Department of Public Works

City Ordinance 79.30
Snow emergency

Click HERE for snow emergency route map.

(a) Declaration of emergency. Whenever the director of public works, the city traffic engineer, or the chief of police, determine that an emergency exists or is imminently forecast in the city, or in a section or sections thereof, because of snow, freezing rain, sleet, ice, snowdrifts, or other natural phenomenon which creates hazardous road conditions impeding or likely to impede the free movement of fire, health, police, emergency, or other vehicular traffic threatening the safety and welfare of the community, the director of public works along with either of the other two mentioned officials together may declare a snow emergency to exist for a period of 72 hours or less. Said declaration of emergency shall be released to the public information media prior to its effect. The emergency declaration may be extended or renewed as conditions warrant.

(b) The following streets are designated as snow emergency routes and all such streets shall be posted with suitable signs or markers at intervals not exceeding 500 feet, which signs or markers shall bear the words "SNOW EMERGENCY" and also indicate where parking would otherwise exist that parking is prohibited during a snow emergency.

(c) The city traffic engineer shall place and maintain all snow emergency signs or markers required by this section.

(d) Upon the declaration of a snow emergency, the parking, standing, or leaving of any vehicles upon any or all of the before designated snow emergency streets shall be prohibited. The emergency declaration provided for in this section may be extended to streets other than those designated as snow emergency routes.

(e) If any vehicle is parked, abandoned, or left standing in violation of the terms of this section, the same shall be considered a hazard and may be impounded and issued a citation.

(f) Parking may be resumed on individual streets upon termination of the emergency condition as soon as final plowing, as announced by the director of public works, has been completed on that street.

(g) The owners of vehicles parked in violation of a snow emergency declaration shall be responsible for all towing and storage charges and administrative fees unless the location at which the vehicle was parked was not properly marked as a snow emergency route in accordance with this chapter, without regard to whether or not actual notice of the declaration was received by the owner.

(Ord. No. 655-9-96, § 1(Exh. A), 9-17-96)

Click HERE for snow emergency route map.