Pittsfield Council OKs Funds for Plow Truck; Refers Council Pay Recommendation
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Winter is right around the corner, and Pittsfield plans to purchase a vehicle to increase its snow-plowing capacity.
On Tuesday, the City Council approved the transfer of $200,000 from the Public Works Stabilization Fund for equipment. The Department of Public Services will purchase a one-ton truck equipped with an all-season body, snowplow, wing, and spreader.
Commissioner of Public Services and Utilities Ricardo Morales said it is something the department would like to have for supervision and expanding its work.
"We need this piece of equipment to have a supervisor be able to go on the mains with a wing plow and assist on that as needed, and be able to pick up that wing and go to a neighborhood street and be able to assist with snow plowing in a neighborhood street," he explained.
"And at the same time be able to jump throughout the city because he's supervising as well, making sure that there's volume."
A comparable truck is included in Pittsfield's capital plan.
These vehicles normally need to be ordered 10 to 12 months ahead of delivery, but Morales said Pittsfield identified one that can be expedited; he did not say how quickly.
"Approving funding now gives us the best chance of having the truck built and in service for the coming snow season," he wrote in a communication to the council.
The DPW is responsible for ensuring that roads, sidewalks, and critical public spaces are safe and accessible during winter storms. Operations cover a total of 450 lane miles: 208 miles of accepted and unaccepted streets, 6 miles of priority sidewalks, 20 city-owned buildings (including 14 school campuses), five public parking lots, two municipal parking garages, two lake access points with associated lots, and parks and conservation lands.
Ten miles of state-owned roads are maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
Pittsfield currently has two of these one-ton trucks for the DPW, as well as six or seven snow fighters and pickup trucks. What it doesn't have is a plow truck with a wing and spreader capable of going on main roads and neighborhood streets, Morales said.
In his communication, he explained the one-ton unit gives operators a smaller, more maneuverable option for neighborhood streets, narrow roads, dead ends, and tight intersections.
Additionally, with the wing and spreader, he said operators can plow, push back banks, and treat in a single pass for faster clearing of residential streets and corners, better access for emergency vehicles and school buses, and safer conditions at crossings for residents on foot.
The city has been reviewing the best approach for obtaining this equipment, given borrowing circumstances.
While he supported the transfer, Ward 1 Councilor Kenneth Warren would have liked an earlier notification that they were looking to purchase a new vehicle, even if the funding was not yet identified.
In other news, referred to the Ordinances and Rules subcommittee under Rule 27 was a communication from Mayor Peter Marchetti recommending to amend City Code, Chapter 16.
It would increase city councilor pay from $8,000 per year to $12,000 a year, council president pay from $10,000 a year to $15,000 a year, and School Committee members would be paid $8,000 a year.
"As you are aware, salaries for city councilors have not been adjusted since 1994, while those for School Committee members were last adjusted in 2014," he wrote.
Former councilor Karen Kalinowsky, during public comment, said she thinks it is wrong, and "the people should be deciding whether the City Council or School Committee should have it raised."
"We're talking about lowering our costs, and I believe, and when I ran, that's what I believed, that I did this as a public service to the city. It was my giving back, wanting to make the city better," she said.
"If you're here for a job that you want to make an income, and you don't like what stipend you get today because it's not a salary, it's a stipend, maybe you should look somewhere else because the citizens of Pittsfield can't afford this."
Tags: snowplow, stipend,
