Sorenson retires from

SE street department

He recalls the

difficult task of snow removal

after storms

By FRITZ BUSCH

Journal Staff Writer

SLEEPY EYE -- Long-time Sleepy Eye Street Superintendent Cliff Sorenson has seen lots of snow come and go in his 40 years on the job.

The longest street department employee ever in Sleepy Eye with 30 years as the street boss, is retiring.

He'll miss many of the people he's worked with, he said.

One of the few things he won't miss is snow removal. That duty requires waking up and going to work in the middle of the night in often severe weather conditions just a few hours after he put in a full day of work.

"One night isn't too bad, but if it happens several nights in a row, it's a bit tougher," Sorenson said.

He wouldn't mind it if March snowfall is heavy. Other than cleaning off his own driveway and sidewalk, he'll be able to watch it from inside his home.

Today would be Sorenson's last day at work, but he's using a vacation day to cover that.

Among the most challenging snowstorms was the 1991 Halloween night storm that dumped 17 inches of snow on the ground.

"We had 7- foot drifts of snow on Main Street," Sorenson said. "It took us three days to clear all the roads and alleys in town."

A January 1976 blizzard brought a 70 mph east wind and paralyzed the community for a few days.

"Even Main Street was at a standstill," Sorenson said.

The 1965-1966 winter left massive amounts of snow and ice in and around town.

A lesser man might have retired five years ago. Cancer was found in Sorenson's bladder, prostate gland and lymph nodes. Thanks to early detection and surgery at St. Marys Hospital in Rochester, he recovered and went back to work.

Sorenson said he feels fine now and that medical tests bear that out.

He has enjoyed his time with the City of Sleepy Eye for the most part.

"We have problems like anyplace else, but you realize that you can't always satisfy everybody," Sorenson said.

Among his bigger challenges was taking on the duties of street superintendent 30 years ago. He became boss to several men old enough to be his father .

One of the constants for Sorenson during his 30 years at the old city garage on Rice Street N.W. was his daily four-block walk from his home six times each day, whether the temperature was 20 below zero or 90 degrees.

Sorenson and rest of the street, sanitation and park department are now blessed with a large, new cast concrete building in the southwest corner of town.

With the help of a pair of two-way plows, a one-way plow and grader, three workers do the work that used to be done by six street department workers.

It takes the crew about nine hours to remove 2-3 inches of snow from all Sleepy Eye streets and alleys.

Sorenson looks forward to spending more time with his family, fixing things around the house, deer hunting and possibly some fishing in his retirement days.