The phone rang Tuesday morning and I was very surprised to hear from Ron Sanders of WBZ TV.  He wanted to discuss snow removal with me and wondered if I would be home.  This is school vacation week and I have two bored children on my hands – of course we’re home.  So about an hour later Mr Sanders and myself and the children and a camera took a walk to the bus and discussed the problems involved with removing snow – or not – from sidewalks around the city.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when the piece aired.  The children were ecstatic to see themselves on television but I’m not a big fan of the spotlight myself.  Funny thing to admit when I write so publicly but its not that I’m shy with my thoughts or feelings – I just prefer to do the hard work behind the scenes and let someone else be the spokesperson for whatever is happening.  If you missed our appearance WBZ has been kind enough to post the article and video on their website.

What makes me happy about this whole situation is that the Mayor has finally stated publicly that the ordinance exists and it needs to be adhered to or fines will follow warnings.  From the linked article:

“We need people to abide by that ordinance. We have to do this. We cannot go back to having 70 or 80 people in the highway department. Even then, we didn’t clear every sidewalk. We can’t afford to clear every sidewalk. No city in the country can do that. We need the public’s help,” explains the mayor.

Mayor Fiorentini says the next step will be to give people warnings. If they simply refuse to comply with the ordinance, then the city will enforce it, if necessary.

I’m also tired of hearing people say this is what they pay taxes for.  You pay taxes for a lot of things but shoveling the sidewalk isn’t one of them and hasn’t been for a long time – if ever.  The sections quoted below were added to the city code in 1980.  We pay taxes for road upkeep, park upkeep, utility infrastructure, police, fire, and schools among other things.  When it comes to shoveling the sidewalk you’re on your own!  From this website on city codes:

The tenant or occupant, and in case there shall be no tenant or occupant, the owner, agent or person having the care or custody of any building or lot abutting on any street, lane, court, square or way within the City where there is any footway or sidewalk duly established, shall, after snow has ceased to fall thereon or whenever snow shall have collected or been deposited upon any such footway or sidewalk either by falling from an adjoining building or by drifting thereon, within six hours, remove or cause the same to be removed therefrom; and where footways or sidewalks have not been duly established, shall cause all such snow to be as soon removed to a width of not less than four feet from that portion of the street or way which is used in common as a footway in such streets or ways; provided, however, that the requirements of this section shall not be in force between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m.

And should the snow not be removed:

Whenever any sidewalk or footway shall be encumbered with snow or ice contrary to the provisions of the two preceding sections, it shall be the duty of the Chief of Police to notify or cause to be notified the person responsible therefor, and, if the provisions of the aforesaid preceding sections are not complied with within three hours from the time of service of the above notice, the Chief of Police shall forthwith prosecute the person who has violated the provisions of this or of the two preceding sections.

Also, as mentioned in the article, if you’re unable to shovel please call the Mayor’s office and the boy scouts will come shovel for you.  We have various other service organizations around Haverhill who can help if you’re unable to clear snow.  My gripe is with those unwilling to deal with the snow.

All at the same time?  That’s what happened to me Thursday evening when someone from the City came and plowed the section of sidewalk we must traverse three times a day to get the children on and off the bus.

You would think I would be thrilled.  The way is clear and we don’t have to walk small children down the street.  But this is one section of sidewalk after one storm impacting one bus stop.  The real issue is fixing the system so it doesn’t come to this!  The only reason why our section was cleared is this article.   My hope is the article spurs the discussion necessary around our city to force City Hall to either enforce the current statute or make changes.

I wish as people we could be proactive and responsible and clear our snow.  This isn’t just important for the kids who need to go to the bus.  The postal and other delivery people who travel our city every day need safe passage as well as the everyday ordinary citizens of Haverhill.  What about emergency personnel if the unexpected happens and they must get to our doors?

The counter argument to enforcement is “But what about Grandma and Grandpa who can’t clear the snow and can’t afford to hire someone to clear the snow and have no family to help them clear the snow?”   This is the issue that keeps the city from doing anything at all about the snow.  We have a Council on Aging and we have Elder Services.  We provide assistance for a number of day to day needs for our elderly and disabled – why can’t we provide snow assistance?  Then the city would be able to force those who are able but aren’t willing to clear their snow.  Not just for me because I’m vocal; but for everyone who walks our sidewalks for whatever reason at whatever time of day.

Every storm results in this same issue.  Homeowners are not removing the snow from their sidewalks.  I’ve called the DPW and the Mayor’s office and anyone else who will listen to determine who is ultimately responsible for the sidewalks after a storm.  The answer: the homeowner.  My next question was who enforces this so I may contact them directly.  The answer: no one.

The problem with enforcement, I was told, is that the police department does not have the staff to patrol every street and catch every homeowner who is not clearing snow so they have decided to not enforce the law at all.  Their logic is flawed.  They also can’t possibly have the staff to patrol every street and catch every criminal and yet they don’t throw every law out as unenforceable.  I’d like to think we have the staff to deal with direct complaints and if the fines start to accumulate maybe we can add some overtime.

I believe the town is missing out on a huge revenue stream every winter.  Instead of sending a DPW person with a sidewalk plow to clear the sidewalks after receiving complaints; the city needs to enforce the snow removal laws we already have.  Certainly launch a public information campaign in the paper and on the City of Haverhill website.  Be kind at first and issue warnings for the first day or so.  Then fine people for not removing the snow.  If the city needs to plow an area due to complaints then pass that cost onto the person who neglected their property.  The city fines people for keeping excessive trash on their property through the board of health so this isn’t an unheard of proposition.  Somehow despite the lack of personnel they manage to enforce the parking bans during the snow.

One glaring example of a homeowner who just does not care is the owner of the green house on the corner of Groveland and Lackey Streets.  Not only did they not clear their sidewalk but when they did clear their driveway they piled the snow to make a three foot mound blocking access to their sidewalk further.  The portion of the sidewalk at the corner that is cleared was done by another parent in the neighborhood to make space for the children to stand while waiting for the bus.  To get to the bus stop we must either take a circuitous route down side streets that don’t have a sidewalk at all or walk in Groveland Street where the busier traffic is.

With whomever decided Dr Buchanan’s decision to cancel school after the weather bureau changed its forecast was an offense worthy of a grievance!

I hadn’t considered the events of Wednesday, December 9th to be anything other than an inconvenience brought on by the simple fact that weather in New England is unpredictable.  Storms spring up unexpectedly, linger longer than they were forecast, or drop differing precipitation depths often.  I’ve often mused that being the weatherman must be nice because no one really expects you to be completely accurate!

When the Thursday, December 10th School Committee Meeting reached the Hillie Highlights portion the Superintendent took a moment to speak about the storm and his decisions regarding the initial delay and subsequent closing of school.  He mentioned unhappy parents – but when he further mentioned the possibility of a grievance by employees I was stunned.  The followup article in the Eagle Tribune furthered my disappointment and disbelief.

This overly litigious society needs to step back and look at itself.  Would our city have been better served by ignoring the change in forecast and bringing all of the students into school?  If one of the buses had failed to make the climb up the hill to Golden Hill and Nettle and someone had been injured – would that have been better?  Is there no provision in the contract for making the best decision possible for the students and employees with the information currently available and then when new information arrives amending the decisions?  Have we completely lost our ability to recognize and utilize common sense?  I fear we have.