Road Commission forms committee to improve service

By TOM STANKARD

[email protected]

Bessemer — Following a lengthy discussion, the Gogebic County Road Commission voted to form a committee consisting of management and board members to resolve issues within the commission and improve snowplowing in the county.

During a joint meeting with the Gogebic County Board of Commission April 6, several county commissioners said they received a number of complaints from the public about the plowing.

In response, road commission manager-engineer Darren Pionk said the road commission isn’t “spot on 100 percent of the time.”

He said the commission isn’t fully staffed and it doesn’t have the necessary equipment to respond 24/7.

Since then, several road commissioners said they received complaints regarding plowing last weekend.

Roy D’Antonio, commissioner, said he drove around Watersmeet and claimed several roads weren’t plowed several hours following the snow storms last weekend. Pionk said he also drove around the area and agreed the roads should have been plowed sooner.

“Some of the roads were impassable in a car,” D’Antonio

In response to the complaints about plowing, several employees claimed there was a lack of communication between management and them.

A few employees said they weren’t called in before, during or following the storms. Another issue discussed was a lack of equipment and staff to effectively respond to winter storms on time.

After a lengthy discussion, the board of commissioners agreed to form a committee consisting of commissioners and management, including Pionk and others, to help solve the problems.

Also on the agenda, the road commission named Don Bennetts the commission’s chairperson and Marti Wegner the vice-chairperson.

Former chairman Arthur Lyons’ letter of resignation was approved during the April 6 meeting.

In other action, the board of commissioners:

— Voted to purchase four new plow trucks for about $179,000 per truck.

— Voted to purchase safety supplies for construction zones for $4,710.

— Approved the summer work schedule.