Montreal clears streets of snow

By ZACHARY MARANO

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MONTREAL, Wis. — The public works department of the city of Montreal is working hard to clear its streets after heavy snowfall last week, Public Works Foreman Mark Haegar told the common council at its regular meeting Tuesday.

Haegar said they had a three-day snowstorm last week and on day four, they were already getting phone calls about the large snowbanks. Council member Ken Saari said he couldn’t believe how many complaints he received from residents regarding the snowbanks.

“People don’t understand that it takes time. We plowed three times last week. Yesterday was negative 35 degrees with the wind chill. And if you don’t have to take equipment out in negative 35, you don’t. Some things break. Today, we were out in full force pushing banks back. It’s going to be a slow process,” Haegar said.

The public works department also had another breakdown with their older G-Series wheel loader and spent the better part of a day fabricating and welding the vehicle. Haegar said that he knows the city budget is limited right now, but they should consider upgrading the wheel loader. He said the city’s two front-end loaders are their most important pieces of equipment during the wintertime.

Haegar said the older vehicle is from 1996 and has pushed a great amount of snow in its lifetime. He said that if the front-end loader’s transmission fails, it will cost $10,000 to $20,000 to replace. He does not think it makes sense to invest that much money — about a sixth of the vehicle’s value — to replace a part that could fail.

“One of the things that we’re seeing a lot of is people parking on streets and that really does hinder out plow drivers. So, I do ask that all residents not to park on the streets overnight during winter. And with big snowstorms like that, just check your furnace vents and carbon monoxide detectors, because when it comes off the roofs, it really does pack it up fast and that’s always a big fear of mine,” Mayor Kelly Traczyk said.

During Dec. 14 meeting, the council heard that Montreal could apply for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Private Lead Service Line Replacement Program. Although there are not any lead service lines in the city, there are some homes with galvanized waterlines that were once downstream of a lead fitting that would qualify for funding.

Haegar said they contacted residents to find out if they still had galvanized waterlines or if they had been changed to copper. He said that about 30 of the 65 homes will qualify for funding, and that the city will receive a $150,000 grant through this program. He also said that the state has invested more money in the Private Lead Service Line Replacement Program, so it seems that the city will have an opportunity to apply for the program again next year.

The city can hire a contractor to dig up the galvanized waterlines, but they have to find a certified plumber to work in people’s homes. Haegar said that finding a certified plumber will be difficult because there are not many in the area that would do this kind of work. Despite this initial difficulty, he said the program will help the city greatly.

Traczyk said that 30 homes are a good amount for them to start with. The council authorized Traczyk to file applications for state financial assistance for lead service line replacement in the city.

Traczyk said the city also applied for supplemental funds from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation through the Local Road Improvement Plan. She said that the city of Hurley’s Rangeview Drive was ranked as the No. 1 priority for the LRIP funds and Montreal’s projects were ranked second. She said that she included Ontario Street and Minnesota Street in the application.