BALTIMORE CITY, Md. — BALTIMORE — Baltimore City Department of Public Works Director Matthew Garbark sat down with WMAR-2 News discuss the department's past year, upcoming infrastructure changes and long-term goals for the city and its water customers.
"We're doing a good job when people don't have to worry about us. When the water works, when the trash gets picked up, when your sewage is taken away, that's good," Garbark said.
Garbark said his team has navigated a range of challenges in the year since he took over the department. "From cold snaps to excessive heat to major challenges in different areas of the facility, but we've made a lot of progress; it seems like there's not a single thing that we haven't had to deal with," Garbark said.
Earlier this month, the city began drawing water from the Susquehanna River to supplement reservoir supply for both Baltimore City and Baltimore County customers.
Watch: Baltimore turns to Susquehanna River to supplement drinking water supply amid drought
"So we're taking the water from Loch Raven, and we're gonna blend it with a very small amount of Susquehanna water; we believe that it's going to render it indiscernible for people," Garbark said.
The department also rolled out a new billing system for county water customers on September 1. "State-of-the-art billing system; it's going to be better, we're gonna get them out timely, and customers are going to be able to look in and see real-time usage," Garbark said.
A ballot measure this November would create a separate department dedicated to water, a change Garbark said would make a big difference.
"This is about making government more responsive, more agile, ready to adapt to the needs of the modern workforce and modern society," Garbark said.
One of the department's major upcoming projects is the East Side Sustainability Complex, a full rebuild of the current East Side Recycling Plant. Construction is set to begin in 2027.
"We are looking to completely rebuild that; it's going to be brand new facilities for our crews. Anyone who goes to the west side knows the lines are really long; there's gonna be a citizen drop-off facility there, and sort of the crowning jewel of this is gonna be a composting facility," Garbark said.
In the near term, the department is preparing its fleet for snow season. Looking further ahead, Garbark said his priorities are worker safety, large-scale infrastructure projects and operational efficiency.
"I want people to go about their daily lives not worrying about the services we provide because they know they're going to be done successfully," Garbark said.
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