June 15th 2026 |
Photo: file photo
Saratoga officials hired a street sweeper to clear the town’s streets ahead of the July 4th celebrations.
Saratoga residents may have noticed a street sweeper removing debris from the town’s streets last week. The town hired R&D Sweeping and Asphalt Maintenance out of Rock Springs to handle the work ahead of the July 4th parade.
During the June 2nd Saratoga Town Council meeting, Public Works Director Emery Penner said his department’s street sweeper is out of service. The town allocated money for a new machine, but Penner said it won’t arrive in time for the 4th of July celebrations. In addition, he said he would like to try the street sweeper out before committing to the purchase.
In the meantime, Penner said he reached out to sweeper rental companies, but most only offered year‑long rentals at a cost comparable to buying a new machine. After a long search, the public works director said he finally found a street‑sweeping company willing to come to Saratoga, R&D Sweeping out of Rock Springs. Penner presented two options to the governing body: have the sweeper come to town once for $12,540, or have the company sweep now and return again before July 4th for $19,540.
Councilman Bub Barkhurst asked if Penner thought a second sweeping was worth the added cost. The public works director said he didn’t expect the streets to get too dirty before July 4th. He added that the town’s existing sweeper can handle small messes between then and the parade.
Penner suggested the less expensive one‑time sweep, but noted that this July 4th marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the town should look its best. However, he said he expects there to be little noticeable difference between the two options. With no meaningful distinction, Councilman Barkhurst asked why the town should spend extra money to have the sweeper return.
Following the discussion, the Saratoga Town Council unanimously voted to pay R&D Sweeping and Asphalt Maintenance $12,540 to carry out a one‑time cleaning of the town’s roads ahead of the July 4th parade.
