DEARBORN – The City Council Nov. 18 vote to update the city’s snow emergency ordinance to include a temporary parking program to assist residents who have difficulties removing their vehicles from the street during a declared emergency.
When a snow emergency is in effect, parked vehicles must be removed from roads to allow for safer and more effective snow plowing.
Vehicles parked on streets during snow emergencies will be ticketed. Police do not issue warnings. Tickets are $80.
The council eliminated the discount for paying a snow emergency ticket within the first three days. Previously, tickets increased to $80 after that three-day period, but now will be $80 from the moment of issuance.
This winter season, the city will offer a temporary parking option on designated streets for residents in neighborhoods in southeast Dearborn.
In addition, the temporary parking will be allowed on designated streets in the northeast portion of Dearborn, bounded by Ford Road, Chase Road, Warren Avenue and Oakman Boulevard.
Signs will be posted on temporary parking streets to notify residents which roads are being made available for this service. Residents are responsible for moving their vehicles back to their own street once the road is cleared so that the temporary parking streets also can be plowed.
Vehicles must be removed from the temporary parking areas within 24 hours of the snow emergency declaration or the owner will be ticketed.
With last winter’s large amount of snowfall, the city identified these areas where residents had the most difficulty removing vehicles due to congestion or lack of sufficient driveway space.
Residents in these neighborhoods who cannot park vehicles in their driveways will be able to temporarily park on the designated streets:
Southeast Dearborn:
• Eagle, from Amazon to Salina
• Lapeer, from Ferney to Amazon
• Lowrey, from Holly to Saulino Court
• Westlawn, from Vernor to Burley
• Tuxedo, from Ferney to Riverside Drive
• Whittington, from Canterbury to Riverside Drive
• Berkshire, from Industrial to Canterbury
• Morningside, from Industrial to Wyoming
• Riverside Drive, from Industrial to Vernor
Northeast Dearborn:
• Blesser, from Maple to Oakman
• Henson, from Maple to Oakman
• Henn, from Chase to Williamson
• Haggerty, from Maple to Calhoun
• Paul, from Chase to Horger and between Schaefer and Hartwell
• Hemlock, from Chase to Oakman
• Donald, from Chase to Calhoun and between Reuter and Oakman
• Alber, from Reuter to Oakman
A map highlighting these temporary parking areas is posted on the city’s website, www.cityofdearborn.org.
The council also added a provision that permits police to ticket parked vehicles after a snow emergency has expired. These specific cases would apply to vehicles that are plowed in by snow plows, covered by snow, or show other signs of not having been moved during the snow emergency.
Snow emergencies may be declared when three inches or more of snow is expected over a short period of time.
These declarations are made so that the city can plow streets from curb to curb, allowing ambulances, fire trucks and police cars to reach residents as quickly as possible, and also permitting residents to safely navigate two-lane residential streets.
When a snow emergency is declared, the outdoor early warning sirens are activated to signal the beginning of the emergency. Parked vehicles must be removed when the sirens sound.
Residents also can check to see if a snow emergency is in effect by going to www.cityofdearborn.org; by visiting the city’s Facebook and Twitter pages, or by calling the city’s snow emergency hotline, 313-943-2444.
Snow emergency information will be posted on City of Dearborn Television and sent out via email alerts through Nixle. Residents can sign up to receive alerts at Nixle.com.
Local TV and radio stations also will be contacted to distribute information.