Trust me, I was the most surprised to see SF Public Works director Mark Cotter defend snowgates, but it probably has more to do with job security then anything;
Also, Cotter received information last fall that snow gates could save time cleaning up intersections.
Typically, a sanding truck has to follow motor-graders to clean up the ridge of snow they leave behind in the intersections. The action includes a lot of backing up, which snow gates might eliminate, Cotter said.
But Mark is right. If you are concerned about saving money on fuel, it would seem this would be the place to start. But this quote from Street Manager Galynn Huber about snowgates really got my goat;
but he said it comes down to whether taxpayers are willing to pay extra.
Well, are taxpayers willing to pay extra for monkey crappers, flamingo sheds, Rhino barns, golf course clubhouses, wood and rock thingies, football fields, tennis court lockerooms, snow making machines . . . I could go on and on. I am amazed that public works is concerned about taxpayer money when cleaning snow from our streets and improving public safety but don’t think twice about installing a monkey toilet or buying Galynn a brand new super duty big ass gigantic truck that he doesn’t need.
The other thing that is blatant bullshit? Snowgates work if you use the right ones. All over Canada and the Northwest they can use them in up to 4 feet of snow. Google snowgates. There is tons of demonstration videos. Maybe the city council and Galynn Huber need to do a little Google research themselves. Of course, I wouldn’t want them to waste 30 minutes of their time.
Trust me, I was the most surprised to see SF Public Works director Mark Cotter defend snowgates, but it probably has more to do with job security then anything;
Ya Spose? A year ago no one in Public Works would even give snowgates the time of day. I ran into a middle management public works guy a year ago and asked why their disdain for the gates. All he said was, “They don’t work.” Now the guy at he top is on board and would have us believe he has been long before huether was voted in? Ain’t buyin it.
Our city government jobs are no different than any other government jobs. If Mark Cotter wants his $148,000 a year job and his golden parachute retirement, Mark Cotter does whatever huether tells him.
Huether has been having secret meetings with city councilors to try and get them on board with an events center. why has the public not been told of this?
“Pay extra”? What a funny and stupid thing to say. How much more does it cost now to just follow every grader around with a dump truck all winter to do the intersections?
It’s pretty obvious from this angry rant by councilor Erpenbach that she has done ZERO research on the equipment. She claims that they cannot be used in over 2 inches of snow. WHAT!? She is clueless, or she is just flat out lying in the interview. And she appears angry. Is she pissed that for once tax dollars are going to be spent on taxpayer’s needs instead of monkey crappers? do your research Michelle. They work, and they save money in fuel by using less manpower and trucks.
http://www.keloland.com/videoarchive/index.cfm?VideoFile=090410snowgate
I also noticed that the Argus Leader online poll today that 59.2% support the snowgate experiment (701 votes – pretty good on a slow news day).
Do any of these council members have family plowing businesses to protect?
Who knows. They all have someone’s jewels to protect.