County highway and municipal public works departments have not yet started on outfitting their winter plowing equipment. Most are putting the finishing touches on various construction or maintenance projects. In Algoma, work is wrapping up on the retention ponds near the Youth Center. However, another stormwater job still has to be completed on Sixth Street, says Public Works Director Matt Murphy.
Murphy doesn't expect any complications with the work. Once that is done, he says the trucks will be harnessed in the first or second week of November. Jon Kolodziej gave a similar timetable for winter outfitting at last week's Door County Airport and Highway Committee. Central and Western Wisconsin have already been hit with significant snowfall, but outside of some flakes scheduled for Sunday, Door and Kewaunee Counties have remained powder free. Mother Nature has the ultimate say in when departments shift their focus.