As a severe winter storm bears down on the Chicago area, public works crews in Brookfield, North Riverside and Riverside are preparing to deal with what could be two-foot snowfall totals.
“It’ll be nonstop,” said Tim Kutt, public works director for the village of North Riverside. “We’ll fight this storm until 11 p.m. or midnight, pull the guys in to give them a rest and then have the trucks back out at 3 a.m. so we have things plowed for rush hour.”
Kutt said the plows will hit the main streets of the village first, including Harlem Avenue, Desplaines Avenue, 31st Street and 26th Street, before plowing lanes through side streets to allow emergency vehicles access to residential areas.
“That’s going to go nonstop,” Kutt said. “The big challenge is going to be the wind. We can cover the whole town in an hour to an hour and a half. But with 40- to 50-mile-per-hour winds, once we pass, it’s possible it’ll blow a lot of it right back onto the street.”
The biggest challenge for controlling drifting snow, said Kutt, will be the stretch of Harlem Avenue bordering Morton West High School. With easterly winds whipping across open playing fields, keeping that street clear could prove problematic.
While the village doesn’t have any winter parking restrictions in effect, Kutt asked residents to keep snowplowing in mind.
“We’d certainly appreciate it if cars could be relocated from time to time so we can plow from curb to curb,” Kutt said.
Riverside Public Works Director Edward Bailey said he’s calling in his three snowplow drivers at 2 p.m. today.
“They’ll be here for the duration of the storm,” Bailey said. “Later we’ll call in the balance of the guys and use them to relieve those guys.”
The village’s plows will hit main streets such as Longcommon and Delaplaine roads first, along with the central business district. Parking lots and sidewalks in the central business district will be addressed on Wednesday, and side streets will be cleared as soon as possible to allow emergency vehicles through.
“It will be part of the challenge to keep sidewalks in the central business district open,’ Bailey said. “Early tomorrow morning, we’ll get down there with front-end loaders to start clearing the snow out of there.
“It’s just a matter of keeping up with it as best we can.”
In Brookfield, officials are asking that residents follow parking regulations, posted on street signs throughout the village. Police will ticket vehicles not in compliance with winter parking rules.
All village departments will move into “snow command” service as the white stuff piles up.
“Additional four-wheel-drive vehicles are being allocated to the fire department, and snow removal will focus on main streets, train depots and school-crossings first,” according to a press release issued by the Village of Brookfield.
Residents can get the latest Brookfield updates by calling the Brookfield snow emergency hotline at 387-SNOW (7669).