Alan Ingram
Express correspondent
Residents of Kingston’s private roads expressed frustration at a Board of Selectmen meeting Tuesday, Sept. 24, over a new policy that may halt snow plowing on some streets this winter. The board agreed to revisit the issue and hold a public hearing Tuesday, Oct. 8, to address concerns about safety and communication.
The policy, approved by the board in August 2023, would stop town plowing on private roads that don’t meet minimum standards, including a 10-foot-wide roadway with 2-foot shoulders on each side. Residents whose roads do not meet these standards were told they would need to make improvements or lose plowing services. Those residents say they were blindsided by letters sent out in early September informing them of the changes.
Several residents voiced worries about emergency vehicle access and the financial burden of maintaining their own roads. “I just cannot believe that I’m even here because I was never even notified,” said Victor Hult of Stagecoach Drive, who has lived on his road for 48 years.
Paul Brokmeier of Stagecoach Drive said he received estimates as high as $28,500 to bring his street up to the town’s standards. “I don’t really wanna hear that they’re not gonna plow my street when I won’t be able to get an ambulance into my home,” Brokmeier said.
Scott Bishop of Main Street, not an affected road, asked, “Why are you stopping services to citizens who pay taxes? What are you doing to ensure that emergency services are going to be available to these people? What are you doing to maintain upkeep of town property on these roads?”
Violet Berry of Meadowbrook Road recounted how town officials promised to plow her street when she moved there in 1960. “Now, when I was growing up, my father was, had his own business.… He never in his life signed a paper or had anybody sign the paper. He would quote a price, they’d shake on it and that was the legal document, so my feeling is, I’d like that honored.”
Berry added “I’d like to be able to continue living on Meadowbrook Road. It would be a hardship for me if I had to start putting out thousands of dollars or whatever to keep the road going.”
Highway Superintendent Paul Basler explained the policy aims to protect town plowing equipment and address a shortage of plow drivers. He said the town maintains about 80 miles of accepted roads and 35 miles of unaccepted private roads.
“We are having a big problem getting these plow trucks in anymore because A, insurance rates are high, the price of trucks is 70 or 80 grand, and nobody wants to put a plow on a truck, or an 80 grand plow truck, and have the transmission blow, or have the truck break down because it hit something on the side of a road,” Basler said.
“We’re trying to save the private plows and trucks from damage,” He added. “We need to keep our old trucks running to serve everyone in town who pays taxes.”
The new rules require private roads to meet minimum width and clearance standards. According to Basler, most issues involve overgrown trees and brush that need trimming.
Board members acknowledged the policy rollout could have been handled better. Selectman Kim Emberg apologized for the late notification.
“I apologize for it not going out until now. We voted it August of 2023. My understanding was that notifications would go out then. They didn’t, so I am apologizing to everyone for that, and we are trying to remedy that in a future meeting,” Emberg said.
The board voted to hold a public hearing on Oct. 8 to further discuss the policy and potential modifications. They also requested updated information on which streets don’t meet requirements and what specific repairs are needed.
“We’re not trying to postpone it and not have it done being closer to November. We’re trying to solve it,” said Chairman Eric Crone. “I mean, I’m telling you, we’re all residents of the same town.”
Emberg suggested the board could consider delaying implementation for a year or making tweaks to address concerns while still protecting town equipment.
“We could keep the policy as it is, not change anything, which I don’t think is fair at this point, given that people didn’t have the notification that was intended,” she said.
“So that leaves us a middle ground, which is either delaying the policy until next year, or figuring out maybe some tweaks for this season to address the concerns about the trucks, but also try to get to as many private roads as possible.”
The public hearing on the private road plowing policy is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 8 at 6 p.m. in the Kingston Town House.