jan milliman

Worth their salt!

Last week, I had the opportunity to take a tour of the Department of Public Works facilities in Brockport, NY. Those of you who know me well can imagine that I was pretty excited at the opportunity to get a little closer to the salt barn (yum!). And I hope that even those who don’t know me can appreciate that this was an interesting way to spend an afternoon.

Superintendent Harry G. Donahue was my guide. He’s been with the DPW for 31 years. He started out as a laborer and gradually worked his way up. Back when he started, there were 18 employees in the department. Today there’s a crew of 11.

Those 11 employees take care of an awful lot in the village of Brockport. They mind both the sanitary and storm sewers and facilitate water service for the village. They take care of paving and maintaining the roads and sidewalks, as well as doing the plowing and leaf pick up. They maintain village buildings and trees, take care of the parks, and do trash pick-up at the village buildings and along Main Street. There’s so much more this department does — including things like changing out seasonal banners, maintaining fire hydrants, and facilitating village office moves — but you get the idea.

The DPW mechanic, Gerry Bradt, maintains all the DPW vehicles as well as those used by the Brockport police department. He’s able to fabricate parts and is a whiz at keeping old equipment running.

But the DPW’s efforts to cooperate and combine efforts were what impressed me most about my visit. Donahue showed me several pieces of equipment that were purchased in conjunction with neighboring towns. He takes a common sense approach with several municipalities chipping in on resources that aren’t in daily use. Donahue also works with the other nearby DPW superintendents to share equipment when needed. This willingness to cooperate is common throughout the county, he tells me. So much so, that our region is held up as an example when talk of consolidation comes up at the state level.

This spirit of sharing and working with what you have seems to be a long-held value at the Brockport DPW. The main office is heated with a woodstove donated by a previous superintendent several years back.

I really enjoyed my behind-the-scenes tour of the DPW facilities, even though the stop by the salt barn was brief. Many thanks to Mr. Donahue and the rest of the staff at the department that keeps Brockport running.