The blue, green and yellow lines are the city’s three sidewalk clearing routes.
Photo: Sanford GIS
By Zendelle Bouchard
Sanford’s Department of Public Works has been busy getting ready for plowing season. Director Matt Hill went over all aspects of the DPW’s winter storm response during a presentation to the City Council on Nov. 18.
Road plowing: Hill told the council that all prime plowing positions within the department are staffed, thanks to several recent hires. The frontline winter vehicles and equipment have all been serviced, and the annual pre-plow meeting with staff and contractors has been held.
The DPW prioritizes plowing of roadways to ensure efficient road clearing and allow emergency access. Roadways in Sanford and Springvale are defined by MaineDOT using the federal functional class system into five categories:
- Major arterials – Route 202/11; Main Street from 202 to the Wells line
- Minor arterials – Route 11/109 from 202 to Oak Street; Route 4
- Major collectors – Main Street from Springvale to Shapleigh; Oak Street; Bridge/Pleasant/Shaw’s Ridge; River/Washington; upper end of June Street; Grammar from June to High; High and Emery; Twombley Road from Main to Mount Hope
- Minor collectors – Mount Hope, Old Mill and Grammar Roads
- Local roads – all others
Roads leading to schools and other public facilities are also prioritized.
Plowing of Sanford’s 184 miles of roadway is split between the city’s 14 DPW routes and the east side and west side local roads, which are contracted to Plante and Sons.
Sidewalk clearing: Hill reported the three sidewalk tractors are all now in service, and the department has an operator to concentrate on sidewalks. There are too many miles of sidewalks in town to do them all with the current level of staffing and equipment, so those are prioritized as well. The decision to add or remove sidewalk clearing routes is made through the city manager. Councilor Ayn Hanselmann requested the sidewalk plowing map be reviewed at an upcoming council meeting to make any needed adjustments. She noted that sidewalks around Lafayette School are still being plowed although the school is no longer in use.
Parking lots: In addition to roadways, the DPW plows the municipal parking lots at Heritage Crossing at Benton Park. These lots are available for public overnight parking; however, Hill noted that vehicles should be moved within two hours of the end of a storm to allow plow trucks to clear them.
The council approved a contract with Landry Landscaping to plow other municipal lots, including the four lots around the Police Station, the City Hall lot, the School Street lot and the Main Street Marketplace lot. Hill said contracting these lots out allows his drivers to concentrate on road plowing.
Fire hydrants: Responsibility for clearing fire hydrants is contracted out by the Sanford Fire Department. Residents should avoid placing snow near or on hydrants, on sidewalks or in the street. All hydrants have reflective markers to locate them in deep snow.
Winter parking bans: Parking bans are declared so that plow operators can clear streets in a timely fashion. A snow ban parking violation ticket is typically $50 but escalates with severity or repeated violations, with the additional expense of the cost of towing. Hill plans to set parking bans a few hours earlier this year to allow more time for vehicles to be cleared. The quickest way to find out if a parking ban has been declared is to sign up for text and email notifications on the city’s website here.
Parking bans are also issued when accumulated snow must be physically removed to make room for the next storm’s snow. A loader-mounted snow blower loads the snow into trucks to transport it to the city’s snow dump. The trucks must be stripped of equipment first, which takes about a day. Hill said there has to be several days of clear weather forecast to make it worth the extra work. He noted the city is actively seeking an alternative snow dump, as the current one by the YMCA is located adjacent to a significant wetland and wellhead protection zone.
Winter parking prohibition: Regardless of parking ban declaration, all overnight parking (defined as between 2 and 5 a.m.) is prohibited on the following roads from Dec. 1 to April 1 per city ordinance: Route 202 (Lebanon Street), Winter Street, Cottage Street, Washington Street, River Street, Twombley Road, School Street, High Street, Grammar Street, Grammar Road, Route 224. Pleasant Street, Oak Street, Jagger Mill Road, Old Mill Road, Emery Street, Main Street, Roberts Street, Beacon Street, Kimball Street, Berwick Road, Berwick Avenue, Shaw Road and Mt. Hope Road.
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