Mild Winter Saves Golden Valley Money

Mark Shinner is a little sore today after clearing the wet, heavy snow left behind from Monday night’s storm.

“I can’t complain about it,” he said. “It’s only the third or fourth time I’ve had to use a shovel this winter, which is amazing. I’m not complaining.”

The dust was kicked off Golden Valley’s snow plows, as city crews worked to clear the snow from the roads. While crews were busy Monday night, so far, the lack of snow is saving the city some money.

“Last year was a year that was above and beyond average in the number of snow events,” Golden Valley Public Works Maintenance Manager Bert Tracy said.

“Plus, those snow events tended to land on the weekend or on a holiday.”

The ill-timed snow events cost the city about $45,000 in overtime, the highest amount the city has paid in more than ten years. An average year typically costs the city about $19,000 in overtime.

This year, Tracy says road crews have only been out a handful of times to plow and to put down anti-icing chemicals. The quiet year isn’t just saving money in overtime; fuel costs are also down along with maintenance costs.

“It’s hard to quantify the additional savings right now, but it’s significant,” Tracy said. “At this pace, we won’t come anywhere near last year’s overtime total.”

The quiet winter has allowed the Golden Valley public works department to work on other projects, including work at North Tyrol Park, where a tornado ruined playground equipment and removed trees last year.

Crews have filled the hillside of the park with dirt where the tornado ripped up the earth. The city is planning to replace trees this spring.

“It has been nice to catch up on other projects,” Tracy said. “There is plenty to keep up busy.”

While Tracy is optimistic about this year’s budget, he knows March is the second snowiest month in Minnesota, so he knows it’s not over yet.

“March could toss this whole thing out of whack,” he said with a chuckle. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”