After a major winter storm recently dropped a significant amount of snow in Essex, and with more forecast for the weeks ahead, town officials discussed sidewalk snow removal at the last Board of Selectmen (BOS) meeting on Feb. 3.

“I’ve had questions about, ‘Is the town responsible for sidewalks?’ said First Selectman Norman Needleman, at the meeting. “The answer is, ‘We are trying to be,’ but it’s going to take a few years before we get this thing down pat.”

As the town develops a plan for clearing the nine miles of sidewalks in town, Needleman is asking residents to “please do your sidewalks if you can,” he said.

Residents are not mandated by an ordinance to keep their sidewalks clear, nor does a formal policy exist stating that the town is responsible for clearing them.

The town is “gradually trying to take over the responsibility of clearing the sidewalks,” said Needleman, by phone after the BOS meeting.

The decision by the town to incrementally assume responsibility was made in recent years and had been debated for several decades, according to Needleman.

“I think that the residents of the town of Essex deserve to have their sidewalk cleared,” said Needleman. “We want to encourage walking and jogging and all the stuff that makes the quality of life in town, great.”

With the added sidewalks in town, thanks to funds from the state’s Community Connectivity Grant Program in recent years, more people are using them recreationally. If they aren’t cleared, it can be a safety issue.

“What happens now is, with all the people out there, if the sidewalks aren’t done, people just walk in the street or jog in the street, and some of them are in very dangerous areas,” said Needleman.

In 2019, the town purchased a small Bobcat machine with plow and snowblower attachments to help remove snow from the sidewalks.

“We found it’s a bit slow,” said Needleman, who also said that there is limited personnel for clearing the sidewalks and that the town supplements staffing with contractor services, when needed.

The responsibilities of the town’s Public Works Department during a winter storm are “not only plowing to keep the roads open, during the storm and in the immediate aftermath, but then they might have to spend a day or two getting it out of places like downtown,” said Needleman.

Asked about snow removal costs, Needleman said that a conservative amount for snow removal is accounted for in the Public Works Department budget.

“The incremental cost per year, obviously like with snow plowing, is very variable depending on the kind of season that you have,” said Needleman.

As the town makes progress in developing a plan for clearing sidewalks of snow, Needleman is asking for cooperation and patience.

“I really want to urge people to be patient,” said Needleman. “We’re trying to figure out how to do this efficiently, but please don’t expect it’s going to be done efficiently by tomorrow. It’s a 50-year issue and it’s going to take a few years to get it right.”