Minutes - Public Works Committee - 04/17/2001

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· Operations Number of snow events requiring full-scale operations: 11 Number of days spend sanding/clean-up work: 17 (Most of these snowfalls landed into the 2 inch to 6-inch accumulation range.) · Primary Routes One of the goals of the public works department is to keep what they consider, the primary routes used by residents open at all times. These routes are selected for their ability to get the greatest number of residents to a county, or state highway, as quickly as possible. The primary routes are plowed continuously in the event of heavy snowfall, and are plowed before they start full operations. After a plowing operation, or in the event of slippery conditions, two trucks spread pure salt over these roadways in an attempt to keep them clear of snow and ice. As a result of this policy, the majority of the straight salt used is spread on those routes. · Salt Usage Salt usage was up from the 1999-2000 season. During that winter they used 290 tons to spread on the roadways for ice control. This season they used 480 tons. In addition to the pure salt they spread on the road, they also mix approximately 360 tons of salt into their sand pile for use in ice control. Currently they have approximately 100 tons of salt left over. This excess salt is being stored at the MnDOT station in Anoka, and will remain as carry over inventory for next season. · Sand Usage This winter they distributed approximately 1,500 tons of salt/sand during the maintenance of the City roadways compared to 1,200 tons used last season. · Weather Service The City uses a private weather service to provide them with a more detailed forecast. The weather service forecasted most of the storms accurately, and gave them advance warning of weather systems moving into the area. The service contacts staff by fax during business hours, or will locate them by cell phone, or pager if they are away from home after hours. Staff also faxes the forecast along to City Hall and the Police Department to alert them of potential trouble. · Equipment Performance The equipment held up well this year, with only one major breakdown early in the year. In previous years they had experienced transmission problems on some of the cul-de-sac tracks. That was not the case this year. · Breakdown of Complaints As a department they received 137 phone calls on their snow plowing operations this season. It is their policy to return all phone calls, or talk to the residents in person, if that is what they request about damage and other concerns. The ratio of complaints from residents living on streets or cul-de-sacs was the following: 33 percent from residents living on cul-de-sacs, and 67 percent from residents living on streets. The majority of calls were as follows: Sod Damage - 27 percent; MailBox Damage - 7 percent; Request for Sand - 19 percent. The remainder of the Public Works Committee/April 17, 2001 Page 2 of 9