Many Sarnians are noticing something new this spring – damaged lawns beside their sidewalks.
Though the city didn’t receive much snow this winter sidewalk plows tore up a lot of bordering earth and grass, leaving piles nearly a foot high in some places.
“One can drive around the city and see the mounds of dirt everywhere,” said resident Mark Nicholson.
“I certainly hope the city will be putting just as much effort into repairing people’s lawns in the spring as they have in removing them this winter.”
The problem for city hall has been an inability to get plow blades narrow enough to match Sarnia's sidewalks, city officials say.
The damage will be repaired at a cost of around $6,000.
Sarnia has three sidewalk plows that clear about 152 kilometres of sidewalks on a priority basis, including school zones.
In a recent report, staff estimated clearing all 328 kilometres of sidewalks would cost $1.27 million more annually in additional equipment and staff time.