The city of Brockton used sidewalk plows to clear the snow on sidewalks around public schools over the weekend following a snowstorm on Monday. But opinions varied on how well the city did.
BROCKTON – Despite city efforts to clear sidewalks over the weekend, some students and other pedestrians around Brockton still had complaints about snow and ice on their paths to and from school, train stations, and other destinations on Monday.
“I could have slipped and fell, so I just walk in the street,” said Michael Williams-Burton, a 15-year-old freshman at Brockton High School. “I think they could do a better job.”
Williams-Burton was one of many students who trekked on the side of the road, instead of on the sidewalks that were covered with slush or patches of packed down snow, in the area of Brockton High School after classes let out on Monday. Williams-Burton said he wishes that the city would invest in better equipment to remove snow and ice from the sidewalks around Brockton schools.
“They have bigger plows that they could use to clear the whole sidewalk,” said Williams-Burton, walking down Belmont Street around 2 p.m.
Angelic Rodriguez, 18, agreed, as she trudged down Forest Avenue on the way to Stop & Shop. Rodriguez, who nonetheless used the sidewalks, unlike Williams-Burton, said the city could have done a “way better” job.
“Down here is even worse,” said Rodriguez, carrying a backpack. “My feet are wet.”
Ward 2 City Councilor Thomas Monahan stood up for the work done by the city and its snow removal workers, and said many students will walk on the drier street surface regardless of how well the sidewalks are plowed.
“The kids walk on the street anyway,” Monahan said.
The city councilor said that employees from the Department of Public Works did a “great job” over the weekend, especially with a limited amount of manpower. Monahan said that many of the city’s water division workers were alternating between snow removal and responding to busted water mains due to the “extreme cold” in the last few days since the snow storm, including seven on Friday morning alone.
“They are doing the best they can,” said Monahan, who called on residents to pitch in on the sidewalk cleanup after it snows. “They are out there with all the manpower they can possibly have. .... We have guys working at water department trying to fix water main breaks and service breaks, and then helping out DPW plowing on top of that. We are stretched. It’s been a constant battle.”
Monahan said school custodians also pitch in with snow blowers in the immediate area around school buildings.
Monahan said the city has been using sidewalk plows for about five years since the city first bought four of them, handling the main paths in the vicinity of Brockton's public schools.
“They are going straight out,” he said. “I know we do a lot around the schools to make sure the sidewalks are clean. ... They cannot do every sidewalk in the city."
As far as most sidewalks, including those around the commuter rail stations, it is incumbent upon homeowners to clear the areas around their property, Monahan said. Although, the only city ordinance on the book covering sidewalk snow is limited to the downtown area's First Fire District, Monahan said. Even that would prove very difficult to enforce, he said.
"I would hope the residents would take it on themselves to help out," said Monahan, "because it’s impossible for the city to get all the sidewalks."
Some parents around the community also expressed concern about snow that had mounted on the sidewalks around school bus stops in Brockton. Ward 6 City Councilor Jack Lally said he responded to complaints about this, with parents arguing that it’s a safety issue.
“The people were concerned that the bus stops weren’t properly cleared,” Lally said in a message to The Enterprise. “They didn’t want the kids out in the streets. ... I reached out to the DPW to let them know that those two locations needed to get help.”
Lally agreed with Monahan that residents need to chip in to make sure all sidewalk areas are shoveled or otherwise cleared of snow.
"I hope people clear the sidewalks in front of their homes," Lally said. "The city has a lot of bus stops, and 16 inches is a lot of snow. Now is a time that we need to work together as a community."