EDITORIAL: ‘Tis the Season for Icy Sidewalks

IN THE CITY of Ann Arbor, “property owners and/or occupants are responsible for removing/treating snow and ice on the adjacent public sidewalk,” according to local ordinance. Accumulation which has fallen prior to 6 a.m. must be cleared by noon and homeowners are required to salt or sand sidewalks, as well. For homeowners who ignore these requirements, there are fines of up to $500, a steep price indeed to pay for not shoveling/salting one’s walk.

To be sure, anyone with a 9-5 job would find it inconvenient to shovel and salt overnight accumulation prior to noon the following day. This is particularly true when the accumulation is over 2-3 inches of snow. After all, city officials don’t plow roads until four inches of snow has accumulated, a change made by former City Administrator Roger Fraser as a money-saving strategy. City plows used to be called out when three inches of snow accumulated on streets. In Michigan, accumulations of between 1-3 inches of snow fall average 17 times during winter. Accumulations of four inches or more fall just six times, on average, during the winter months.

So while residents slip and slide as they drive through the city, they find themselves expected to maintain high standards when it comes to their own sidewalk snow and ice removal. It hardly seems fair. Nonetheless, clearing one’s sidewalk promptly of snow and ice is not only the law, it is the neighborly thing to do.

From parents pushing strollers to students walking home from school and people just out for a bit of fresh air, navigating uncleared neighborhood sidewalks can be difficult and even dangerous. There is a mechanism in place for citizens to report property owners who do not clear accumulations of snow and ice within the required period of time. It’s frankly distasteful to rely on a system that forces residents to report on each other, even if the complaints are kept confidential.

Along major roads that run through neighborhoods—Miller, Packard, Pontiac Trail—the city’s Community Standards employees should make sure that sidewalks are clear. They should also make certain that curb cuts are not piled high with snow from passing snowplows. The former is the responsibility of the homeowners, but the latter is the responsibility of the city and a job officials did poorly last winter.

Likewise, the Ann Arbor Public Schools, responsible for clearing sidewalks which are adjacent to their own properties, must improve their sidewalk snow and ice removal services. We don’t suggest the AAPS be held to the same high standard to which individual property owners must adhere, but 48 hours to remove snow and ice from their sidewalks seems reasonable.

We thank all of our neighbors who do clear their sidewalks promptly and urge those who don’t to do the neighborly thing: shovel and sand your sidewalks promptly. Please.