Sidewalk clearing basics

• Shovel the entire width of the city sidewalk on your entire property down to bare pavement. 
• If you live on a corner, clear curb cutouts at the street corners and crosswalks to the street gutter. 
• Shovel around your garbage carts and recycling bins. 
  • If you do not, the City may do it for you and charge a fee.
  • For more information, see clearing snow around carts.
• Shovel snow into your yard or boulevard. It’s against the law to shovel snow into streets or alleys..

More sidewalk clearing basics

• If the snow is packed down or there’s ice you cannot remove, sprinkle sand until it's warm enough to remove the buildup.
• You do not have to clear snow piles left by plows beyond the gutter
  • You can if able to do it safely. 
  • City crews will do this as soon as possible.
• If you'll be away, arrange for someone else to shovel.

Clear snow and ice all season

You’re responsible for the sidewalk throughout the winter, not just when it snows. 

• As the temperature changes, snow and ice from nearby sidewalks can melt and flow onto your sidewalk, then refreeze. 
• It's your responsibility to clear or sand the ice that forms.

It's important to clear sidewalks

City sidewalks need to be accessible to everyone year-round.

Many in our community rely on sidewalks to:

• Get to work
• Go to school
• Run errands
• Get to appointments
• More

Sidewalks that are not cleared of snow and ice are hard and sometimes dangerous to use. They're especially challenging for people with limited mobility.

City inspections

• The City inspects sidewalks to make sure property owners clear them.
• We start inspecting sidewalks 24 hours after each snowfall.
• We may also learn about an uncleared sidewalk if someone makes a complaint. 

If you do not shovel

You may receive a letter informing you to properly clear your sidewalk of snow and ice.

Not clearing sidewalk snow after follow-up

• If you have not cleared the sidewalks by the time of our follow-up inspection:
  • Crews will remove the snow and ice and bill you.
• If you do not pay the bill:
  • We'll add the fee amount to your property taxes.

Report uncleared sidewalks

Help keep our city sidewalks clear and usable to all.

If you notice a sidewalk in front of a property that has not been cleared properly, you can:

• Report sidewalk snow or ice online
• Call 311 to make a report