WHAT HAPPENED TO LEAF PICKUP THIS YEAR?

This may give you some insight into why leaf pickup was so slow and sporadic this year. Anyone who wants a longer, more detailed treatment can e-mail me at Mark@mabrunton.com.

INADEQUATE EQUIPMENT

There are two ways to pick up leaves - using a vacuum collection device called a leaf machine, and picking leaves up using a front-end loader.

Our leaf machine is a dry-pickup-only type. Picking up wet or matted leaves damages the leaf machine, so every day of rain prevents leaf pickup for several days. The Borough owns a small yellow Ford front-end loader, but it has had various electrical and hydraulic problems for several years, rendering it too unreliable for leaf pickup.

During both the 2008 and 2009 budget sessions I asked Council to fund a new front-end loader. The Mayor and Council did not do so. In fact, there is NO replacement Public Works equipment AT ALL in the current three-year Capital Plan.

The upshot of this is that with just the one leaf machine, the Department can field one crew to pick up leaves only on days when the leaf piles are dry. When the piles are wet, leaf pickup cannot be done. WITH the front-end loader I’ve been requesting, the Department could field TWO leaf crews on dry days, and ONE crew on rainy / wet days, when the leaf machine cannot be used.

THE PUBLIC WORKS OPERATING SCHEDULE

The weekly schedule for the Department has trash collection on Tuesday and Wednesday, and recycling on Friday, leaving two “open” days each week for all other work, including leaf pickup.

 Leaf pickup traditionally begins in early November and usually extends well into January. This year the Department started on Monday, 9 November.

·         Of the ten total days available for leaf removal between November 9^th and December 17^th, JUST OVER HALF had weather and/or equipment availability which allowed leaf pickup. As we have no provision for Public Works employee overtime in the budget, I had no authorization to schedule overtime on weekends to make up for the down days.

·         On November 13, the Mayor directed the Public Works supervisor to rent a front-end loader and bring in the Public Works employees on overtime Saturday, November 14. Although I was Director of the Department, the Mayor didn't notify me, but fortunately the Supervisor in the Department let me know.

·         In November I had the Supervisor check with other municipalities about borrowing equipment for leaf pickup. No one had equipment they could lend us.

·         In December I asked the Supervisor to plan a multiple-day rental of a front-end loader just to deal with leaves. The record-breaking snowstorm hit before we could get it.

OTHER POINTS OF INTEREST

With the situation quickly becoming untenable, I argued at the Council meeting on December 14^th against borrowing nearly $225,000 to enhance the bike path, recommending instead that the Borough borrow money to add a new leaf machine to the Department’s equipment list. The machine would cost $25,000 to $40,000. It would not be available for 2009, but would be available for out-years. The Mayor and Council rejected this idea, though resident unrest with the lack of effective leaf pickup was commented upon at that same meeting.

What could I have done better? I don't know.

A resident who complained about leaves to Council early this year worked with me to investigate how surrounding communities handle leaf pickup, with an eye towards integrating some of their solutions into our operations (the resident did most of the legwork). What we found was that surrounding communities do just what Merchantville does – residents rake leaves to the street where the public works departments pick them up. The key difference is that other departments have the equipment necessary to do the job. Merchantville doesn’t.

In a few days I’ll add a discussion of the December 19/20 snowstorm.

Mark B.