Preparing for loss of gang of three in Schenectady

In blizzards and freezing rain, in the middle of the night or on the most popular holiday, the city has relied on three men to handle any disasters that Schenectady’s century-old sewer system can create.

For decades they have worked behind the scenes, keeping toilets flowing and quickly fixing pipes that flooded busy roads. They were so efficient that most city residents never knew what they did — the sewers that broke near their homes in the middle of the night were often fixed before they woke up in the morning.

Now the city will have to learn to live without their combined 100 years of experience. The three members of the emergency sewer crew are retiring, as is one of the city’s most experienced maintenance workers.

“Boy, will I miss them,” said Commissioner of General Services Carl Olsen, who is now coordinating an eight-month transition period to replace the crew. “They were people who had an incredible amount of experience in assessing and making repairs. I’d like to keep them here until they’re 101. They are all top-notch.”

Although they were just 18 percent of the department’s workforce, the loss will have a significant impact. The most noticeable to the public will be the cost — in accumulated vacations, sick time and other benefits, the city must pay $80,000 in buyouts for the four retirees. The cost forced the city to increase the 2009 sewer fee by 5.4 percent, which translates to $15 for the average homeowner.

Sewers will still be repaired, even in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve, but Olsen said the men leave big shoes to fill. He may assign two workers to replace just one of the retirees, David Cole.

“Dave is the best in the business in emergencies,” Olsen said. “Because of his knowledge and experience, he makes the right call every time. There’s not one guy who has all that experience. We’ll still have the capability. It will probably cost us a little more.”

Cole’s job is to evaluate emergencies, diagnose the problem and fix it by himself if he can. For big problems, he calls for help.

“He’ll go out for anything. If police think an intersection is slippery, dispatch calls Mr. Cole. He will check the intersection, get the truck that’s preloaded with salt, salt it, bring the truck back, get in his car and go home,” Olsen said.

Also retiring are T.J. Pierce and Armond “Babe” Palleschi, the sewer emergency team. They are the first to join Cole at any after-hours emergency.

“The three of those guys are the first ones on the scene,” Olsen said. “T.J. and Babe work an ungodly number of hours. They know the city. It isn’t always written in the book. It isn’t always on the map. Sometimes you have to just know from memory how the system works.”

Pierce and Palleschi will retire in August, which gives them time to pass on some of that knowledge to their replacements. Olsen plans to rotate in many other sewer workers in preparation for their retirement.

But Cole, a crucial leader of the department, will be retiring at the beginning of the year, along with experienced maintenance worker John Santabarbara. Then, in 2010, Sewer Maintenance Supervisor Patrick Tremante will also be retiring.

“It will definitely require us to regroup,” Olsen said.

All five are well past retirement age. Palleschi could have left four years ago. But they have been so dedicated to their round-the-clock job that Olsen believes they would come to the city’s aid after retirement if they were needed.

“They’re a phone call away. They would come in,” Olsen said, before quickly adding that he’ll let them enjoy their retirement.

“There’s a lot of people left who have experience,” he said. “I have every confidence in the world. But the loss will be felt.”

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