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IN THIS
EDITION WESTFIELD
‘You could hear a pin drop’ at recent WMS assemblies Principal Jesse McMillan said during a visit last week to Westfield Middle School, motivational speaker Terrence Lee Talley’s message of hope and resilience was well received.
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Q&A: Westfield pitcher commits to D1 Merrimack College Westfield High School senior baseball ace Josh Wagner, who recently committed to play Division 1 baseball for Merrimack College, sat down with Reminder Publishing.
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SOUTHWICK
Town starts planning 250th celebration of country’s founding It’s still early, but the town is getting prepared to celebrate the country’s semiquincentennial, which the Select Board discussed briefly at its meeting on Jan. 26.
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Snow removal costs continue to climb By Cliff Clark
cclark@thereminder.com
SOUTHWICK — After four snow events this winter, it’s clear that when Town Meeting convenes in May, it will have to dip into free cash to pay off the deficit spending the town is incurring to keep the town’s roads and streets clear. And after the last two storms, including the one over the Jan. 24 weekend, the total is going to continue to climb. “It’s going to be a big one,” said DPW Director Rich Bosak about the weekend storm, which saw over 18 inches of snow fall. “The guys are still busy pushing back the intersections,” Bosak said on Jan. 27. He, like the Select Board members, commended the DPW crew and the private contractors. “They did a fabulous job. And it was some very long hours,” Bosak said. Select Board member Doug Moglin gave “kudos” to everyone for the effort. “Kudos to those guys for really slugging it out. And our contractors and partners that showed up and did their best with what was going on. That was a lot of snow,” Moglin said, with board members Diane Gale and Russ Anderson agreeing. Chief Administrative Officer Nicole Parker also recognized DPW’s effort. “We want to recognize and thank our DPW for an outstanding job responding to this major winter storm. Plowing through nearly two feet of snow over the course of multiple days is no small task, and their professionalism, endurance, and commitment to public safety truly showed,” she said. Bosak said his crews started at about 9 a.m. on Jan. 25 and continued, non-stop, until 6
With five storms so far this winter, the Southwick DPW is on track to spend its average of $296,000 annually. Reminder Publishing file photo
p.m. on Jan. 26. “It was 33 hours straight, including during the storm,” he said, adding that the DPW’s equipment held up “great.” The salt shed is already empty from the six storms the DPW has had to handle. “We’re getting more this week,” Bosak said, adding that it is a bit cheaper than last year. Since the winter started, the DPW has submitted reports on the cost of each storm to the Select Board. The first storm on Dec. 2, which finished with 5 inches of snow, cost the town $32,478. That included $12,530 for 121 tons of salt, 76 hours of overtime for $2,410 and $16,537 for private
contractors. Six inches of snow fell on Dec. 26, costing the town a total of $43,896, including $12,530 for 121 tons of salt, 192 hours of overtime for $8,722 and $22,642 for the contractors. There was also a snow event on Dec. 29, leaving behind 2 inches of snow, which cost $19,094, including $7,570 for 73 tons of salt, $2,844 for overtime and $8,680 for contractors. And on Jan. 1, after 1.5 inches of snow fell, it cost $19,804 to clear it, including $7,899 for 76 tons of salt, $3,224 for overtime and $8,690 for contractors. Each year, Town Meeting approves $111,500 for snow and ice removal, using that figure as
essentially a placeholder in the budget because there’s no way to estimate what will end up being spent. But spending so far has already exceeded the placeholder by $3,773 as of Jan. 1. From now until spring, the town will be deficit spending for snow and ice removal, which is the only line item in the budget that the state allows municipalities to deficit spend. That deficit spending amount is always Article 2 on the May Town Meeting warrant, and last year it was $270,000, which meant taxpayers were on the hook for $381,500. Over the past 10 years, See SNOW on page 2