Streets

The street patching of potholes is done on an as-needed basis; if a pothole appears, we try to fill it as soon as possible. The crack filling is contracted out based on a set number of pounds annually. We schedule an area for work and the contractor does as much as the contract will cover. The areas are prioritized by the severity of the cracks and are rotated throughout the city. The seal coating is also contracted out annually. We are trying to seal coat the city streets on a 5-7 year rotation.

Street sweeping is done on all streets in the spring after the snow has melted to pick up the sand and salt put on over the winter months. This process usually takes up to one and one half months. Then we sweep the downtown area once a week and rotate through the residential areas until fall. In the fall we sweep leaves until the first part of November or until freezing starts.

Snowplowing and sanding of streets is the major concern during the winter. The City has an ordinance on street parking during the winter months from November 1^st. to May 1^st. The ordinance calls for scheduled parking during a snow emergency on the odd or even side of the streets based upon the day’s date. For example, if the date was December 14, you would park on the even side of the street. If the date was December 15, you would park on the odd side of the street. This scheduled parking is enforced when the city has a snowfall that requires the city plows to be on the streets. The City’s Public Works Director or Police Chief will announce through the local radio station, Lakes Radio 99.5 FM or TV14 that a snow emergency has been declared.

Snow plowing is done after 1-2 inches of snow has fallen. The city is split into five different sections to be done by different equipment. Number one section is south of Main Street and west of 3^rd Ave. SE. This section is done with the grader because this is the most heavily traveled area. In this section the grader starts at about 1:00AM on most snows. Number two section is north of the railroad tracks and west of County Road 8 N or 1^st Ave. N. This section is plowed by a dump truck with a wing. The truck will start as early as 1:00AM, but usually starts around 3:00 or 4:00AM. Number three section is north of the railroad tracks and east of County Road 8 N. or 1^st Ave. N. This section is done with a dump truck with a wing. The truck will start as early as 1:00AM, but usually starts around 3:00 or 4:00AM. Number four section is south of Main Street and east of 3^rd Ave. SE. This section is cleared by the grader most of the time, but may be plowed by the dump truck occasionally. This section is plowed after section one is completed. The number five section includes the cul-de-sacs in the Westwind area, by the golf course, downtown public parking lots, Emergency Management Building, PACC parking lot, downtown alleys, stub streets downtown and miscellaneous areas. The loader and a 4X4 pickup clear this section. Snow removal in this section begins by 1:00or 2:00AM. Sanding of streets is done after the plowing. The dump truck will sand by schools and downtown areas before heavy traffic periods if possible.

Hauling of snow from the downtown area and public parking lots usually starts the day after the plowing is done. The crews will start at 12:00 or 1:00AM with the grader plowing the snow into a row on one side of the street. Then the loader and dump trucks will start at 2:00 or 3:00AM to haul the snow away. The area is signed the night before to have cars off the streets or the cars will be towed. This is enforced.

City owned sidewalks are cleaned by city crews with a snow blower and broom. The sidewalks cleaned by the city include in front of NP Park, the Emergency Management Building, the City Hall Building, in front of the City Hall Park, and the Library and Museum block. The sidewalk on Fox St. from 1^st Ave. to 2^nd Ave. SW is also cleared because foot traffic by the schools is heavy.

Copyright 2000 City of Perham Minnesota

Web Site Design By   Minnesota WebWorks