Estevan is three-for-three when it comes to averting the brunt of powerful snowstorms this month.
Yes, we have snow on the ground, enough to create a good cover around the city. And yes, most of us would be happy if there's no more snow for the next few months, even though we need the moisture, and the fluffy snow looks better than the brown grass we had this month.
Since we avoided the deep accumulations seen elsewhere in the province and even the southeast, the city has not had to fully enact its snow removal policy. We've seen the windrows in the middle of arterial roads and other parts of the city, but we haven't had to worry about an all-out snow-clearing protocol that takes several days.
As we've said before, snow removal is one expense the city shouldn't skimp on, but there needs to be a balance. The city can't afford to have a blank cheque when it comes to clearing the snow. It can't move forward with an all-out attack each time we get an inch of snow on the ground.
But if the city waits too long to start clearing snow following a significant snow event, then people get very angry very quickly. While many drive pick-up trucks that can plow their way through the snow, and others have SUVs, some people have small cars. And they have to get to work and other places in the community.
When the time is right, it's important to have the all-out snow-clearing effort, just like the city needs to deploy the salt truck when needed. And sometimes it's beneficial to have snow-clearing crews out while the snow is still falling to keep the roads open.
Ultimately, you're more likely to hear complaints if the snow removal is insufficient than if the clearing efforts are excessive.
If you talk to people in Regina and Saskatoon, you'll hear about their frustration about the level of service in the residential areas. People can navigate the main roads and some of the other routes, but it's difficult to drive down a lot of the quiet residential streets.
There are a lot of small cities that don't provide the same level of service as Estevan, either.
We'll hear some complaints about the snow removal in Estevan, but most of them come down to the speed of the delivery. Unfortunately, some people don't realize the time it takes to blow the snow into the middle of the road and then clear the windrows. If they want it to move faster, well, you'll need more contractors, which costs more money.
And while we all want to have our streets at the top of the priority list, one of the downsides to living on a quiet residential road is it's going to be lower on the priority list.
It will be interesting to see how the city proceeds with snow removal in the downtown area following the downtown revitalization project in the 1100 and 1200 blocks of Fourth Street. It was one of the concerns brought forward during the planning and design process three years ago.
At the same time, other communities have completed similar projects. It's not like we're the first to ever embark on this project. When in doubt, find what other communities have done well, and see if it would work here.
The new city council would be wise to maintain snow removal as close to the level of the previous years. They're not going to make everyone happy with every decision they make, and there will be times in which they will be second-guessed by a large percentage of the community.
Snow removal shouldn't be one of those matters. Sometimes, following the template already in place is the way to go.
