On one of the hottest days of the summer, council in Prince Edward County was talking about snow plowing.
Council was not pleased with the report in front of them on Tuesday night at Shire Hall which saw an approximate four per cent increase in the winter control budget from last year.
The tender was to be awarded to Drew Harrison Haulage Ltd. for six routes at a cost of $1.7 million a year and four routes to QBT Excavating Services Ltd. at a cost of $498,000.
Commissioner of Engineering, Development and Works Robert McAuley says there is short term pain for a long term gain for the County.
Council discussed multiple options for over an hour to try and find something they were comfortable with.
In the end, council chose to offer the contract to QBT for four routes for eight years and cancel the tender for the other six routes to allow for further discussions with Harrison Haulage.
They also approved a motion to have staff prepare a report to Council on the requirements to transition back to a County supplied winter control service for these 10 plow routes at the end of the respective contracts.