Huntingburg discusses snow emergency response, street construction change order

Huntingburg faced significant challenges during a recent winter storm, prompting officials to declare a snow emergency and mobilize multiple departments to clear streets and ensure public safety.

Mayor Neil Elkins declared the snow emergency on Sunday to keep residents off the roads. “That was mainly because people need to stay home,” Elkins said. “Wrecker services were not running. State police were not responding to calls and accidents.”

He added that despite the emergency declaration, city crews continued working tirelessly to clear and treat streets. “We never stopped cleaning really from daybreak till dawn on these streets,” Elkins noted, adding that the streets refilled with snow as they were cleared.

He commended crews who reported to Fourth Street to clear the large volume of snow there.

The storm brought a mix of snow types and freezing rain, complicating the city’s response. Elkins explained that the changing conditions required adjustments to their approach throughout the day.

According to Street Superintendent Jason Stamm, the street department purchased two dump truckloads of sand mixed with calcium chloride from IMI to combat the icy conditions. This mixture melts ice at lower temperatures than traditional salt but has drawbacks. Stamm said it was important for the public to understand why the city doesn’t use calcium chloride to treat roads except under extreme conditions.

“Calcium chloride is very hard on vehicles,” Stamm explained. “Years ago, how your cars used to rust all the time. Well, that was because that’s what they used all the time.”

The sand also poses challenges for the city’s infrastructure. “It’s got nowhere to go but into the storm sewers,” Stamm said. “And then it causes a problem in there.”

Multiple city departments contributed to the snow removal efforts. Elkins praised the collaboration between the different departments.

In other business, the Board of Public Works and Safety approved a change order for $24,768.48 for the Eighth Street portion of Community Crossing Matching Grant project 2023-02 due to unexpected conditions discovered during construction.

Engineering firm Cash Wagoner explained that while test holes showed substantial asphalt in some areas, crews encountered thinner pavement near the curbs.

The change order sparked a discussion about handling similar situations in future projects. Board member Kerrie Blessinger suggested including more extensive repairs in initial bids to avoid surprises.

However, Stamm cautioned that such an approach could limit the number of projects the city can undertake with its Community Crossings grant funding. “If that’s what you want me to do, is to determine that all of these projects need to be total tear-outs, we’ll do it,” Stamm said. “But you have to understand that the amount of projects that we’re going to do is going to be decreased.”

As an example, Stamm explained they took on nine street projects with matching Community Crossings grants. If they had been required to complete a tear-out on each of those projects, that number would have been reduced to four or five projects.

Elkins noted that while this project went over budget, many others have come in under estimates. “Overall you take the whole body of work, just realize that there’s about … 30 streets here over the last couple of years where these grants have come in. We’ve been overall under on the bids from the estimates,” he said.

The board ultimately approved the change order, with members agreeing to consider ways to improve project planning and communication in the future.