Dear Neighbour,Welcome to winter! As I begin writing this newsletter the outdoor temperature is -9°C. But the sun is out and there is no wind. If you are among those who actually like winter, the conditions are ideal. A great day to be on skis.

Of course winter also brings things that are less than ideal, chief among them having to shovel snow, and, for the city, plowing the streets and sidewalks. As is common in winter, particularly after large snowfalls, I have received several messages suggesting that the city implement a universal windrow removal service. (A windrow is that pile of snow that the snowplow leaves at the foot of your driveway, if  you have one.) Often those messages are accompanied by lovely videos of specialized machines moving smoothly along a street in Mississauga or some such place plowing, the street and windrows simultaneously. If only it were that simple.

– In fact Markham council has carefully considered universal windrow services twice in my seven years on council. Both times we have decided not to proceed. In 2022 it was estimated that the service would cost $5M per year or a 2-3% tax increase. And although the increased tax would be paid by all taxpayers, those in condos or on private roads would not benefit.

– The increased costs would come from needing more and more expensive equipment to service our roads as quickly as the current service. In those videos you might notice that the machines move fairly slowly. It can already take up to 16 hours to plow the city without a universal windrow service.

– In many places there is not enough room between driveways to push snow. In those cases front end loaders and dump trucks would be required to remove the snow. This too adds cost.

– And that cost would also include annual repairs to curbs, fire hydrants and other boulevard infrastructure close to driveways. Also, cars parked in driveways, but close to the edge of the street, can sometimes be clipped.

– We would also need to add more resources to our customer service function, in so far as the new service increases expectations and generates more issues to be resolved.

These comments are based on experiences in other municipalities in the GTA. The staff of one municipality that has the service even recommended that Markham not implement it. They regret their decision but it’s now politically impossible to stop clearing windrows.

In 2019 the city commissioned a scientific public opinion survey on the topic. It demonstrated that over 60% of residents were not prepared to pay higher taxes to finance the new service. Other informal surveys conducted since then show similar results.

My position is that that the fairest and most fiscally prudent way forward is to retain our current services with respect to snow plowing. Of course, we live in Canada, what I call a “winter country”. For all our good fortune there some challenging things we all just have to deal with. You can find more information about the council decision in 2022 here and here.

The city does nonetheless recognize that clearing windrows is challenging, particularly for seniors. There is a free windrow removal service available to those over age 60. In 2022 we improved that service so it should be done within 4 hours of the street plow passing, vs 8 hours previously. If you are interested in this service, please contact my executive assistant Marina at mantonoglou@markham.ca.

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All that said, there have been many issues related to snow plowing since the first snowfall last November (!). Our contractors  have not always met their contracted standards. In particular, some plow drivers have seemed unable to plow from curb to curb, particularly on wide corners and in cul-de-sacs. (And in a couple of cases they have gone beyond the curb and have damaged boulevards and infrastructure there.)

However, after our most recent snowfall I have received far fewer complaints (though not none). This would seem to indicate that our city managers have finally gotten through to the contractors and that service is improving. I do know that they have a hard time hiring qualified drivers. As always, if you have concerns about the service on your street, please contact Markham customer service at customerservice@markham.ca or 905 477 5530. If your issue is not resolved in a reasonable amount of time, please don’t hesitate to contact my executive assistant, Marina (mantonoglou@markham.ca) or me directly. For more information on winter services in Markham and to track the progress of the plows during and after a snow storm visit markham.ca/winter.

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Winter aside, February is always a busy time. It is Black History Month and in Markham, Chinese Heritage Month. The latter of course includes Lunar New Year celebrations. This is the year of the horse. I look forward to seeing many Ward 3 residents at events marking both celebrations.

Stay warm!

Reid