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I n s i d e Arden Hills, MN . 55112-5734 ECR-WSS PRST STD U.S. Postage Paid Twin Cities, MN Permit #1962 Postal Customer From the Mayor GreenStep Cities Textile Recycling Greener Holidays Arden Hills Foundation Some of you may remember the old maintenance facility on the south side of Highway 96, just east of Keithson Drive. It was an old cinderblock building not large enough to house all of the City maintenance equipment. It was eventually torn down in 2010. In 2006, the City along with Ramsey County, Mounds View Public Schools, and Ramsey County Sheriff’s Department built a new joint maintenance facility located northwest of the intersec- tion of Highway 96 and Hamline. The joint maintenance facility is large, and the Arden Hills maintenance area is no longer able to be easily identified by itself, even more difficult given the Ramsey County Sherriff’s Department is now adjacent to the east of the facility. I would like to take this opportunity to share with you the facilities we have and some of the operations that are performed. We have nine double-wide garage doors (see photos), one additional garage door with a hoist, five additional parking stalls in the joint parking area, and additional covered outdoor parking. We operate a fleet of 12 trucks, in addition to a wide variety of specialized equipment, such as a street sweeper, a vac truck, a skid steer, a water tanker, two tool cats, several genera- tors, trailers, mowers, a front end loader, pot hole patching equipment, and heavy duty trailers just to name a few. Public Works performs general mainte- nance of the City equipment. The Depart- ment also plans for equipment upgrades as equipment ages. It determines the best mix of equipment for the City to have, given its needs and the ever-changing equipment types available on the market. The Public Works Department consists of eight full-time employees, one superintendent and the Public Works Director/ City Engineer. In the summer the Department adds eight seasonal employees, usually college students, to assist with the busy summer season. Every day the supervisor assigns job duties based on current priorities and in some cases the weather conditions. As with a lot of occupations, each employee needs to keep various certifications current. It is more than just a commercial driver’s license; it includes state licenses such as sewer from MPCA, water from Department of Health, forestry certification, and safety training, to name a few. In addition, the Department keeps up-to-date on the latest innovations and changes to state mandated reporting requirements. As the seasons change, so does the use of the equipment. The effort to change from summer equipment to winter equipment, or vice versa, is a large one. Summer equipment has to be winterized and stored; snow plows need to be mounted for use. It takes a large facility and dedicated em- ployees to maintain a City. Soon the snow will be here, and our employees will be working, often irregular hours, to keep our streets cleared. While you may not be able to easily identify our shop, rest assured Arden Hills has the facilities and trained staff to get the job done. Happy Holidays, David Grant, Mayor