OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Operations, Parks and Recreation Committee Meeting - May 21, 2026

Board of RepresentativesThursday, May 21, 2026
BodyStamford, Connecticut
SessionBoard of Representatives
DateThursday, May 21, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:09:37
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

So let's go ahead and get started.

0:04

So good evening, everyone.

0:09

Today is May 21st.

0:11

It's 6 32 p.m.

0:13

This is the operations parks and rec committee meeting.

0:18

I'm Dan Sanford.

0:20

I'll be chairing the meeting tonight.

0:22

And in attendance on the committee side, we have myself, Representative Finkel, Representative Zachary, Representative Didalo, Vice Chair, Politia, and Representative Gardner.

0:37

I do not see anybody else either on the committee or outside the committee, unless I'm missing someone.

0:45

Oh, and Representative Beckham has now joined us.

0:50

So and on the city side, we have Dennis LaDolce who will be briefing us on I believe item number one.

1:02

So what we have right now is two items, an approval uh and a review item.

1:08

So what we'll do is the first item is OPR 3201, an approval for a request to modify agreement uh 2026.018 for a city waiver with Gabrielli uh truck sales of Milford for Mac OEM parts and service under section 23- uh 18.3b um 1A, and that was uh approved by the Board of Finance 500.

1:38

What I'll do is we'll go ahead and at this time I'll take up a motion to approve item one opr 32.011.

1:49

So moved.

1:50

And do I have a second?

1:52

Okay.

1:53

There is a motion and a second to approve uh item number one.

1:57

At this time I'll open it up to discussion and I'll turn it over to our guest, Mr.

2:03

LaDolce.

2:04

Am I saying that right, sir?

2:09

I think you're on mute, Dennis.

2:17

There you go.

2:19

Hello.

2:20

Oh, there he is.

2:21

Hey Dennis, I I I don't know if you could hear me or not.

2:24

I went ahead and opened up the floor.

2:26

So the floor is yours if you want to explain uh the approval that you're asking us to do for the for the agreement.

2:33

Yeah, um I'm uh uh can you guys hear me okay?

2:38

We can.

2:39

Okay, perfect.

2:40

Uh yeah, thank you so much to the committee and and having us uh speak and all you being here tonight.

2:47

So we are proposing to amend uh the contract with Gabrielli, who is the sole source provider to Mac truck parts.

2:56

Uh we are requesting to change the contract amount from I believe it was 99,999 to 185,000 as a way to cover uh all outstanding invoices from this fiscal year.

3:14

So moving into the next fiscal year, we're coming on a clean slate and uh will help us be proactive in our efforts of trying to be more fiscally I guess responsible um when it comes to uh Mac truck parts.

3:33

We're going to try to uh phase out using Mac trucks as a way to uh diversify the vendors that we use so we don't run into this problem again.

3:47

I appreciate it.

3:49

I think it's understood what you're asking for.

3:53

I'll open it up to the floor for any questions, and then I just have one or two myself that are fairly easy.

3:59

Is there anybody on the floor that has any questions for our guests?

4:04

I'll just make it really quick if that's okay, Dan.

4:07

Uh go ahead, Representative Dillow.

4:09

Um, what are you guys thinking about transitioning to for uh services?

4:15

You know, because I know Mac, you know, Mac engines at least are made to, you know, you could try and kill them.

4:21

You know, never kill them.

4:22

What are you guys looking to transition towards um for the fleet that you're moving in that direction?

4:30

I believe it would be uh international uh trucks.

4:34

Now, Jason, uh, the department, the new department manager is here.

4:38

I think he could speak better to that.

4:40

Cool.

4:41

Good evening, everybody.

4:43

Um, so the way that we're getting by this, since Mac has made quite a monopoly out of uh out of their services.

4:51

We have moved to we're we're kind of trying to phase out international as well.

4:56

Um I've been looking at some numbers in the past few years, and they are very high.

5:01

So we've moved to uh ordering freight liners, which the state's been making, uh, you know, making the same move.

5:09

We're also uh diversifying the the actual truck itself.

5:14

We're uh putting Cummins engines in.

5:16

We're using Allison transmissions, we're using Eaton rear ends, and we're using uh all very high name brand, very generic um drivetrain components.

5:26

Plus, we're going with a hile body, uh, which is the uh all season body, and that way uh we won't run into the problems we have been running into.

5:36

So with our our dump bodies, 75% of our fleet of 60 uh 60 large heavy-duty plow trucks have our um equipped with bodies and the company's gone out of business, and we have no way of sourcing parts.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████████████████████████████████████92%
Fiscal Sustainability2%
Personnel Matters2%
Procedural2%
Public Safety1%
Public Engagement1%
Summary of Proceedings

Operations, Parks and Recreation Committee Meeting - May 21, 2026

The Operations, Parks and Recreation Committee of the Stamford Board of Representatives met remotely on May 21, 2026, at 6:32 p.m. and adjourned at 7:42 p.m. The meeting covered two agenda items: a contract modification for Mack truck parts and a review of the city's snow removal process. Committee members present included Chair Sandford, Vice Chair Pelliccia, and Reps. Beckham, Didelot, Finkel, Gardner, Salas, and Zachary. Rep. Bradford was excused. City staff included Dennis LoDolce and Jason Timmerman (Fleet Management), and Tom Turk (Director of Transportation). One member of the public attended.

