LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo – Two winters and very little snow is impacting a business that already had to budget for a single mild winter.
There’s dirt, instead of snow on Turf Tek Lawn and Landscape’s plow this time of year. Owner Dustin Young said, “I was hoping we couldn’t go for two in a row but here we are.”
A second winter with very little snowfall. Weather experts said we’ve only gotten slightly more than three-and-a-half inches of snow this year so far, and had less than a half-inch at this time last year. The average for this time of year is about 10 inches.
“This year has been pretty slim pickens. We’ve had quite a bit of dryness, we’ve done quite a bit of salting the two times we had a little bit but there hasn’t been much pushing going on,” Young said.
Young said though that he does budget for consecutive mild winters.
“I would love to see 12 inches of snow out here but you can’t count on it anymore,” he said.
He said other services they offer have been extended, so that has helped keep them afloat. He said last year they started mowing and landscaping a month earlier than normal.
“This year we saw an extension in the leaves weren’t falling quite as quick so we extended out clean ups into the season,” Young said.
But can his company really afford another mild winter?
“Yes and no. I would like to not have to budget the way I’ve been budgeting, but you just have to have an emergency fund and that’s just what I have to do,” he said.
Young said even though Turf Tek hasn’t had much business this winter, he has been able to keep all of his employees.
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