Politics & Government

Mild Temperatures 'Snow' Big Deal for Darien So Far

Costs incurred by the village each winter season include salt, snow removal, vehicle maintenance and employee overtime.

The mild winter has proven to be a boon for coffers, as officials have not had to shell out much green to deal with white stuff.

“It’s been an uncommonly warm winter so far and the snowfall and ice directly impact our budget,” said Assistant City Administrator Scott Coren.

Darien officials annually budget about $235,000 alone for salt costs.

If the winter continues to be mild, “That number can be significantly reduced,” Coren said.

Director Dan Gombac said November and December usually together average about 10 inches of snow for Darien.

“We’ve managed to have about one inch at this point, or a little over at best,” he said. “So we’ve realized some savings at this point in the game.”

Other costs incurred by the village each winter season include snow removal, vehicle maintenance and employee overtime.

“Whenever we can get a season like this it can definitely help our financial picture,” Coren said.

Gombac said employees are taking advantage of the mild winter to tackle other work.

“It definitely gives us an opportunity to catch up on other projects like sidewalk maintenance, shoulder maintenance and creek bed maintenance,” he said. “We can fill in some of the gaps on projects we haven’t had the opportunity to look at or complete.”

And despite the unseasonably warm temperatures, Gombac said the snow will likely come.

“There’s still a lot of winter left,” he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here