(a) Whenever, during any period of twenty-four hours or less, snowfall in the Village or a section thereof exceeds a depth of three inches, a snow emergency is hereby declared to exist, in that such an accumulation of snow constitutes a public hazard impairing transportation and the safety of the residents of the Village.
(b) The Chief of Police, Fire/EMS Chief, and/or Municipal Manager is hereby designated as the person who shall determine whether or not such an accumulation of snow has occurred in the Village or section thereof. Upon such determination, the Chief of Police, Fire/EMS Chief, and/or Municipal Manager shall declare the existence of a snow emergency in any section of or throughout the Village. He shall request the cooperation of the local press and radio and television stations to announce the emergency and the time that emergency parking regulations shall become effective, which time shall be not sooner than one hour after the first announcement to such news media. Such announcement to the news media shall constitute notice to the general public of the existence of the emergency. However, the owners and operators of vehicles shall have full responsibility to determine existing weather conditions and to comply with this section.
(c) During the snow emergency, no person shall park, cause to be parked, permit to be parked, or abandon or leave unattended any vehicle of any kind upon the following public streets within the area subject to the emergency:
(1) Downtown Business District located on Commerce Street between Dayton Street and North Water Street.
(2) East Dayton Street and East Clay Street located off of Commerce Street.
(3) East North Water Street, East Twin Street, and East Harrison Street located off of Commerce Street.
(4) David Court and Ronald Drive located in the Apple Valley Subdivision.
(5) All of Front Street.
(d) All vehicles parked on any of the above public streets prior to the effective time of the declaration of a snow emergency shall be removed from said public streets by the owner or operator thereof before the effective time of the snow emergency and shall remain off said public streets until the snow emergency declaration is lifted.
(e) No vehicle shall be parked or otherwise remain parked on the above public streets affected by the snow emergency declaration while the snow emergency declaration is in effect.
(f) The Chief of Police, Fire/EMS Chief, and/or Municipal Manager shall cause signs to be erected along the main roads in the Village, and reasonably near the Village boundaries, as necessary, in his discretion, to advise the public of the parking under the conditions set forth in this section.
(g) Any person who fails or refuses to remove a vehicle which they own or operate from an area affected by a snow emergency declaration shall be subject to having said vehicle towed away at their expense and at the direction of any police officer.
(h) Any person who violates any provision contained in this Ordinance shall be guilty of a minor misdemeanor, the penalty to which shall be a maximum fine of one hundred dollars ($100.00). (Ord. 2007-23. Passed 11-1-07.)