When Councilmen Ron Swegles and Fred Fowler want a hint as to how the economy is doing, they've been known to ask the garbageman.

Although Jerry Nabhan, general manager of Specialty Solid Waste & Recycling, said it isn't an exact science, he acknowledged that the amount of trash being collected each day is an excellent indicator of the business climate.

Nabhan said he is one of the first people who sees the results of increased production and business work in Sunnyvale. His drivers have had to increase the number of stops inside Moffett Park and along El Camino Real, because increased construction, renovation and development are producing more waste.

In Moffett Park, specialty drivers have increased their stops from 2,830 a month a year ago to 2,970 this year, averaging 140 stops a day. The 5 percent increase—while small—is an improvement over the 120 stops a day they were making when the economy crashed.

"To me, it means that there is more business being done in Sunnyvale," Nabhan said.

The El Camino Real route has seen a similar increase, up 120 stops a month from July last year.

"It's rising very slowly compared to how it fell," Nabhan said. "It fell overnight, and we're looking at a slow turnaround. But it is turning around."

But garbage isn't the only indicator of an upward climb in the economy. The slow change is also reflected in reports in the city's financial department.

Director Mary Bradley said that the economic curve has finally leveled off and begun creeping back up after almost four years of a downhill slide. In the first three months of 2004, sales-tax revenue increased by some 6 percent, bringing in an additional half million dollars to Sunnyvale's coffers. That trend continued for the next three months, and Bradley said she thinks it will continue to slowly rise. The rise is exactly in line with the 6 percent rise her department forecasted for 2004.

"I'm sure that's just coincidence," Bradley said. "This is so hard to predict, because so much of Sunnyvale's economy is technology, and we never know what's going to happen there."

In addition, Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Suzi Blackman said she is starting to see companies with more disposable income sponsoring events and outsourcing work into the community, a sign that businesses are more confident.

Blackman said that her feelings are still cautiously optimistic, because some of the changes may be due to other factors.

"I think people are hoping that we're out of the long, dark tunnel, but I don't know if that's necessarily the case, especially with the elections coming up. When you have an election, you never know who's putting money into the economy," Blackman said.

But even with those factors, Blackman said many of the signs are pointing toward a better future. Chamber membership has fallen this year, after a record rise of more than 200 members last year. Blackman said it was because in hard times, businesses pull together to help each other survive, but as things get better, business leaders are busy with clients and have less time for Chamber events.

Not all the signs are slow, creeping rises.

At this year's Sunnyvale Art and Wine Festival, Blackman said, the Chamber had 45 business sponsors, more than it has ever had. After the "dot-bomb," Blackman said, there was a significant drop in business sponsorships of local events and participation in fundraisers.

"It shows that businesspeople are wanting to be out there and be available; there's a sense that things are going to get better," Blackman said.

The sense of optimism also shows in the number of participants in the Chamber's Service Corps of Retired Executives program. The SCORE group holds four meetings every Tuesday to counsel local business owners on their concerns, ranging from starting a small business to maintaining a current operation.

Three years ago—at the downswing's lowest point—SCORE counselors were booked three or four months in advance, and Blackman had to double up some appointments to meet the needs of the business community. She attributed the high use at that time to the high number of people who were laid off and decided to work for themselves by starting a new business.

But as times have changed, the workload for SCORE counselors has fallen. On Aug. 3, there were no meetings scheduled, and Blackman said June and July were slow months as well.

"Over the last few months, I've noticed that they're seeing a big drop," Blackman said. "So I think that's an indication that more people are going back to work."