CENTREVILLE, Md. - The town of Centreville was under fire today when they posted a statement on Facebook about snow plowing issues in the North Brook neighborhood.
In the above statement, Centreville officials said public works employees experienced repeated incidents of verbal harassment and people blocking roads during recent plowing operations.
Officials say due to those issues, they decided to "temporarily limit" plowing in North Brook. They say they plowed a single lane to allow for emergency vehicles. They cite safety concerns as the only reason for this decision.
Town officials then said they "recognize that this has led to uneven conditions..." but their crews "cannot perform their duties safely and effectively when faced with aggressive or obstructive behavior."
Neighbors told WBOC today that North Brook is hazardous due to the sleet from Jan. 25. with the town providing no additional treatment after the sleet fell. They said people who live in North Brook pay town taxes and should be able to expect essential services -- like plowing.
Underneath the town's first statement addressing the issue, one Facebook commenter said "the broad implication that the residents in this community are hostile, aggressive, or obstructive is deeply unfair." They continued, saying "the appropriate solution is not to reduce service to residents," and requested the town resume full snow removal services in North Brook.
Almost five hours later, the town posted another statement to Facebook, in part saying "Our intent in sharing that message was to explain the difficult circumstances our Public Works team encountered during plowing operations. However, we recognize that the wording of our statement caused frustration and gave the impression that an entire neighborhood was being blamed or denied services. That was not our intent, and we understand why residents are upset."
Town officials say crews have been working in North Brook today and will continue through the neighborhood and the town as a whole.
They also added Centreville will continue salting roads through the evening and tomorrow.
Town officials say they plan to review this storm response to "identify improvements in coordination, communication, and procedures going forward."