Mounting storm budget has Saugus praying for rain

SAUGUS – Department of Public Works Superintendent Joseph Attubato is hoping for rain this morning.After the weekend’s snow and ice fest and the snowstorms of December and January, Town Manager Andrew Bisignani said the town couldn’t afford any more wintry storms.”We’re about $450,000 over budget,” Bisignani said. “We budgeted $150,000.”Communities by nature under fund snow and ice removal across the board because it’s hard to predict the weather. It is also the only deficit the town is allowed to carry forward. The bills for 2008 will be paid out of the 2009 budget.Last year the town ended the season with a $365,000 snow and ice bill. Bisignani said that wasn’t too bad since it only meant the town had to raise approximately $160,000 in the budget to cover the shortfall.In fiscal 2006, the town had to raise nearly $1 million to cover snow and ice removal.Come July the town could easily be struggling to fund a $500,000 snow and ice bill for the fiscal 2009 budget.Attubato said Tuesday he hoped today’s pending storm packed more rain or even ice than snow. He said the weekend storm, while causing numerous accidents, wasn’t as bad for his crew as it could have been since there was no plowing involved.”It was mostly sanding – there was black ice everywhere,” he said. “It’s bad, dangerous, but it’s not as big a financial impact.”Bisignani said unfortunately there isn’t a lot he can do regarding the deficit.”It’s a tough year for us to raise it, but unless someone can do something about controlling the weather for us there’s nothing we can do,” he said.