Public Works Department

Annual Report

Permits

Snow & Ice Control Procedures

Street Sweeping Procedures

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• Snow Removal & Street Sweeping Map

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All Department of Public Works personnel shall be available for snow and ice control operations. The City may also utilize seasonal personnel and contract services to assist with the snow removal operations. City crews remove snow from approximately 30 miles of street within the City.

II. EQUIPMENT

The City of Richland Center currently operates and maintains the following equipment for snow and ice control operations:

3 trucks with reversible plows and sanders
1 motor grader with snow-wings
3 front-end loaders with plows
1 front-end loader w/180hp diesel engine snow blower
2 one-ton trucks
4 pick-ups with plows
1 tractor w/plow and snow blower
1 tractor and plow

When equipment is disabled, every attempt shall be made to get the equipment repaired and operational as soon possible. This may require the call back of one or both of the equipment services mechanics unless adequate back up equipment is available.

III. PROCEDURES

A. Alert and Call Out

During normal working hours, the Public Works Superintendant or designee shall be responsible for monitoring street and weather conditions and initiation of snow and ice control procedures.

After hours, on weekends, and during holidays the police department shall notify the Public Works Superintendant or designee when snow and ice conditions warrant crew alert.

A call list is provided to the police department for general maintenance items such as sanding, street sign repair and other minor maintenance activities.

B. Sanding and Salting

It shall be the policy of the City to consider cost, environmental impact of salt usage as well as safety of the motoring public when establishing application rates and locations for application.

Sand or salt shall be applied to the street surface in such quantities so as to provide a level of skid resistance that is consistent with standards normally experienced on city streets throughout the State of Wisconsin during the snow and ice season.

Pre-wetting of the sand/salt mixture will be utilized when temperature and conditions warrant its use. The average winter season uses approximately 500 tons of salt and 3,000 ton of sand.

Streets shall be spot sanded to provide skid resistance and traction consistent with area standards in accordance with the following priorities:

1. Hills, controlled intersections, bridges and curves.
2. Arterial and collector streets. (Hwy 14 Class A and Hwy 80 Class B, Cross Streets, 6^th, Court, Seminary)
3. Hospital and Ambulance routes to and off Hwy 14 and Hwy 80. (4^th Street)
4. School Zones and Bus Routes.
5. Commercial and industrial.
6. Residential - blanket sanding of general snow pack on residential streets will not be accomplished.

When practical, sanding will be accomplished concurrent with plowing operations, however, not all equipment used in snow removal is capable of sanding. In those cases or when conditions warrant the first priority shall be snow removal with sanding occurring as appropriate equipment becomes available.

C. Snowplowing - Snowplowing shall normally begin when accumulation reaches a point where functional traffic flow is inhibited. Plowing shall continue as long as visibility and operator safety is maintained. Work periods shall not exceed safe limits that operators can continue without rest.

Snow removal operations shall proceed as rapidly as possible in accordance with the following priorities:
1. Truck highways, arterial and collector streets
2. School Streets
3. Bus routes
4. Residential streets and alleys
5. City Parking Lots
6. Municipal Airport (When needed due to Buena Vista Club Member unavailability)
7. Pedestrian Trails and Sidewalks
8. Park and Recreation Facilities (When assisting Parks and Grounds Crews)

For an "average storm" it shall be the policy of the City to have all streets plowed curb-to-curb within 18 hours after snowfall stops. The City is divided into      plowing districts. In each district the “main line” or heavily traveled streets are plowed first (Under Review: 9th Avenue S.W., 7th Street N.W., 2nd Avenue N.W., Division Street, 4th Street N.W., Prairie Ave., etc.) Plows then disperse to the less traveled residential streets. Sanding at this time is kept to a minimum so plows can open the streets as soon as possible for residential and emergency access. Storms of larger magnitude will take longer depending on severity. Extreme snowfalls may warrant the opening of two lanes initially and full width plowing to follow at a later time.

