Truck issues continue to frustrate the Rushford Village Council and the situation is frustrating residents as well. At the March 17 council meeting, Councilor Mike Ebner provided an update on the status of the Freightliner truck. A truck that the village has had since just May 2022, but that has seen two front-end failures and one rear differential failure and cost the village thousands.
“Plow and plow and plow,” said Ebner. “They’re just out plowing and maintaining right now.”
Public Works Supervisor and department worker Adam Johnson have been hitting the roads using the grader and grader bullets to scarify the road surface, breaking up the frozen, icy roads. Zoning Administrator Jon Pettit is also working for the department helping keep roads open. They indicated despite chains, roads have been slippery.
“They’re just doing what they can,” added Ebner.
“We don’t have the equipment. It breaks down on us,” added Pettit.
The department has tried spreading rock with available equipment with no success. Ebner indicated the village contacted Universal Truck Equipment for suggestions on using the 450 truck.
“Just about every hill ought to get graveled or sanded, or whatever, but we’ve got to deal with this,” said Councilor Rick Ruberg. “I see both sides. We have a vehicle that’s supposed to be on the roads, but isn’t, ‘cause it broke down again, and I see this point, the roads aren’t being taken care of to the point that they should be.”
According to Ebner, the faulty Freightliner parts were sent to the company for review after the truck was taken into Syverson Truck Center. When asked for an update, Ebner expressed further frustration, but caution to maintain a good working relationship with the company. He stated that the parts are covered under a new warranty.
“Syverson says they know nothing. They’ve had no phone calls from the manufacturer since the front unit has been sent to them. It’s been two weeks yesterday,” he added.
“We bought a brand new truck that has not been functional since day one. How do we go about getting a new truck?” asked Councilor Bob Hart to City Attorney Joe O’Koren. “What would anybody else expect?”
“It’s certainly the not the expectation that the city would have the truck down for this long and this many times,” responded O’Koren, who will look into the matter for the council.
Village resident Ryan Oian was also present and expressed frustration with the roads. “This has been the worst year. It’s not because you don’t have good employees. It’s because you don’t have the equipment,” he said.
While the truck has been out, the village has been utilizing mutual aid from several townships. Problems have been exacerbated by the steep hills and shadowed valleys in the area, making ice buildup somewhat inevitable. The council continues to find alternatives including having gravel companies rock roads, hiring independent contractors with the equipment, and is considering a low-interest loan for a back-up truck. If the council utilizes this last option, a t10-year old truck purchased in the off-season is anticipated to cost upwards of $100,000, while even a 20-year-old truck is pushing $50,000.
“Whatever we do, I’ve got no problem with it, but every time we bring something up, people talk about ‘It costs us money,’ and then all I get … I get dumped on because it costs money and then we wait for two weeks,” said Ebner. “If you want to do something, let me know what you want to do and we’ll do it. But, you guys gotta vote on it instead of just telling me every two weeks, because I’ve been dealing with this every day, Darrin, and I, and Adam. Tell me what you want me to do, but don’t complain to me that it’s costing money.”
“This might be our last major snow for this year. Maybe, maybe not. We don’t know. We need to have something in place to do some follow up after what we went through this winter,” continued Ebner. “Other townships are in the same boat. They’re busting their butts to keep their roads open.”
The department will do some more looking into trucks available for purchase and will consider talking with financial consultant Mike Bubany.
Community Economic Development Associate’s consultant Jayme Longmire was also at the meeting and provided an update to the month’s work. After approval of the redefined Revolving Loan Fund guidelines and process last month, she is moving forward with marketing it and getting the funds into the community. She is also continuing to look into ways that the village can utilize the funding for immediate safety needs through an appeal to Department of Employment and Economic Development, who issued the funds following the 2007 flood.
Longmire is hoping she can present a hardship case to the entity for things like the lift station generator. However, it’s a problem applying for funding when the village doesn’t have funding for a match. Federal Emergency Management Agency has a current generator program, but it’s paused right now. If there is a way to show that the village’s public water system may be threatened by wastewater without a backup system in place, they might have a leg to stand on. Mayor Dennis Overland noted it’s a closed system, but pointed out the lift station does sit in a flood plain and if there was no backup, there is potential for it to flow into the river. The village also can’t run water in south Rushford without the wastewater portion in operation.
There are also grants available to fire departments and emergency medical services. This presents further challenges to seek funding when the village has no such departments and utilizes contracts with the city of Rushford. There is a possibility of collaboration for the application process, however, so Overland will speak with Rushford Fire Chief Nick Smith.
In other news, the village council will be attending a collaborative meeting, held by the Rushford Economic Development Authority on April 22. Leadership from the village, city of Rushford, and city of Peterson will be present to listen to a presentation by Ben Winchester on rural housing.
The council did unanimously approve several other items including several Occupational Safety and Health Administration-required measures, the village Dust Control Policy, and designating Public Works to mow at village-owned sites in 2026 instead of hiring out through contracted services.
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