By Frank Mustac, Special Writer
The aftereffects still linger from a fire back in March that damaged the Department of Public Works building and more than 20 DPW vehicles that were parked inside the building’s garage.
The roof of the structure at 203 Washington Crossing-Pennington Road still needs repair, and garage doors have to be replaced, and although new trucks and other vehicles already have been purchased and delivered, more are on order.
The blaze started when a dump truck parked inside the garage caught fire and completely destroyed the truck. Heat and soot from the blaze compromised the remaining 23 vehicles stored in that section of the garage, rendering them unsafe for use.
Paul Pogorzelski, Hopewell Township’s administrator and engineer, said contractors will be selected once competitive bids are received, and work on the building, hopefully, will be completed before winter.
Speaking at the Township Committee meeting of Sept. 14, Mr. Pogorzelski summarized a report prepared by Acting DPW Director Peter VanHise, who was not in attendance.
The report, according to Mr. Pogorzelski, indicates the township is prepared for snow removal and spreading salt on snowy and icy roads during the upcoming winter months.
He said the department wants to have four additional mason dump trucks at the ready, however, plus one more front-end loader for filling spreader trucks with salt.
Mr. VanHise “has already ordered mason dump trucks,” Mr. Pogorzelski said.
Four used dump trucks, each with its own plow and salt spreader, are being purchased from Hamilton Township at a cost of $5,000 each for a total of $20,000. Contracts, Mr. Pogorzelski said, should be ready for review by the next scheduled Hopewell Township Committee meeting on Monday.
A second front-end loader is needed because one was lost in the fire.
The critical need for two front-end loaders, he said, is that while one continuously loads road salt onto trucks for spreading on snow and ice, a second front-end loader is used to clean up snow at intersections and areas of heavier accumulation.
The Acting DPW Director is soliciting prices for short- and long-term leasing of a front-end loader, Mr. Pogorzelski said.
Funds for replacing vehicles damaged in the fire, he said, will come from the insurance claim proceeds.
Road salt is being obtained through a cooperative purchasing agreement with Mercer County. In addition, he said, the state has issued and awarded bids so its contractors also will be able to provide municipalities with road salt.
The state and county both recognize the problems with a shortage of road salt last winter when many towns ran out of supplies of salt, Mr. Pogorzelski said.
“In addition, we’re soliciting quotes from other vendors,” he said. “So we have sort of a menu of options available to us.”
