DPW aims to be ready for anything

While on the lighter side, a surprising overnight snowfall Jan. 31 prompted West Milford Department of Public Works (DPW) director Jay Casbarro and his supervisors to mobilize employees and equipment for salting slippery roads throughout the township starting about 2 a.m.

“Our Weather Works service that we contract with gave a late-day alert for a slick coating of snow coming our way,” said Casbarro, who was appointed DPW director in October. “Our supervisors and I immediately reached out to our people to come to work early. Our people did a great job, and the town’s roads were salted and safe for the morning commute.”

That’s the type of response that Casbarro and the DPW strive to achieve every day year-round.

“Our job is to be prepared and to serve the citizens of West Milford as best we can,” he said. “That includes being proactive and staying ahead of what’s coming our way.

“We have a responsibility and vested interest as employees and professionals. Everyone at the DPW has pride in what we do, especially as nearly all our people live or grew up in West Milford. We want to make our town safe for everyone across the township.”

Edward Steines’ legacy

Casbarro, who has been a DPW employee for 18 years, succeeded former fire commissioner and DPW director Edward Steines, who died Aug. 16. He had served West Milford for nearly 40 years.

Township Administrator Bill Senande served as interim DPW director until Casbarro’s appointment.

“Due to circumstances with Ed Steines passing away, (I) wanted to keep everything running as he would have wanted, status quo,” Casbarro said. “Ed’s passing hit everyone here and the township very hard. He was the consummate professional and did a fantastic job.

“We’ve kept focus on doing what we’re hired to do. Our guys know what they’re doing and do it well. We’ve made a few changes, including adding three new supervisors - one taking on my prior role and two more due to retirements. The transition has been smooth and gone well, thanks to the DPW team and their commitment and positive response to the situation.”

Casbarro has been a volunteer member of the West Milford Fire Department for 30-plus years. Along with fighting fires, he also performed searches and rescues and was a driver for the First Aid Squad.

Born in West Milford’s Upper Greenwood Lake section, he currently lives in Vernon and is planning to move back to West Milford.

Casbarro joined the DPW in 2007, after 1 1/2 years as West Milford parks supervisor, rising through the ranks from laborer to supervisor and now director. He worked in Riverdale for five years before becoming a West Milford employee.

Not county roads

The DPW has 47 employees and adds independent contractors for snow plowing and removal during winter. There are 26 DPW trucks available for snow plowing, and DPW employees do all road salting.

Across the township, the DPW supports all government buildings, and its mechanics maintain a fleet of vehicles, including ambulances, firetrucks, and police vehicles. It also services township parks and provides emergency response

DPW workers attend to all township streets, roads and public properties as well as the Recycling Center.

Outside the DPW purview are the roads maintained by Passaic County, which include Echo Lake, Greenwood Lake Turnpike, Lakeside, Macopin, Marshall Hill, Oak Ridge and Union Valley roads.

“Many people don’t realize that the county roads are not the DPW’s responsibility. We do assist at times if needed,” Casbarro said. “That includes salting and snow plowing, road repairs and potholes, cutting fallen trees, and more.

“Our work is year-round, and each season is different,” he noted. “Along with snow, ice and frost, this winter with highly fluctuating temperatures has produced significant rainfall with spot flooding that causes washouts and potholes. We’re now doing a lot of repairs to our roads, which is a year-round job that includes sweeping roads three times a year. For anyone who cares, we are well-stocked with salt and gravel for the remainder of winter.”

Coming into spring, then summer, the DPW will be doing post-winter cleanups; seeding and weeding; preparing and maintaining parks, such as Bubbling Springs; even ensuring the proper amount of mulch in playgrounds and other recreation areas.

Casbarro and his team now are preparing parks and playgrounds for a mandatory annual insurance company inspection.

The DPW also ensures that the Recycling Center is operating properly, including fulfilling mandates for handling oil, tires, metal, glass and leaves.

Special attention is being given to changes made by the state Department of Environmental Protection to regulations for stormwater compliance. The DPW is in the process of determining requirements and actions.

“So effective rapid response and careful planning, paying attention to weather alerts and emergencies, employee training, maintaining equipment, and staying up-to-date with policies are key to our success,” Casbarro said. “We keep Mayor (Michele) Dale informed of our activities, reporting on a weekly or as-needed basis, and work in collaboration with the Board of Education and other organizations.”

Compliments and complaints

Casbarro finds West Milford residents are patient and often complimentary of the DPW’s work, and he welcomes ongoing dialogue with the community.

“We don’t get many complaints, more so reports from the community of problems that needs to be addressed,” he said. “We appreciate that input. Realistically, as West Milford is one of the largest townships in the state, we can’t be aware of everything going on.

“As soon as we see something or get a phone call about a problem, we send a supervisor to inspect, report and document the situation toward proper remediation. Complaints about county roads do come to us, and we do pass them on to the county. The Passaic County website homepage (passaiccountynj.org) has a link to report a concern and is the best way to notify the county of any concerns.”

The DPW also monitors social media and acts on postings - positive and negative. For Casbarro, social media is another source of information and input from the community.

In addition to citing situations that require attention, there’s the occasional constructive and appreciative commentary from township residents, including this posting on the West Milford Residents Open Discussions Facebook page after a recent snowstorm.

“I want to thank the West Milford DPW for the great job they did on the roads yesterday! Especially the mountain. The hour I drove to get home all the other towns roads were nightmares. Thank you.”

Casbarro said, “Everyone at the DPW takes great pride in what we do and the contribution we make to the safety and well-being of West Milford residents, businesses and visitors. And we encourage people to let us know about problems and to give feedback on our performance, which helps us become even better at our jobs.”