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Springfield committee debates salt-storage dome, members clash over pool parking-lot site
Summary
Township officials proposed a $150,000, 400-ton salt dome to ensure local supplies after winter shortages. Committee members and a resident raised concerns about siting it in the community pool parking lot, citing aesthetics, wetlands, DEP approvals and proximity to homes; alternatives will be explored.
A proposal to build a 400-ton salt-storage dome in Springfield drew sharp questions from committee members and at least one resident on Tuesday night, with officials saying the structure would reduce dependence on county deliveries during heavy storms.
The administration and Department of Public Works described a roughly $150,000 structure (approximate dimensions 30 by 40 feet) that would sit at the far end of the community pool parking lot, enclosed with block walls and a weatherproof front. A DPW official said the dome would store about 400 tons of salt — “about a four-times supply” compared with intermittent county access — and that a heavy storm can require 100–125 tons of salt.
"We were going to other towns trying to get salt, and their salt domes only hold up to 600, and they were having trouble getting deliveries," the DPW official said, arguing that a local supply would improve the township’s response during storms.
But opposition was strong. One committee member said he was “not for this at all,” calling the pool parking lot a prized community asset and warning that a tent-like structure full of salt would undermine the site as it builds membership. "I don't want a salt on there," the member said, adding that alternatives such as using the Hershey Building lot or other municipal sites should be explored.
Committee discussion flagged several constraints: the Treetop parcel is wetlands and likely subject to DEP obstacles; some candidate lots are on state/DOT property and would require permissions; and placing the dome near residences raises runoff, screening and nighttime-delivery concerns. A DPW official said the dome’s fabric enclosure and a drop-down front would limit weather exposure and runoff risk.
Officials noted the township has a $37,000 tree fund and recent DPW work items — unrelated to the dome — including 14 winter water-main breaks and ongoing culvert work on Caldwell Avenue. Several members pressed administration staff to pursue other nonresidential locations (including school or commercial lots) and to start talks with the superintendent and nearby property owners before returning with a narrower list of feasible sites.
The committee did not vote on the salt-dome proposal; members agreed to continue exploring sites and to return with additional information about alternative locations, DEP constraints and operational plans.
