This past week there were several complaints about the conditions of the roads. The City does understand your frustration and this was, unfortunately, a situation that occurred as a result of the timing of the holidays. Here is some official information about our city’s salt supplies and road clearing and what occurred to create the issue.
How much salt does our dome currently hold?
If the salt is blown into the dome with a piler it will hold about 1,100 ton. Getting a piler here requires a different contractor and on occasion tough to schedule, so salt is usually ordered and pushed into the shed with the loader and this reduces our capacity to about 800 ton.
Once ordered, what is the typical turnaround time for us to receive the salt delivery?
Usually takes 6 to 7 days depending on recent snow storms and the demand from other cities.
Is there a set amount we typically order, or does it fluctuate?
The order amount changes on how much is in the shed, the current weather forecast, etc. This is a constant guessing game to try and keep the shed full.
When did we last order?
Our recent orders took place on Wednesday Dec. 27 – 400 ton, Thursday December 28 – 400 ton and another 400 ton today, January 2, 2018.
How much did we have on hand when we placed the order for additional salt?
Over 250 ton.
During a typical snowfall (not a major storm) how much salt do we go through?
During a normal salt run (salt the whole city once) we use over 60 ton.
Since December 22nd Cargill Salt was only open three days, the 27th, 28th and 29th.
We have had crews in most of the day and are spot salting the City. We did not salt last night because we were nearly out of salt and were unsure if we could arrange delivery today. However, earlier this morning our Service Director arranged for 180 tons which did arrive so salting will resume.
I hope this information is helpful. Thank you for your understanding.