Mowing and Snowing
Russ Gallinger, Emporia
Originally published 01:32 p.m., June 24, 2008
Updated 01:32 p.m., June 24, 2008
MY WIFE AND I moved to Emporia last summer and I must say that we are impressed with this town. We came from Iowa, where the winters are long and the summers are generally quite humid.
I am writing in regards to the front page article that appeared in the June 2 issue of The Gazette concerning mowing, or should I say the lack of mowing, and the $500 fine that one would be assessed for not mowing one’s yard. I thought this was quite amusing that the city would fine someone for this, but let us get an 8-inch snowstorm in the middle of the winter and see how many streets are never touched by city employees in snow clearing vehicles.
I am not sure of the danger involved in not having a lawn mowed, though I would agree it is unsightly, but not to have snow removal can be quite dangerous and is also unsightly.
Maybe this past winter was a rare one for Emporia, but for this Iowa transplant, it was winter as usual except it seems this town does not believe in snow removal.
By the way, I will try my best to mow my yard even if gas is $4 a gallon.
Russ Gallinger
Emporia
madpoet (anonymous) says...
Excellent point. I've lived in Emporia since 1990 and have always been surprised at the lack of snow removal. A little grit thrown on the icy bridges and intersections would be nice, too. I am at the point of being surprised when I see the snow plows out in town. I live in the county and the county crews manage to plow all the main routes ok. That should be more miles than in town. But the city crews often don't even plow the main drags. I'm not expecting all the side streets but like every 3rd street starting with 6th and going to 18th would be nice. And downtown is a nightmare in winter. I always say a prayer that I can get out of the parking spot without help. Maybe we could attach plows to our vehicles and send the city a bill?
June 24, 2008 at 2:15 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
emporiateacher (anonymous) says...
I agree 100%! I think a $500 fine for not mowing grass is absolutely insane. I, too, can't stand to see a lawn that is growing tall, but I think $500 is a little out of control. In the 6 years I have been in Emporia, I have only seen the plows out about 3 or 4 times. The legal system in Emporia seems to be a little off. The police will pull over a person who drives through the Walmart parking lot to avoid a light, yet a bunch of kids can race up and down 6th street every evening endangering far more people without getting ticketed!
June 24, 2008 at 3:40 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Bjnemp (anonymous) says...
Well said, Mr. Gallinger. When I moved here in 1995 I, too, was appalled by the absence of snow removal, and have been since. It is an ongoing joke (sadly, a true one) that when we have plans to travel after a big snow I tell our out of town friends we won't have any problem getting there... once we get out of Emporia! We know the county and state highways will be cleared, as will all the city streets in other towns, so all we have to do is manage to get out of here and the roads will be fine. It makes me wonder what happens to our tax money? We can't afford snow removal. We can't afford to paint the traffic markings on our streets. We can't afford a fireworks display. We can't afford animal control officers to protect our children. We can't afford to hire enough police officers or outfit them properly. We can't afford routine maintenance and upkeep on our fire houses. Perhaps we should be asking some tough questions of the "good ol' boys" who are running our city as to where the money is going.
June 24, 2008 at 4:16 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
booker5m (anonymous) says...
My question is why do you keep voting the same type of good ole boys in?
June 24, 2008 at 5:12 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dml (anonymous) says...
BJ,
The money is going for all these studies that the city council does not want us to know the results of!
June 24, 2008 at 10:29 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
srochat (Scott Rochat) says...
When I first saw the headline of this piece, I couldn't help thinking of things out here. In Colorado, shoveling snow is taken about as seriously as cutting grass ... failing to shovel the walk in front of your house, if it gets noticed, can draw a warning from the city with the implication of worse to come.
That said, most Colorado towns (including this one) complain about how the roads aren't cleared properly or swiftly after a snowstorm. I'm sure Emporia's snow removal could be improved ... but I also suspect that snow removal is one of those things that every city complains about, regardless of how much or how little is actually done.
Scott Rochat
Longmont, CO
June 25, 2008 at 4:09 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
nutsaboutools (anonymous) says...
I agree with BJ. I would love to know where the money is going. My property taxes (including vehicle tags) have gone up every year, the fees I pay to register my children for the new school year have gone up every year. How do Emporia tax payers get a copy of our latest year-end-statements, to find out where the money is being spent? It would also be nice to know the results of issues/referendums discussed during the board meetings, especially how the members voted.
June 25, 2008 at 12:23 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
eatasheep69 (anonymous) says...
I agree with the points that BJ makes with the exception of the snow removal. I've always thought the city does a pretty decent job of clearing the streets of snow, but I don't try to drive a Corvette in it either. Yeah our town sucks in many respects, but I'm not smart enough or have the money to fix it.
June 25, 2008 at 12:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
pizza (anonymous) says...
Some years back I was attending a meeting where Steve Commons was present. It was winter and a number of folks were complaining to Commons about the awful snow removal. Commons response was "God put it there, He will take it away", At the time I thought he was kidding....later I decided he wasn't. Just imagine how bad things would be if we only had 3 commissioners and no six figure city manager!
June 25, 2008 at 10:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )