ST. PETERSBURG-- The mayoral election is more than a year away, but businessman Scott Wagman isn't waiting.

Unsolicited, he offered his opinion on the city's lack of curbside recycling in response to a Neighborhood Times story Wednesday on Mayor Rick Baker's green policies.

"As a Mayoral candidate, I believe we can have curbside recycling at minimal, if any net new cost with some strategic planning and service changes," he wrote in an email to a reporter. "As Mayor,I would initiate a study utilizing several different cost models to get it implemented. I look forward to a full and open discussion on this issue."

-Cristina Silva, Times Staff Writer