The record-setting snowfall in 2026 has had an impact on Shawano’s public works budget, it was revealed at a May 26 field committee meeting.
As of April 30, the city had spent 64.2% of its budget for snow and ice control, which seems on par for staying within budget for the year, as it also includes the need to remove snow and ice once cold weather returns in November and December. However, the line item for supplies and materials shows the city has spent $86,077.95 so far; the budget for materials is $86,000 for the year.
The city is also over budget when it comes to overtime for plow drivers. There was $20,642 in the budget for 2026, but with the 33 inches of snow that fell in mid-March, followed by an ice storm two weeks later, Shawano has spent $37,253.43, 80.5% more than had been budgeted.
Public works director Mike Mahloch told the committee that the overall budget is sitting well, with wages for plow driving being down. City records show that only 55.2% of the funds for regular wages have been spent so far this year.
However, Mahloch is concerned about the supplies and materials budget being depleted.
“Due to the snowfalls and the other things that we had this year with a lot of light snowfalls, and the freezing temperatures that required a lot of materials to be put down on the road, whether it was salt or the salt/sand mixtures, that’s why you’re seeing us at 100% so far on supplies and materials,” Mahloch said.
Mahloch said it’s not uncommon to see the “vast majority” of the snow and ice budget used up in the first part of the year because of the amount of snow that typically falls in January, February and March. Sometimes there’s snow in April, as well, he said.
“When you get into the second part of the year, November and December, sometimes you get really lucky because you won’t spend any money in your snowplowing budget,” Mahloch said. “As long as you’re south of 75% for the overall budget, usually you are pretty decent going into the end of the year.”
Another hit to the budget came when a snowplow blew its motor. Mahloch said that’s expected to cost about $30,000 to replace the motor, which will greatly reduce the line item for maintenance and repair. The plow truck is only 10 years old, he noted.
“You try to budget off of previous years and averages,” Mahloch said. “Then you throw in a year like we had this year, when you have a snowplow that requires three constant days of plowing, and we pretty much had a week of time invested in that snowplow between scraping roads, hauling snow and plowing snow and putting material down. That snowfall was five or six rolled up into one.”
When the question of whether using a salt brine to treat icy and snow-covered roads would be more effective and thrifty came up, Mahloch said there wouldn’t be any savings. He noted that the brine only has a narrow window of effectiveness, when temperatures are in the upper 20s and low 30s, while salt can be effective with lower temperatures.
Shawano County does make its own brine, so it would be possible to purchase theirs if it was ever decided to switch to the brine, which does less damage to roads, Mahloch noted. However, he feels salt is the most effective tool for clearing roads right now.
“That’s never going to go away,” Mahloch said. “Even the county sometimes puts down salt, because the brine doesn’t always keep up.”
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
