulsbo uses its own trucks to transport refuse to the landfill, which is an hour and a half round trip, assistant superintendent Dan Wilson told the committee.

“They haul the same place we do and they have a long haul truck,” Wilson said, noting the idea of Poulsbo hauling its trash across the Agate Pass bridge might create some controversy. “It wouldn’t have any actual impact, but it’s simply the fact that Poulsbo is hauling its garbage to Bainbridge Island to get it hauled off.”

If the city can find a place to build a ramp to dump its trucks into long haul containers, then Bainbridge Island could transport them, Wilson said.

Councilman Mike Regis suggested looking into whether the Kitsap County Recycling Center at the northeast corner of Viking Way and State Route 305 had enough room for the ramp and containers.

City Engineer Andrzej Kasiniak said another possible location would be the city’s Westside Well, which is located on Viking Way near Snider Field.

“We have enough room and there are no neighbors around,” Kasiniak said.

With those suggestions in mind, Bauman said if any of them can eliminate the city’s current long haul requirements, it would help.