The white stuff has arrived and all the fun and not so fun things that come with it, as well.
Everyone enjoys winter in different ways. From making snowmen and snow angels to skiing, snowmobiling and snowshoeing. Some even enjoy it best from indoors with a warm drink and a blanket. The city of Carlton has a few guidelines to keep winter more enjoyable for everyone.
The first guideline is our winter parking regulations. They are in effect from Nov. 1 through March 31. We ask that there be no parking on city streets and alleys from 3-6 a.m. daily.
This helps our public works department with snow removal and keeps you from having to shovel out a buried vehicle. If a city, state or county plows around a vehicle on the street, it makes it more difficult to keep the streets free of snow piles. Plow drivers cannot always get back to clean up where a vehicle was plowed in.
The second guideline is to please clear snow away from fire hydrants on your property. While we hope you never have a fire, we want to be sure that our firefighters have quick access to the hydrants as this will allow for a faster response time if there is a fire in your neighborhood.
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The third guideline is that residents and business owners remove any snow and/or ice from the sidewalks abutting their property within 24 hours of the snowfall. Public works staff try to clean the sidewalks in the business area, but keeping the streets plowed is their first priority. Please do your part to keep our sidewalks passable all winter long.
The fourth guideline is to be safe and courteous when riding snowmobiles.
Do:
- Stay on the right edge of the road.
- Lock the ignition and take the key with you when parking.
- Stop before entering any uncontrolled intersection.
- Keep your speed at 15 miles per hour or less.
- Stay off the sidewalks.
- Get permission to ride on private property from the owner or person in control of the property.
Don’t:
- Let drivers under age 14 operate on streets or cross streets.
- Drive under the influence of drugs of alcohol.
- Drive in a manner so as to endanger or damage people or property.
- Drive on city streets from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. unless entering or leaving the city by the most direct route and at a speed of 15 miles per hour or less.
- Drive on any public place or grounds including parks, school grounds, cemeteries, parking lots, etc.
Please remember that Minnesota Statute 160.2715 forbids pushing or shoveling snow onto streets or roadways. And as always, be a good neighbor.
Working together will allow everyone in the city of Carlton to be able to enjoy winter, each in their own way.
Jodie Johnson is the deputy clerk for the city of Carlton.
