MINNEAPOLIS — With this mild winter city snow plow drivers haven't seen a lot of action, but that doesn't mean they're not keeping busy.
Joe Paumen, the director for transportation maintenance and repair for the Minneapolis Public Works Department, says the winter is helping the department catch up on a few other projects, like fixing potholes.
Paumen said with all the extra attention on the potholes this year drivers should notice a difference next spring.
"Together with the fact that we're not getting a freeze-thaw cycle every day like we were getting for a long stretch last year, that really contributes to blowing up the roads or making those pop, those potholes pop,” Paumen says.
The streets may also be cleaner.
Paumen says the milder winter gives city workers more time with their street sweepers to clean up leaves and debris.
This extra time with street sweepers could affect water quality in the years to come.
"You know, any time we can get the leaves, and especially the fine sediment that contains the phosphorus, that affects our water bodies, yeah this mild weather is helping us,” Paumen said.
The winter is also saving the city money, with less snow there's less overtime and wear and tear on its plows.
Paumen said it's a nice bonus after an expensive start to the year with all the snow in January, February and March.
"We budget on a calendar year and so the budget we're working on now it's still part of what we went through last spring. We are over budget on the year for snow removal, but this helps."
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