This resident’s concern about winter control is followed by a response from staff.
I am a taxpayer of the city residing in the south end. I have been following budget deliberations and from what I read, taxes will be increasing.
Before I proceed, please understand that I am not an anti-tax citizen. Taxes must be paid as services must be rendered. The city must function. I am however, a believer in a finite resource base for taxes before they become punitive and confiscatory.
So, having said that and having heard and read the discussions regarding this years budget deliberations, I came across a situation on Tuesday that made my mouth gape with incredulity. I was walking my dogs on Ironwood south of Kortright at approximately 1 in the afternoon, when I came upon the sidewalk clearing machine and driver coming toward me. I moved out of the way and noticed that he was dispensing the sand / salt mix or whatever is used, ON BARE SIDEWALK. And not just a bit, the driver was happily driving and the mixture was dropping out of the dispenser.
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As you are undoubtedly aware, the City of Guelph provides winter control services to the community including roads, sidewalks, city owned steps, city recreational facilities and city owned entertainment venues. This service is coordinated by your Public Works Department. As part of the responsibility to provide this service, the city holds the liability risk should a third party accident or injury occur from a slip and/or fall, resulting from the provided service or lack thereof.
In order to keep the city safe and to mitigate the high risk associated with the responsibility of delivering this important service, the city’s Public Works Department is staffed 24 hours per day 7 days per week. Staff continually monitor weather conditions in order to accordingly initiate and deliver the required treatments to roads, sidewalks, facilities or city owned steps which are used by residents, business operators and visitors. As part of the risk mitigation efforts, strict controls are placed on our service delivery criteria and corresponding documentation requirements.
According to our records, on January 3, 2012, the 7:00 a.m. air temperature was recorded as -14 degrees Celsius. At 1:00 p.m., the recorded temperature was -15.3 degrees Celsius. Contrary to the information in your email, Guelph did experience snow precipitation the previous day, January 2nd , which resulted in a partial snow covering of many sidewalks across the city.
The winter control activity you witnessed on January 3rd was a spot sanding operation intended to provide traction to areas where ice either already existed (due to the very cold temperatures) or where it had potential to develop due to melt and re-freeze. This re-freeze effect will still occur in some isolated areas on cold days, even on bare concrete, where the sun may shine in the daytime and increase the temperature to above zero, only to melt what snow is there and cause re-freeze as the sun weakens or at night after sunset. Higher pedestrian traffic areas, particularly along public transit routes, is another consideration. The sidewalk on Ironwood Rd was assessed as being one of these areas where sanding was needed.
Please let me assure you, that we are diligent in providing winter control services to this community, and in doing so, have the best interest of you the taxpayer and the city at large, safe. We continually review our procedures with a view of providing this service in the most cost effective manner as possible. Staff