By ARIELLA MONTI
Rockville Centre Comptroller Michael Schussheim said the weather was going to cause the village to spend more than the $110,000 allotment for snow removal. "Given the expenditures to date," he said, "we're going to exceed the budget."
With spring still more than a month away, Schussheim could not yet provide exact budget figures, but he did say that the village board would be asked to approve an additional appropriation of funds for road maintenance.
"This year we're looking at 18 events where we've had to salt, as of Feb. 6," said Harry Weed, superintendent of the Department of Public Works, comparing this season's workload to the grand total of two plowing events and five saltings in the village last winter, which required a relatively paltry 800 tons of salt. "So far this winter, we've used 1,740 tons of salt."
According to Weed, there must be at least four inches of snow on the ground for plows to be mobilized, but the area has seen smaller accumulations thus far. On Dec. 19, however, plows were used to push slush off the roads before it could freeze. And throughout the winter, salt spreaders have been out in full force.
The damaging effects of the constantly fluctuating weather are evident in the potholes that dot many village thoroughfares. Weed explained that warming weather melts ice and snow, and water seeps into small cracks in the roads. When the temperature drops again, the water freezes and then expands, or "pops," creating holes in the road. Asked if he knew how many potholes were scattered throughout the village, Weed said, "I wouldn't even guess. There are way too many."
Potholes, along with the occasional frozen slush, black ice and snow, are also wreaking havoc on the cars that negotiate local streets. Irving Ramirez, a manager at Village Auto Center on North Village Avenue, said that he has seen a significant increase in the number of cars coming in with winter weather-related damage. Ramirez estimated that his repair shop has seen about 150 customers with blown tires, bent rims, dented bumpers and damaged brakes, as well as additional damage from larger accidents.
Anton Parisi, of Anton's Car Care Center on Sunrise Highway, said that he typically sees an increase in weather-related repairs at this time of year, but he hasn't noticed anything out of the ordinary yet this winter.
But those who log lots of miles on local streets - like drivers for local taxi companies - are noticing the results of a rough winter. "They're worse than usual," an All Island cab driver said of the village's roads. "There are a lot of potholes."
Mark Kasner, a driver for the Baldwin-based Dawson Taxi Company, said that area roads are decent compared with those in New York City. Kasner added, however, that when it snows, he stays home from work to avoid potential accidents.
"We're geared up to attack the potholes ... to fill them with hot patch, which will give us an extended lifetime -- a more permanent patch," said Weed. "Starting [Feb. 10], we'll be out there patching until we get caught up." Weed noted that because of the weak economy, Rockville Centre's usual asphalt vendor, in Cedarhurst, is closed until mid-March, which has forced the village to seek another vendor, farther away in Hicksville.
"We'll hit major, heavily trafficked areas first and work our way into the lesser-traveled, residential areas," Weed said of his department's plan to repair the pockmarked streets.
Schussheim said that the funding for pothole repair comes from the street maintenance budget, but the village would not know the full extent of the weather's effect on the budget until winter's end.
"I'd like it to get cold and stay cold," said Weed. "You can't have it going back and forth. I'd rather have it one way or the other."
Comments about it? AMonti@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 282.
