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Coeur d'Alene plows go the extra mile with help from snow gates

While city leaders admit snow plow crews may have accidentally created berms in front of driveways and mailboxes, the streets department says it’s committed to following up with concerned homeowners.

Street crews in Coeur d’Alene say they’ve been busy responding to individual requests and complaints from citizens expressing concerns regarding snow berms. 

While city leaders admit snow plow crews may have accidentally created berms in front of driveways and mailboxes, the streets department says it’s committed to following up with concerned homeowners.

"It's been a rough four days. There's a fine line between that quantity and quality,” said Coeur d’Alene streets and engineering director Tim Martin of his department’s efforts to plow residential areas. "It's been pretty hectic. Lots of snow.”

Martin said that the city’s plows use snow gates on plows to reduce berms from piling up in front of driveways. Snow gates, also called “snow boots,” are attachments on the end of plows that temporarily lower as a plow passes a driveway, pushing snow past the driveway.

Despite the snow gates, Martin said that the amount of snow that hit the city made preventing berms in front of driveways very difficult. Over the week, Coeur d’Alene’s streets department has fielded “hundreds” of calls from residents asking for problem berms to be removed from their driveways or in front of mailboxes.

Martin said that two smaller plows attached to pickup trucks have been following up with specific complaints that come in from concerned residents.

"I think for the most part, all of us that make a living doing this are doing the best we can to help them all," he said. 

As of Thursday evening, the city had a list of roughly 20 homes it will still following up on. Martin added that his team has been working around the clock since snow started to fall Sunday night. 

"They're dedicated to what they're doing,” he said of the city’s plow drivers. “Some of them are in here with the flu getting it done."

Coeur d’Alene residents experiencing issues with snow berms are asked to contact the streets department at 208-769-2235

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