Photo by RANDY PARKS

Front loaders and dump trucks were busy in the early morning hours removing snow from North Broadway after ODOT told the city that ‘center-berming’ was no longer acceptable on the street.

It’s not unusual to see snow berms down the middle of North Broadway in Burns after a snowstorm. But those berms are apparently going to become a thing of the past.

At the Burns City Council meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 8, Interim City Manager Dennis Davis reported that he attended a meeting with Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) representatives, and they informed him that piling the snow in the middle of the street is no longer acceptable.

Davis said ODOT will take over plowing North Broadway, which is actually part of Highway 20, and push the snow around corners to the side streets. ODOT will then use its front loaders to load the city’s dump trucks with snow to be transported elsewhere.

Davis said all the details of the plan have yet to be worked out because there hasn’t been enough snow this winter to test the plan. Each side street has to be looked at individually, as there are different parking areas and drainage grates, before a final plan can be established.

Councilor Judy Erwin asked why ODOT didn’t want the berms in the street any longer.

“They titled it as mobility — that over-sized loads were struggling to get through the berms and the parked cars,” Davis said. “They, and this could be from statements much higher than them, but the statement coming down from ODOT now is that center-berming is not anything they can accommodate any longer.”

Roy Crafts of the Burns Public Works Department said ODOT initially wanted to push all the snow into one parking spot on each block, where people park in front of businesses. The city explained that this plan wouldn’t work because the snow would take up more than one spot.

ODOT then asked whether it could push the snow around the corners into a pile on the side streets, then remove it in a day or two.

Crafts said the city doesn’t work on removing the snow every two days or so because it doesn’t have the manpower for that kind of schedule. The city will try it, but if the snow piles prevent other snow removal, the city will let ODOT try to come up with a solution.

Davis said the city will work with ODOT and document any problems that may arise so the two entities can come up with a plan that works for everyone.

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The council discussed resuming the hiring process for a permanent city manager. Former city manager Dauna Wensenk will assist the council with the process, and she gave the council packets with specific dates and deadlines.

Rather than just relying on advertising for the position, it was suggested that the city hire a recruiter to find a suitable applicant. However, the cost of doing so may be prohibitive.

The council will hold a workshop prior to its meeting on Jan. 22 to discuss the search.

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Davis reported that he and the Burns Police Department visited several sites in town to advise the owners that the property needs to be cleaned up. Some citations were issued.

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In other business:

• Kerry Boggs announced to the council that he is running for the Harney County Sheriff position in the next election. After giving a brief history of his background, he offered his ideas for improving the county jail and bringing more funds into the county;

• the council reviewed an amendment to the intergovernmental agreement between the cities of Burns and Hines for judicial services. The agreement increases the amount of Hines’ monthly payment from $150 to $300, and is retroactive to Dec. 31, 2019;

• Burns Police Chief Newt SkunkCap reported that the department responded to a little more than 2,400 calls last year;

• Burns Fire Chief Scott Williamson told the council that he was busy working on grants. He is working on one for hazardous material equipment and training, another to replace the communication repeater on Burns Butte, and a third to replace the air packs for the department;

• the city received one letter of interest to fill the vacancy on the council, but that person was unable to attend the meeting. The council will invite the person to attend the next meeting;

• the council will hold an executive session following its next meeting to review the performance of the interim city manager.

The next council meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 22, at city hall.