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Committee reviews downtown snow response after record snowfall; staff to assess contractor performance
Summary
Committee members discussed snow removal operations after the city's fourth-largest recorded snowfall, including downtown contractor performance and whether to haul snow out; staff said crews supplemented contractor efforts and will review contracts and response plans.
Committee members reviewed the city’s snow response after an unusually large storm—the fourth-largest snowfall on record—and pressed staff on downtown cleanup and contractor performance.
Public works staff said all routes were run and crews are investigating reported issues submitted through LS Connect. Staff acknowledged a high volume of service requests and said personnel worked to triage legitimate safety issues from informational requests.
A committee member asked whether the city ever hauls downtown snow away, citing large piles obstructing business thoroughfares. Staff said there is a contract for downtown snow hauling but it has rarely been used in recent decades and that the city did not exercise hauling this event. Staff said they dispatched city crews with plows and backhoes to supplement the downtown contractor when the contractor failed to meet expectations.
Staff described the event as stretching resources beyond normal operations and said the contractor used in past years had not previously shown problems, but this storm exceeded typical planning assumptions. The committee requested a post-operation briefing and said staff will review subcontractor performance and contract terms.
No formal policy changes or new contracts were approved at the meeting; the discussion concluded with a plan for staff to complete a post-event operations review and bring recommendations to the committee as appropriate.
