Winfield Public Works Director Tony Clark received warm praise for his department’s efforts at keeping the roadways clean during the recent winter storms.

Unfortunately, those efforts to keep the roads clean wiped out a great deal of the town’s salt supply and there may be a need to dip into the budget in the future for additional supplies, Clark told the Winfield Town Council on Tuesday.

“Winfield was a step above,” Winfield Town Manager Nick Bellar said, adding, “smart use of salt; they have the system down.”

Town Councilman Tim Clayton, R-at-large, echoed Bellar’s sentiments, stating that he had traveled roads from Winfield to Orland Park and found the best cleared roads were in his own hometown.

“These roads have been phenomenal,” Clayton said.

Clark and other department heads provided end of the year reports and updates at the first Winfield Town Council meeting of the year.

Clark, during his report, said the town’s street department has so far used some 600-650 tons of salt on roads of its total 900-ton winter supply.

That leaves the street department with only about 300 tons of salt to finish out the rest of the winter season.

“We’re getting low,” Clark said.

Clark said that town officials may need to increase that amount in future budgets because of the addition of new subdivisions, including Aylesworth and Latitude.

Other reports from town department heads included a related one, from Bellar, that 149 new homes had been built in Winfield in 2025.

In other business, the town council, under organizational matters, named Town Councilman Zach Beaver, R-At-large, as president and Clayton as vice president.

Most of the makeup of other commissions remained the same, as did legal, engineering and other town services.

Other action taken by the town council included approving a town and homeowner’s association partnership, which would help beautify a Winfield subdivision and park.

Under the agreement, the Providence at Stonegate subdivision will pay for the installation of a pond aeration fountain at the town-owned Randolph Street Park, off of Randolph.

Cost paid by the homeowner’s association would be approximately $24,116.66, according to a report made at a previous meeting by a representative of the association.

Under the agreement, the town of Winfield would pay for electrical costs only, Winfield officials said Tuesday.

Estimated electrical costs for the 16-hour-a-day operation would be $331.20 per month for six months, association representatives said at a former town council meeting.

Deborah Laverty is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/28/winfield-runs-low-on-road-salt/