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Back in 2009, the city of Pittsburgh paid $250,000 for 250 elegant iron trash cans weighing more than 200 pounds each. Critics of the mayor called it a waste of city funds at the time, but they are very nice-looking. Now 20% of them are missing, and it took police and the public works department four months to figure out where they've gone. They were hauled off and sold for scrap.
The reporter who covered this story for KDKA contacted scrap yards, and estimated that the fifty stolen cans would have sold for $1,500-$2,000. Total, not each.
Pricey Trash Cans Stolen From City Streets [KDKA]"