Discussion Items

Item 1: OPR32.011 – Approval of Contract Modification with Gabrielli Truck Sales

  • The committee considered a request to increase a contract with Gabrielli Truck Sales of Milford, the sole source provider of Mack OEM parts and service, from $99,999 to $185,000 to cover all outstanding invoices for fiscal year 2025-26. The Board of Finance had previously approved the request 5-0-0.
  • Fleet Management explained that the city is phasing out Mack trucks to diversify the fleet and avoid sole-source dependency. They are moving to Freightliner trucks with Cummins engines, Allison transmissions, and Eaton rear ends, plus a Heil body. 15 trucks have already been converted.
  • A pilot program with a wash bay, attendants, and an exercise program has significantly reduced fleet maintenance costs; the department hopes to make it permanent.
  • Committee members asked about transition plans, budget implications (current vs. future), whether the contract would need renewal, and the ability to use aftermarket parts for the new trucks. Staff confirmed the increase covers this year’s outstanding invoices, and they will follow up on contract renewal status.
  • Motion to approve passed 8-0-0 (all present in favor).

Item 2: OPR32.008 – Review of City Snow Removal Process and Snow Emergency Preparedness

  • Director Tom Turk presented a detailed overview of snow operations, including a slide deck intended as a reference for representatives.
  • Key facts shared: 320 miles of road (650 lane miles), 39 drivers for 34 plow routes, 50 trucks (with spares), and 7 workers in Signs and Lines for sidewalks. Plowing a single route takes 5-6 hours; salting takes 2-3 hours. Cleanup after a storm can take 4-10 hours depending on snowfall.
  • The city experienced 16 snow/ice events in the past season, totaling 68 inches of snow and over $1 million in salt costs. A supply chain issue (frozen barges) nearly caused a salt shortage; domes are now being refilled.
  • During declared emergencies (snowfall over 10 inches), the focus is on main arteries and collectors; side streets and cul-de-sacs are plowed later. No legal maximum on CDL driver hours for municipal emergencies; drivers take a planned break (e.g., 11 p.m. to 3 a.m.) if mobilization starts before 6 p.m.
  • The committee discussed complaint procedures (recommending FixIt system), sidewalk ordinances (property owners responsible within 12 hours/daytime, or by 10 a.m. the next day for nighttime), and the challenge of contractors pushing snow into streets.
  • Director Turk emphasized resident patience and planning (stay off roads during storms) and noted the city is improving public communication via Instagram.
  • No vote was taken; the item concluded as a report made.

Key Outcomes

  • Approval granted for Item 1 (OPR32.011) – contract modification increased to $185,000, approved unanimously 8-0-0.
  • Report received for Item 2 (OPR32.008) – the snow removal review was presented and discussed; no action required.
  • Director Turk’s presentation will be shared with all Board of Representatives members as a reference guide.

Meeting Transcript

So let's go ahead and get started. So good evening, everyone. Today is May 21st. It's 6 32 p.m. This is the operations parks and rec committee meeting. I'm Dan Sanford. I'll be chairing the meeting tonight. And in attendance on the committee side, we have myself, Representative Finkel, Representative Zachary, Representative Didalo, Vice Chair, Politia, and Representative Gardner. I do not see anybody else either on the committee or outside the committee, unless I'm missing someone. Oh, and Representative Beckham has now joined us. So and on the city side, we have Dennis LaDolce who will be briefing us on I believe item number one. So what we have right now is two items, an approval uh and a review item. So what we'll do is the first item is OPR 3201, an approval for a request to modify agreement uh 2026.018 for a city waiver with Gabrielli uh truck sales of Milford for Mac OEM parts and service under section 23- uh 18.3b um 1A, and that was uh approved by the Board of Finance 500. What I'll do is we'll go ahead and at this time I'll take up a motion to approve item one opr 32.011. So moved. And do I have a second? Okay. There is a motion and a second to approve uh item number one. At this time I'll open it up to discussion and I'll turn it over to our guest, Mr. LaDolce. Am I saying that right, sir? I think you're on mute, Dennis. There you go. Hello. Oh, there he is. Hey Dennis, I I I don't know if you could hear me or not. I went ahead and opened up the floor. So the floor is yours if you want to explain uh the approval that you're asking us to do for the for the agreement. Yeah, um I'm uh uh can you guys hear me okay? We can. Okay, perfect. Uh yeah, thank you so much to the committee and and having us uh speak and all you being here tonight. So we are proposing to amend uh the contract with Gabrielli, who is the sole source provider to Mac truck parts. Uh we are requesting to change the contract amount from I believe it was 99,999 to 185,000 as a way to cover uh all outstanding invoices from this fiscal year. So moving into the next fiscal year, we're coming on a clean slate and uh will help us be proactive in our efforts of trying to be more fiscally I guess responsible um when it comes to uh Mac truck parts. We're going to try to uh phase out using Mac trucks as a way to uh diversify the vendors that we use so we don't run into this problem again. I appreciate it. I think it's understood what you're asking for. I'll open it up to the floor for any questions, and then I just have one or two myself that are fairly easy. Is there anybody on the floor that has any questions for our guests? I'll just make it really quick if that's okay, Dan. Uh go ahead, Representative Dillow. Um, what are you guys thinking about transitioning to for uh services? You know, because I know Mac, you know, Mac engines at least are made to, you know, you could try and kill them. You know, never kill them. What are you guys looking to transition towards um for the fleet that you're moving in that direction? I believe it would be uh international uh trucks. Now, Jason, uh, the department, the new department manager is here. I think he could speak better to that. Cool.

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