(Omaha, NE) -- Omaha city leaders gave an update on snow removal operations, days after major winter storm dropped over a foot of snow in the area no Monday.
On Thursday, Mayor Jean Stothert announced that the city-wide snow emergency would end at 8:00 Thursday night. That means that parking restrictions on snow routes and the odd-even parking ban will be over as of Thursday night. Stothert says although the snow emergency is over, city crews will still be working to clear snow from trouble areas and sidewalks.
As of Wednesday night, neighborhood contractors had made two passes through residential areas. De-icing material is also being put down where possible. A release from the city noted that due to residents not complying with odd-even parking requirements, many neighborhood areas couldn’t be plowed.
City Engineer Todd Pfitzer says he estimates that hundreds of citations were issued due to non-compliance with snow emergency parking and a city ordinance that states vehicles can't be parked longer than 48 hours without being moved.
Since snow operations are going, that means that homeowners still have some time to get their residential sidewalks cleared. But, Stothert says they are encouraging people to get the snow cleared as soon as they can. Once city snow removal operations finish, home and business owners have 24 hours to get the snow cleared, or they could face a fine.
Stothert says Wednesday night, crews began clearing the snow mounds in the middle of Dodge and downtown Omaha streets. Public works and the Parks Department are working on clearing walkways, beginning with sidewalks that lead to schools, libraries, commuter trails, community centers and other public facilities.