Anchorage is battling with historic snowstorms, dumping feet on the city in a matter of days. It’s the sort of thing a city like Anchorage should be prepared for, even if it takes a little longer than normal to clear the roads.
The city, however, was not prepared. A third of the city’s snowplows were out of service in December, when the city has it’s highest average snowfall of the year. In addition to not getting equipment ready for the winter season, the Bronson administration also left vacant road maintenance positions unfilled.
The result was four straight days of school closure due to the poor roads, meaning parents are stuck at home, businesses are forced to close and the overall economy slows down.
There are few things that can damage mayors like inadequate snow removal, and after days stuck in the house, Anchorage residents let Bronson have it.
Buffalo, NY is identical in size to Anchorage.
By planning & coordinating resources Buffalo cleared a larger snowfall much quicker.
The @mayor_bronson Admin has failed at a basic function of Muni govt, causing huge costs to economy/education
Competence > Ideology#AncGov pic.twitter.com/JQh1GhZgrH
— Scott Kendall (@scooterkendall) December 13, 2022
Everyone always complains about slow snow plowing. Every year. I never have … until now. This is ridiculous. This is a major, 4-lane road. The major road I turned on after this, same thing. The snow stopped over 24 hours ago. Municipality of Anchorage, you have one job. pic.twitter.com/TnJVqXCOx4
— Brian Brettschneider (@Climatologist49) December 13, 2022
I’ll go out and say it: Anchorage’s policy of an 84-hour plow out is a failure of public health policy. There have been some absolute choices being made here.
— Daniel Lent (@mrlent) December 9, 2022
The city response was so poor that everyday Alaskans became heroes, driving around and pulling people out of snowbanks.
There’s a dude named Nick in an F150 driving around East Anchorage pulling out stuck cars. Ask me how I know
— the Scott of Christmas Present (@scottymax) December 13, 2022
the eighteen inches of undisturbed snow on your street makes way more sense when you find out Anchorage’s entire plowing infrastructure consists of eight guys named Glenn with scoops attached to their RAM 1500s
— slim riggins (@rigginsslim) December 7, 2022
Then, on Monday, Bronson took to Facebook to reassure the good people of Anchorage. He was bringing on contractors, like McKenna Brothers. That’s right, the same McKenna Brothers that spent $85,000 to get Bronson elected and plastered their trucks with Bronson campaign signs during his election effort.
Bronson was trying to show some sign of leadership, but of course the end result was more taxpayer money being funneled to his donors. It did not land well.
I’m so sorry you’re in a bad place. Not mentally. Just Anchorage under 3 feet of snow and 4 years of Bronson
— One Hot Mess AK (@libbybakalar) December 13, 2022
How much money will Bronson buddies the McKenna Brothers make because the mayor didn’t have street maintenance fully staffed with all equipment ready to go? pic.twitter.com/wzu79UyLzF
— Westchester Goon 🏞️ (@bpfromnp) December 13, 2022
As if things weren’t bad enough for the Bronson administration, among the chaos of the snowstorm, the Anchorage Daily News reported that 2022 has the highest number of outdoor homeless deaths since they started tracking in 2017.
2022: 24 deaths to date
2021: 16
2020: 17
2019: 9
2018: 16
2017: 19Source: APD incident reportshttps://t.co/imNDEVEF9h
— Michelle Theriault Boots (@Theriault_Boots) December 13, 2022
On Tuesday, the Anchorage School District reopened with a “parent choice” policy, allowing students back into classrooms if they could get there, despite roads that remain treacherous.
Perhaps they heard the collective groans of parents facing yet another snow day and employers struggling to staff businesses with parents stuck at home.
However, that too did not go over well for many, because many streets were still not cleared. Some buses were unable to pick up children due to road conditions. Even worse, some kids got stuck on buses for three hours or more.
REALLY pissed at #ASD decision of school today in unsafe conditions! Many students, including my Sped, trapped on stuck buses for 3 hrs or more! Just arrived at lunch! Half our students excluded bc buses could not get to them due to no/poor plowing by #Anchorage city! #Alaska
— 😏 Cheeky D (@DAKGirl) December 13, 2022
Obviously I haven’t been able to independently verify this, but a woman who claims her husband is a bus driver just say that over TWENTY (20!!!!!!) buses are stuck right now. pic.twitter.com/FGa25hSttb
— Nathan Luna (@NathanLunaAKTN) December 13, 2022
Children weren’t the only ones who got stuck. After People Mover stopped 
moving yesterday for the first time in ten years, people who had taken morning buses to work went online to say that they would be snowshoeing home.
At least the “supply chain issues” that held up the municipality’s snow equipment during the early days of snow magically resolved themselves midway through and the municipality is now operating 28 of it’s 30 graders.
While many people discussed the terrible conditions on the ground and the unprecedented poor planning for snow removal, others revived the idea that streets should simply be redefined as snow storage areas.
“How can we call ourselves a winter city while cutting snowplowing? Redefine streets as snow storage areas.” Dec 12, 2000 Peter Dunlap-Shohl editorial cartoon from the Anchorage Daily News, published 22 years ago today. #alaskahistory #anchoragehistory @dunlapshohl@adndotcom pic.twitter.com/ya9rfF5u8d
— David Reamer (@ANC_Historian) December 13, 2022
Anchorage residents may be done with the snow, but the snow isn’t done with us. Another storm is expected to move in Wednesday, bringing with it another 7 to 12 inches of snow and possibly even rain. Good luck, Dave. Maybe you can find some old friends to help out.
Today @mayor_bronson announced he is shaking things up in street maintenance by hiring a new director of snow removal to run things with a military-style approach. Mayor says the new guy, Bo Gerice, was most recently a decorated colonel in the City of Buffalo Snow Guard. #ancgov pic.twitter.com/MxtmBKsXVY
— Westchester Goon 🏞️ (@bpfromnp) December 13, 2022
