Unplowed roads a big issue for residents

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Over two feet of snow blanketed Franklin Square and Elmont over the weekend, and after the record-setting accumulation, residents and service organizations started the slow and arduous process of returning to their weekly routines. Some residents, however, complained that the snow removal on local side streets didn’t measure up with the county’s and state’s efforts on more heavily used roads.

H. Frank Carey, Elmont Memorial and Sewanhaka High School had two-hour delayed openings on Monday, while the Franklin Square elementary schools began at 10:15 a.m. The schools in the Elmont district, however, were closed, because the roads surrounding them were not safe said Elmont school board President Michael Jaime.

“The superintendent as well as other district personnel surveyed the secondary roads throughout the school district boundaries and determined that the roads were not clear enough for our bus fleet, parents and teachers to pass through safely,” Jaime explained. “Many roads were impacted negatively from snow being thrown back into the street after plows had passed. This was the primary reason for the closure.”

According to Elmont Fire Commissioner Joseph Balleta, many side streets had not been plowed before the Monday-morning commute. This caused problems for the trucks that responded to calls over the weekend.

“It’s like the town didn’t do anything,” Balleta said. “I’ll give credit to the county and state because those roads were beautiful, but the back streets are horrendous.”

Town of Hempstead spokesman Mike Deery said he did not believe the Elmont elementary schools closed because of a failure on the town’s part to clear the streets around the schools. According to Deery, many streets in Elmont are narrow, which can make plowing difficult.

“We treat all our roadways across our towns the same,” he said. “Maybe the school district had difficulty getting their lots plowed.”

Complicating the cleanup, residents blow and shovel snow from their driveways and walkways into the streets, Balleta said. This causes the roads to narrow significantly, hindering fire trucks’ maneuverability.

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