To the editor:
The problems with snow plowing started when I requested that buses and snowplows not turn around at the dead end in my newly paved driveway that I had paved a few years ago. The way that the city took this request, it seemed that I was telling them what to do. Then we started having trouble with the city manager and the people that do the plowing. Damage was caused to my private property and the manager refused to pay for it even after I did the repairs and presented him with the bill.
We bought our house with the understanding that this dead-end would be paved to include a hammerhead for turning around. This also never happened. Soon winter, the snow and the snowplows started to come down the road. That was fine, that was their job.
Now the problems got worse. The city started to put extra snow in my driveway. When the plow came down, they would back up and turn around in the driveway across the street. Then they would come toward my driveway and put more snow in my driveway. Some of the snow that was put in my driveway was about four or five feet high. Then this snow was shoved into my driveway about 10 feet and this became difficult to remove.
This morning (Feb. 1, 2015), the plow came down and they made it a point to dump more snow in our driveway. But this time the driver backed up six different times, and by moving towards the house, he proceeded to put more snow in our driveway and also left big chunks of ice and snow in the road causing a hazard. All this made it impossible for my wife to get out of the driveway with her car. Since I had just come home a few days earlier from having surgery for the replacement of my right knee, I was concerned that if an emergency arose we would have difficulties to get to the emergency room.
At this point I called the police department and they said they would send someone to check the situation out. Then a few minutes later they called to say that I should call the department that is responsible. I did that and when someone answered the phone I explained the problem again. Conveniently the department manager was just leaving in his pickup. I was given his cell phone number to call. I immediately called and was told to leave a message. Again, very convenient.
Then, later he called and I explained the problem. He said that the snowplow driver was not supposed to do that and that he did not know why he would do it. He told me that the plow driver was a nice guy and would not do that. Sorry, but he did and both my wife and I and others were witnesses to that. I proceeded to tell him that the driver did just that and I wanted it to stop. He informed me that he would talk to him and from now on the driver would come down the right side of the road once, then back up and do the left side. He would not back up six different times as he did this morning. He would back up in the driveway across the street and continue plowing.
I do not know if and when we come home or leave if this will happen again. Why pay taxes and then have snow dumped in our driveway? Why, when we call for assistance and no one seems to want to help, they pass the buck; and when we start asking why, they get defensive?
Nelson Caron
Presque Isle
