Mild Winter Saves Forks and Palmer Money

Public works crews in Forks and Palmer townships only had to deal with two storms this past winter: one that on the region in late October and another that brought three inches on .

While Forks officials say they will see significant savings, Palmer officials say they're not sure yet since the township's municipal budget runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31.

"Even though we might be good now, we might get storms through December [this year] that will have an impact," said Thomas Adams, 's director of public services.

Still, Adams said the township should benefit with savings on salt and manpower hours. He could not provide figures on how much that savings might be.

"This winter was a good thing," he said. "We saved on material and labor and our snow plows didn't get beaten up."

Over in , Public Works Director Mark Roberts said the salt savings alone should approach $60,000.

Roberts said Forks Township spent $98,600 on 1,700 tons of salt last year. This year, he said, the township spent $40,000 for 500 tons of salt.

Roberts and Adams said that due to state contracts, both towns must buy a certain amount of salt even if they don't use that much. Roberts said the township used only 280 tons of salt this year.

"This year has been a real treat for me," Roberts said.

It was such a treat, Roberts joked, that he was in St. Thomas on vacation when the last storm hit in January.

Roberts did applaud crews for taking care of the snow promptly when storms hit.

He said that Forks Township's nine trucks can clear away all snow from township roads in two hours and all 15 trucks and plows can cover curb to curb in a little over five hours.

Meanwhile, Adams said Palmer dispatches 13 dump trucks and nine small mason and utility units. It can also utilize nine public works employees, nine parks and recreation employees and three from the sewer department to handle snow.

Adams said Palmer is obligated under its state contract to take at least 60 percent of its 1,600 salt ton limit.

Dave Colver, chairman of Palmer's Board of Supervisors, said there's a "very good possibility" of snow savings, but there is still the period from Thanksgiving until New Year's Day to get through.

"But we have to take advantage of this kind of winter when we can," Colver said.