In the downtown area on the second night, the snow is wind-rowed then blown onto rental trucks and taken to the designated area. Clearing of handicapped curb cuts and pedestrian crosswalks shall be the responsibility of the City. The Park and Grounds Department plows the parking lots, Park Facilities, City Hall, and Community Center, and various city owned parking lots. Upon completion of the downtown area, other city buildings are plowed, the Pumping Stations, Wastewater Treatment Plant, various city sidewalks, and the Richland Municipal Airport.

It shall be the policy of the City that the opening of driveways will not be the responsibility of the City. Property owners shall be responsible for clearing walkways and sidewalks.

All plow routes are divided into relatively equal areas. After the plowing of collector and arterials,these areas shall be plowed on an alternating basis. Plowing continues until all streets have been plowed. The time to open all lanes takes a minimum of eight to eighteen hours depending on conditions. Plowing speeds for centerlines shall not exceed 20 miles per hour. For curbside passes, plowing speed shall not exceed 15 miles per hour.

Snow removal in cul-de-sacs shall be placed in appropriate areas of the curb line. These piles shall be removed by the city when conditions warrant.

D. Snow Hauling

The City of Richland Center routinely removes snow from the following streets:

- Need Listing

The Public Works Superintendant or designee shall be responsible for contacting the Police Department in order to coordinate snow removal and hauling operations with law enforcement's tagging and towing duties.

Late spring and early fall snowfalls may be left on roadways if melting is determined eminent or if substantial damage will be caused to the pavement structure. Clearing of intersection snow banks will be accomplished when needed on collectors, arterials and near schools. Ongoing snow and ice control efforts require the use of City owned right-of-ways and easements for storage of plowed snow.

Depending upon the volume of snow, storage within right-of-way could create sight obstruction at intersections, because it is impossible financially and practically to remove all snow from intersection corners.

Rental trucks are seasonally bid and utilized for snow hauling operations. The City is responsible for truck loading equipment and snow dumping sites. Two to three rented trucks are used to haul snow from downtown, schools, and church areas.

Businesses shall annually contract with the Public Works Superintendant for the hauling of snow that falls on their private property. At the end of the snow season, the City shall bill the business for snow hauling at a rate of $ __________/sq.yd. of parking area/inch of snowfall.

Snow hauling shall begin at 2:00 a.m. or 1 hour following the beginning of snow removal operations. Hauling will continue for as many nights as is necessary.

Snow shall be pulled away from the curb and placed in wind-rows near the center of the street. From this point the windrows will be picked up and hauled away.

Snow pickup shall be accomplished using such personnel, equipment and methods appropriate to maintaining a reasonable and safe passage of vehicles and pedestrians at all times. The Public Works Superintendant or his designee may restrict traffic and parking as emergency conditions may dictate.

E. Snowplowing Alleys

It shall be the policy of the City that all alleys will be opened in the aforementioned priority to provide functional traffic movement.

F. Snowbirds

The city ordinance prohibits parking on any City street after a two-inch or more snowfall or if the Public Works Superintendant announces a snow emergency. In the downtown area, the City may enforce City Municipal Code Chapter         between 1:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. Vehicles parked in violation of the ordinance between 1:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. are subject to a citation and may be towed. Snow emergencies are announced on the local radio and/or local cable. Additionally, the City is looking to installed two blue lights in the downtown area on City Hall, (Under Review). These blue lights flash when activated indicating a snow emergency has been announced for that evening. The Law Enforcement may ticket and/or tow any vehicles in violation during this time.

G. Sidewalk Snow Removal

It is the responsibility of property owners to clean and maintain public sidewalks adjacent to their property. The City of Richland Center is responsible for those sidewalks adjacent to city property.

The City of Richland Center shall also assist business owners located in the downtown by cleaning intersection pedestrian ramps after completion of the snow plowing and/or removal operations.

It is the intent of this section to provide multiple responsibilities of maintenance in order to provide safe and convenient access to the downtown businesses after periods of snowfall. In event citizens observe sidewalks, for which the city is not responsible, that are not being maintained in a timely manner, complaints should be filed with the City Law Enforcement Center for follow-up and remedy.

