Our View
Winter weather more than
a nuisance to local taxpayers

FARRAH MAFFAI Cammi Plage, 2, of Holmdel enjoyed the snowy hills at Holmdel Park Tuesday.

In case we forgot how costly winter cleanups are for municipalities, Old Man Winter dropped about 2 feet of snow on the Bayshore area on Presidents Day weekend as a reminder.

Although the snow has long since stopped falling, area residents may be in for some flooding problems this weekend as the snow is expected to melt quickly.

Over a week after 2 feet of snow fell in the Bayshore area in 1996, the melting snow resulted in major flooding throughout the state, according to Dave Robinson, New Jersey State climatologist at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.

Unfortunately, officials are predicting a quick thaw this weekend.

The outdoor temperatures are expected to rise and there is a good chance of rain, according to Art Kraus, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

That rain may increase the chances of flooding in the area.

That would be bad news for local municipalities that have been hit hard financially by last weekend’s snow

In Middletown, Township Administrator Robert Czech said he expects the cost to clean up the latest snowstorm to reach over $100,000 for taxpayers.

Because the storm fell on a Sunday and a Monday holiday, the township stretched its overtime budget to the limit. Middletown also uses private contractors for clearing.

The biggest budget buster for most towns is the overtime pay.

In Hazlet, Mayor Steve Piech said the town had planned to allocate about $100,000 for snow removal.

Matawan Borough Admini-strator Joseph P. Leo said that municipality’s snow removal budget of $11,000 was probably exhausted during the storm.

Although the final costs of the Presidents Day snowstorm, and its aftermath, have not been tallied, they are sure to strain municipal budgets and taxpayer bank accounts.

At a time when the state government is facing a budget deficit somewhere in the billions and Gov. James E. McGreevey is cutting state funding and asking local municipalities and taxpayers to spend less, the Presidents Day blizzard could put some towns in dire budgetary straits.

Most towns were looking at the possibility of a tax increase because of frozen state aid. Unfortunately, the recent blizzard will probably turn that fear into a reality.