by Dennis Dalman
Sartell and its Public Works Department received a 2021 “City of Excellence Award” for a road pre-treatment program on the city’s main arterial roadways. The award was given by the League of Minnesota Cities.
It was presented to John Kothenbeutel, director of Public Works, at a recent city-council meeting. He accepted the award on behalf of his public-works team and the city. The pre-treatment involves using a brine mixture of 78 percent water and 22 percent salt and applying it to roadways before a snow event. The brine mixture helps to melt the snow much more quickly.
In 2015, Kothenbeutel, maintenance supervisor Larry Then and the entire Public Works team created an anti-icing program that pre-treats roads before major snow events. That innovative practice not only reduced the need for salt, sanding and plow times but saved the city costs to the tune of $150,000 during the past six years. It also helps protect the environment.
In the award citation, the League stated the cost of purchasing road salt by the city was reduced by 25 to 50 percent during a six-year period.
Sartell City Administrator Anna Gruber said the city’s line-item budgeted amount for salt is already $40,000 under budget this year. The city, she said, expects to expand the program to residential streets in 2021.
The League of Minnesota Cities is a membership association to promote excellence in local government. It is governed by a board of directors of elected and appointed officials and serves more than 800 cities through advocacy, education and training, policy development, risk management and other services.
To hearty applause at the Aug. 9 city-council meeting, three Sartell city officials line up to accept an Excellence” award from the League of Minnesota Cities. From left to right are Dave Callister, the League’s board president; Sartell Mayor Ryan Fitzthum, John Kothenbeutel, director of Sartell Public Works; Anna Gruber, Sartell city administrator; and Luke Fischer, the League’s deputy director.