H. Trail Snow Removal

The following standards are adopted for providing winter maintenance to designated city trails.

1. The designated trails are normally plowed when the measured snowfall depth exceeds two inches.

2. Snow removal should commence approximately 18 hours from the end of any snowfall with an accumulated depth exceeding two inches. The designated trails should be cleared approximately 48 hours after the commencement of snow removal.

3. The designated trails should be cleared as thoroughly as possible but need not be cleared of all ice and snow nor need they be maintained to bare pavement.

4. Chemical agents and sand may be used in the snow removal process.

5. Snow removal should normally be done by park maintenance employees.

6. Snow removal may be conducted on a 24-hour a day basis, which may result in snow removal equipment being operated in residential areas during the evening and early morning hours.

7. In the event of equipment failure, extreme snowfall, or other unanticipated events, such as park maintenance employees assisting street employees in snow removal from streets, deviation from these standards may be appropriate.

I. Complaints

It shall be the policy of the City that complaints concerning snow and ice removal be handled in the following manner:

1. The Public Works Superintendant or designee shall receive and record complaints.
2. Slippery street complaints are immediately radioed to the Public Works Superintendent for possible action.
3. All other complaints shall be recorded and work orders be given to the street employees for investigation and action.
4. The Public Works Superintendant shall investigate all complaints, respond to caller, and record action on work order.

J. Property Damage
It is recognized by the City that on occasion private property is damaged during snow and ice control operations. Where this happens it shall be the policy of the City to handle damages in the following manner:

1. Mailboxes - Where mailboxes are placed adjacent to the street it shall be the policy of the City that snow be plowed as close as practicable to the curb to allow for passage of traffic and mail delivery. It shall be the responsibility of the property owner to keep piled snow away from mailboxes so mail can be delivered.

Where damage to the mailbox occurs the Public Works Superintendent shall investigate such damage. If it is determined that the weight of the snow caused the damage, the City will not assume responsibility for repair of the mailbox. Where evidence indicates that physical contact between the plow and the mailbox occurred the City will provide a $50.00 payment to the property owner for repair or replacement. Failure of the property owner to upgrade the mailbox to City standards shall relieve the City from any future liability for damage to the property owners’ mailbox resulting from snow removal operations.

2. Boulevard Sod - It shall be the policy of the City to repair any damage to sod where curbs are in place by:

(a) Street maintenance crews will repair the damage by relaying the turned up pieces or placing black dirt and grass seed.

(b) The property owner may elect to do the repair using commercial sod. The City will reimburse the property owner the cost of the sod (no labor). Reimbursement must be approved by the City prior to the commencement of the corrective work or purchasing of sod.

(c) Landscaping, including nursery and inanimate materials that are installed or encroach on City owned right-of-way are permitted but the owner assumes all risk of damage. The City will assume no responsibility for damages incurred as the result of snow removal and ice control activities except that the City will repair or replace sod only on City owned right-of-way that is removed as the result of plowing activities.

(d) The City will assume no responsibility for damage to underground lawn sprinkling systems, exterior lighting systems, underground fencing, and similar landscaping installed in the City owned right-of-way.

3. Curbs

Concrete curbs will not be replaced unless the curb back is broken.

4. Driveway Ramps

Damage caused to driveway ramps by the City, unless authorized by the City Administrator/Utility Manager or a City Engineer, will not be repaired where mountable curb is in place.

IV. ADMINISTRATION

1. Ordinances

Chapter        Leaving vehicles unattended on streets after snow accumulation; removal of vehicles; costs; etc.
Chapter        Obstructing water and drainage flow within curb and gutter sections.
Chapter        Occupant's, owner's duty to keep abutting sidewalk clean; penalties.
Chapter        Removing snow from private property to certain streets, parking lots prohibited.
Chapter        Agreement for removal of snow by City.
Chapter        Assessment, charge for snow removal; billing.

2. Council Review

The City Council shall annually review and adopt by resolution the City's Snow Removal Policy and Operational Guidelines, prior to the next year's snow season.