WMAN to city: Get rid of this snow

 

West Mt. Airy Neighbors fired off a letter to District Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller today asking why the city has not done more to clear snow from the side streets. WMAN Executive Director Lizabeth Macoretta’s letter suggests that the city’s Streets Department doesn’t prioritize which streets get plowed first.

She also wants to know why after the Jan 26-27 storm that dumped well over a foot of snow on Mt. Airy that the city hasn’t followed up aggressively to tackle the side streets.

Councilwoman Miller told NewsWorks that her office is forwarding Macoretta’s letter to the streets department.

Another storm is expected to dust the city today with an inch of snow and freezing rain. Tonight it’s expected to freeze and turn into another sheet of ice on top of the snowpacked streets.

We’d like to know whether you agree with WMAN’s assertion that the city isn’t doing enough to clear the side streets in Mt. Airy. The obvious counter argument is that the Jan 26-27 storm was overwhelming for the city’s street plows and that Mt. Airy is in the same boat as most other neighborhoods.

 

January 31, 2011Via Facsimile Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller Room312 City Hall Philadelphia, PA 19107

Dear Councilwoman Reed-Miller:

I write to express my deep concern with the lack of snow removal in West Mt. Airy. It has been five days since the storm ended, yet large portions of Mt. Airy remain dangerous and impassable. Major roads through our neighborhood remain unplowed and untreated with salt. Hortter Street between Wissahickon Ave. and Germantown Ave. is a solid sheet of ice.

Yesterday, 4 days after the storm, I witnessed three cars slide down this hill at Hortter into the Wayne Ave. inersection. This morning I watched in fear as my children’s school bus slid through the intersection of Pelham Rd. and Phil Ellena. I question how elementary school children at Henry and Houston can arrive safely.

Why was Mt. Airy so seriously neglected in the recent storm? I understand why snow equipment is deployed to Center City as the first priority so that city commerce my resume in a timely manner. However, after the first 24 hours, or even first 48 hours, surely equipment could have been sent to Mt. Airy.

Irregular deployment of snow removal equipment raises concern. Why are certain areas immediately cleared, when other major thoroughfares are abandoned? For example, Westview Street between Germantown Ave. and Quincy St. is a small road, certainly secondary or tertiary in nature. Yet with every storm this two block stretch is immediately plowed. Why and how do the plows go there yet fail to clear the surrounding streets? It is these types of irregularities that cause us to question the City’s fair deployment of snow removal equipment.

With another ice storm predicted for this week, I urge you to work with the Streets Department to insure that West Mt. Airy receive its fair share of vital City service.

Very truly yours,Lizabeth B. Macoretta Executive Director