Snow Plowing Expenses Deplete Contingency Account

By Steve Bigham

The Legislative Council Tuesday voted to transfer $50,000 from contingency into the town’s winter maintenance account. The move was made as costs for overtime, salt, and sand continue to add up.

The latest move left the contingency account with just $16,000, the lowest the account has dropped in many years. To date, the council has had to transfer a total of $150,000 for the purpose of keeping the roads clear.

Council members Melissa Pilchard and Pierre Rochman took issue with the high costs for winter maintenance, which as of last week had reached $412,978. Last week’s storm “Emily” cost the town nearly $42,000 in overtime and another $21,000 for salt and sand.

Mrs Pilchard complained that she didn’t think the highway crews should get paid while catching up on a few hours of sleep, which during a storm is usually done in a truck or on a cot at the highway garage. According to Public Works Director Fred Hurley, the town has to pay them.

“By contract, if we keep them, we have to pay them,” he said. “It’s a very tough business.”

Mr Rochman’s concern is that snowfalls are starting to turn in to “open ended checkbooks.”

“It’s like we can plow, plow, plow, and then go back for more money,” he said, wondering if the town was not going overboard in its attempts to keep the streets bare of snow.

Mr Hurley explained that there are liability issues that require towns to make roads as safe as possible. “The general policy is when it snows, you sand and plow, especially with this being such a litigious society,” he said. “And I can assure you we don’t keep the roads bare judging from all the phone calls I receive from residents.”

Mr Rochman seemed satisfied with Mr Hurley’s answers.

“I guess we can’t have a policy of three inches of snow before we plow,” he joked.