By Ron Marasco
rmarasco@myabc5.com
We got our white Christmas, but it came at a price. Navigating Metro streets became an adventure. Thank goodness, Des Moines cleared the way for us to get on with our daily lives.
Nearly a week after Mother Nature dumped a foot of snow on the Metro, snow plows are still hard at work...so we can all get to work.
"Based on the snow amount that we had, relatively it went well," said Chuck Burrell, Des Moines Public Works Information Officer. "The plowing operation was difficult obviously with the massive amount of snow that we had."
Kendall Dillon lives in the Forestdale neighborhood, and like many we spoke to on Wednesday, she agrees.
"They're doing a fabulous job today," says Dillon. "We didn't think they were going to come out, and then we came home this afternoon and our streets are plowed and they look fabulous."
"Generally, we're kind of at the tail-end of the process," said Des Moines resident George Riley. "So snow removal is fairly slow typically, and this not being an exception, but once they got to it...excellent!"
The city put a new ordinance in place this season where all cars need to be off the streets except in a few neighborhoods.
"We're really happy with the number (of residents) that actually did take place, or took part in it," said Burrell. "We imagine on our next snow event, we'll have even a better participation."
Burrell says the city gave out about 2,000 warnings since Thursday. He says about 70% of residents complied. The neighbors we spoke to like the new rules.
"I think it's a great plan," said Dillon. "I know it's going to cause some trouble, and people getting used to it, but I mean you can just see today how clean our street is. It's great!"
"I think in order, especially with the new snow plows as I understand, they need extra room and so I really don't have a problem with it."
The city is still laying down salt on those pesky roads that remain covered in ice. They're hoping for a little help from the sun to finish the job.
