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New Castle administrator details storm response, warns of higher snow-removal costs; grants awarded
Summary
City Administrator Antonina Tantillo described the city’s multiagency response to the Jan. 24–26 storm, said the city used about 80 tons of salt and expects snow/ice cleanup to exceed the $9,000 line in the FY26 budget but will use Municipal Street Aid funds; she also reported recent grants including $190,000 for parks and a $435,870 Safe Streets planning award.
City Administrator Antonina Tantillo told the New Castle City Council that the city mobilized public works, the Municipal Services Commission (MSC) and contractor Cirillo Brothers to respond to the Jan. 24–26 storm, and that crews worked long shifts to maintain access and public safety. “From Thursday the 22nd through Monday the 26th…we had daily calls with the county office of emergency management and state, county, local, and private partners to coordinate efforts,” she said.
Tantillo said the city used more than 80 tons of salt—about four times a typical single storm—and that Cirillo Brothers’ contracted assistance will cost at least $80,000; she noted the FY26 budget currently includes $9,000 for salt, snow and ice removal and that the city will rely on Municipal Street Aid (MSA) restricted funds to cover overages. “Please be assured that we have the funding to cover the excess costs associated with the storm via municipal street aid funding,” she said.
Tantillo also updated the council on grant activity: the city received an Outdoor Parks, Recreation, and Trails grant for $190,000 (about $40,000 more than expected), was awarded a federal Safe Streets for All planning and demonstration grant for $435,870 that requires a $108,967 local match, and applied for a DNREC/DHSS PFAS awareness and outreach grant of roughly $742,000. She asked the council to consider the required local matching funds at the upcoming midyear budget review.
Council members asked for details on subsurface and curb work related to projects (including a Battery Park playground proposal discussed later), and Tantillo said the city will provide cost breakdowns and continue coordination with the state historic-preservation office as grant work proceeds.
No formal vote was required; the information will be used in the midyear budget deliberations.
