As Buxton public works Director Lary Owen and his crew prepare for another Maine winter, he isn’t doing it from the comfort of an office. Owen works from a workbench in the corner of the garage. When snow starts falling, his crew won’t have a washroom or place to take a break in the middle of a long plowing shift.
“Not one of them complains,” Owen said of his crew.
As its population has grown, roads have been added, along with the trucks needed to plow them. Now Owen and others believe Buxton has outgrown its public works garage on Haines Meadow Road in Buxton Center.
The department could be facing its last winter working out of the old town garage. The town has plans for a new garage that have been approved by the planning board but not voters, who could get a chance to vote on a new garage in January. Once town officials know how much a new building would cost and have an architectural design for it, they plan to take the project to voters.
Dan Collomy, chairman of the board of selectmen, planned to meet with project engineer Bill Hoffman Thursday to discuss plans for the new garage. One thing Collomy wanted to hear in particular was how much the building would cost.
If voters approve the project, a drive-through, double five-bay garage would be built on town-owned property adjacent to the town hall on Portland Road. The garage would have a separate entrance from town hall.
Keith Emery, who has worked full-time for the department since 2000, said a new garage is needed. “Its hard to heat,” said Emery, who serves as chairman of the town’s planning board, pointing to gaps under bay doors at the present garage and an archaic heating system.
The present structure has served for more than a half century. It’s too small now to house Buxton’s fleet of seven dump trucks and two pickups, which have to be parked outside.
Owen said selectmen have treated the department well. A brand new International plow truck, which cost $100,000, is in a line with others ready to tackle winter weather. “We’ve got good equipment,” Owen said.
The Buxton crew hangs tough when foul weather blows in. During winter storms, Owen said Buxton plow crews pull over along the road to eat and catch “cat naps” in truck cabs. “We were out 36 hours in one storm,” Owen recalled.
The crew takes care of 110 miles of road. It’s about the equivalent to plowing the distance between Portland and Boston. “People don’t understand the work involved in keeping roads clear,” said Tom Kennie, the crew foreman.
Feedback from the townspeople is sometimes negative, especially after a plow smashes a mailbox. But “no one deliberately hits a mailbox,” Owen said.
The crew is asking residents for help in minimizing damage to mailboxes. Owen said mailboxes are supposed to be a minimum of 45 inches in height; the mailbox at least three feet from the edge of pavement; and the post five feet from the edge of pavement.
Owen said illegal mailbox posts like granite or concrete could damage town plows. He said the posts are located on the town’s property and are supposed to be breakable.
When it snows, members of the public works department aren’t sitting beside stoves in the comfort of their homes. They’re sitting behind the steering wheels, even on holidays. “That’s our job. It’s a good feeling when you’re helping people,” Kennie said.
Kennie asked people not to blow snow or plow it into roadways. “Have some respect for your plow people,” Kennie said.
Soon, the town’s mechanic, Larry Anderson, will check sanders and plow cutting edges to make sure they are ready for action. He’ll examine plow frames for cracks, and plows and wings will get fresh paint.
Emery said supplies of sand and salt are stored in sheds. One is at a town gravel pit in Groveville and another at town hall.
Owen said they have 5,000 yards of a sand and salt mix in storage along with another 1,700 tons of salt.
Readying for winter, public works has been working throughout the year. They’ve worked on shoulders along the roads and the ditches. The improvements will aid keeping roads open for residents during the winter. “You try to take care of problem spots,” Owen said.
The full-time public works crew includes Eddie O’Neil and Rick Gervais. The part-timers are Guy Hunt, Andy Townsend and Rusty Pinkham.
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