Getting ready for the snow

Pine Haven's Director of Public Works Sean Glasser is ready for winter with the oil changed and other maintenance done for the town's plow and sander, "The process takes a week to a week and a half."

Pine Haven lives on a hill, a situation that comes with certain concerns and challenges; the most important is maintaining the roadways to ensure the safety of drivers and pedestrians through the cold months. The most difficult, according to Glasser, "Is to keep the rock on the roads that are not paved."

Frozen water meters are the other major concern during the winter. Glasser says the meter must be replaced but are not discarded; they are engineered to be repaired with a new "plate" that is specifically designed to break instead of the main body so the crew sets the repaired devices aside to be used again.

Glasser sharpens and changes mower blades and ensures maintenance for all the summer equipment over the winter before spring and when the weather turns warm, the plow truck is disassembled, and the process begins again.