Department of Public Works
The employees of the Department of Public Works (DPW) are constantly working to provide world-class service at a reasonable price for the residents of the Village. They are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to handle any situation that may arise. If you have an emergency, please contact the Orchard Park Police at 716.662.6444 and they will notify the proper personnel to assist.
The department provides many of the services that are offered by the Village. We monitor and maintain the Village streets; this includes all pavement maintenance, management and snow plowing duties.
Curbside Brush Collection
The regulations for curbside brush collection are:
- Tree limbs (4″ diameter maximum) can be placed at the curb with the cut end toward the street.
- In the winter months, we will collect Christmas trees that are placed at the curb, but they must be free of all decorations including tinsel, wires, and lights.
- In the fall we do curbside leaf collection using leaf vacuums; the leaf piles must be free of any foreign objects to prevent personal injury to the employees and damage to the equipment.
- All of the brush and leaves that we collect are processed at the Town’s Compost Facility at 6909 Milestrip Rd and available for purchase to Village residents. For more information contact the Town Clerk’s Office at 716.662.6410.
Streets
The staff is continually staying current with new state and federal guidelines regarding pavement maintenance and traffic control devices. Daily, we monitor the water quality and quantity that travels through the fourteen miles of water lines that are owned and maintained by the Village.
Stormwater
The DPW is implementing the Stormwater Management Plan to stay current with the EPA and DEC regulations to prevent pollution to our local lakes and streams. As part of the program, we annually clean approximately 3 miles of storm sewer pipe and 110 storm sewer catch basins. A portion of the plan requires for community involvement; anyone that is interested in helping can contact our office for more information.
Dams
The DPW is learning of the new DEC Dam program and inspection guidelines, to prepare for the takeover of the new spillway of Freeman’s Pond from the county, as part of the agreement with the new bridge construction.
Beautification
We annually install and maintain numerous landscape beds throughout the village, as well as teaming up with the OP Garden club to plant, water, and maintain the flower boxes and hanging baskets that beautify the streets of the village.
Recycling
The Village makes every effort to recycle or reuse many products in an effort to remain environmentally friendly. In the past year, we have reused multiple loads of blacktop millings from our road projects, recycled hundreds of tons of blacktop and concrete that were removed during construction projects, and recycled one ton of tires. We also recycle hundreds of loads of brush, leaves, and wood chips that are collected curbside throughout the Village.
Sidewalks
Sidewalks within the Village are a responsibility of the property owner to maintain and repair. This includes keeping them clear of snow during the winter months. In an effort to assist, the Village operates a sidewalk plow; however, if additional clearing is necessary, it is the property owner’s responsibility. It is also stated in the code that the depositing of any material, including snow, into the municipal right of way is illegal. Please notify your snow plow contractor of this regulation. The practice of placing snow in the street or across the street is a burden on our department and creates unsafe driving conditions for the residents.
The Department of Public Works is committed to constantly providing the best service and in an effort to improve in the future we encourage feedback from the community. Please contact us with any question or concerns at 716.662.3866.