Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton has announced staffing changes and an overhaul of the city’s snow plan after public criticism of its response to a March 17th winter storm that caused more than 150 accidents and delays for morning commuters. On Wednesday, March 18th, Gorton spoke to local reporters i n the lobby of the city’s Government Center, announcing she had accepted the resignation of Nancy Albright, Lexington’s Commissioner of Environmental Quality and Public Works. Albright’s resignation is effective March 31. Gorton named Charles Martin, Director of Water Quality, as Acting Commissioner of Environmental Quality and Public Works. It is his fifth time serving in that role, according to a news release from the Mayor’s Office. In addition, Gorton announced the Division of Streets and Roads will be supervised by Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Glenn Brown going forward. The division handles street clearing efforts after winter storms. Gorton did not take questions from reporters. In a prepared statement she read aloud, Gorton said she shared the public’s frustrations with the city’s response to recent snow and ice storms. “It is not lost on me that anything our 3,000-plus employees do is ultimately my responsibility,” Gorton said. “I have high expectations of myself, and of our employees, and high standards for the services my administration delivers to people. I share the public’s frustration and disappointment in the services we have provided in recent snow and ice storms.” Additionally, Gorton said she is “tearing up” the city’s snow plan and starting over. “Our approach is currently not working. We need to start over,” Gorton said. Councilmembers ask about crew mobilization, weather monitoring efforts Earlier, during Tuesday, March 17th’s work session, Urban County Councilmembers asked city officials to explain how Lexington prepared for the sudden snow showers earlier that morning. 9th District Councilmember Whitney Elliott Baxter asked Albright to discuss the city’s preparations and response to the storm. Prior to the event, Albright said overnight crews were watching for complaints, crashes and police reports, responding to those as they came in, and monitoring weather conditions. In addition, crews pre-treated known slick spots, such as bridges and hills. Going into the event, there was a general expectation of a low amount of snow, Albright said, citing initial weather reports. However, after the weather picked up early Tuesday morning, Albright said there were delays in mobilizing crews until after 5 a.m. “It does take at least an hour or so for our crew to come in and be ready to turn around and drive back out,” Albright said. “By then, things had gotten out of our reach, a little bit,” Albright added. Rob Larkin, the city’s Director of Emergency Management, also responded to questions from 11th District Councilmember Jennifer Reynolds about weather monitoring efforts and if city officials anticipated the storm. Larkin described Kroger Field camera footage he reviewed that showed a brief but intense burst of snow – called a snow squall – arriving at about 4:30 a.m. and lasting roughly 15 minutes. In its wake, it left a coating of snow that worsened road conditions quickly thereafter, Larkin said. Prior to the event, Larkin said the city received a Special Weather Statement from the National Weather Service at 12:58 a.m. It described a dusting to a half-inch of snow, reduced visibility, and snow briefly accumulating on roads, causing slippery conditions, Larkin said. A later Winter Weather Advisory came at about 5:30 a.m., describing scattered snow showers of up to 1 inch, Larkin said. “We really didn’t have strong indications that we would receive anything overnight,” Larkin said. “It just popped up.” City has been reviewing response to previous snow, ice storm Reacting to reports from city officials, Councilmember Baxter and 4th District Councilmember Emma Curtis said they hoped for a better response, particularly following Winter Storm Fern. The city is currently reviewing its response to that storm after it struggled to clear neighborhood streets. Fayette County Public Schools students were out of school for approximately two weeks amid the snow and ice build-up. “It’s unfortunate timing that something has happened so close to the last one,” Baxter told Albright during the March 17th Work Session. “I just know that for my husband to sit on New Circle Road for two hours this morning for a 6-mile commute, that’s unacceptable,” Baxter said. Baxter hoped for more proactive leadership going forward as the city reexamines its winter storm preparations and response. Councilmember Curtis agreed. “At the end of the day, municipal government is about providing competent city services,” Curtis said. “When we are moving forward, we cannot continue to allow ourselves to be caught off-guard by this,” she added. “This is a public safety issue.” No formal action was taken on the city’s snow and ice removal plan during the March 17th Work Session. The city has previously announced an internal, “military-style” after-action review of its response to Winter Storm Fern. Gorton said that review is nearing completion, and it has involved a deep dive into what worked and what didn’t in the city’s response. Its findings will show up in the city’s new snow plan, Gorton said. According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, the city has also issued a request for proposals to contract for winter storm clean-up services from companies with heavy-duty ice-breaking equipment. Gorton said on March 18th that the contract will soon be awarded. 🫵 How can you get involved?Contact your Councilmember here. Mayor Gorton has also asked residents to send ideas and suggestions for improvement via email to [email protected]. The post Mayor makes leadership changes, council questions winter storm response appeared first on The Lexington Times. ...read more read less