SOMERVILLE, MASS. (WHDH) - Inspectors in Somerville are working to respond to residents dealing with icy sidewalks.
They come after a mixed bag of weather conditions hit the area.
“We had a very unique storm this past weekend where we had snow come down, then we had freezing rain, and then the water and the rain afterwards, and then a deep freeze,” said Somerville Inspectional Services Director Nicholas Antanavica.
Property owners in Somerville have six hours to clear sidewalks after snow stops falling.
They’re then expected to shovel a path down to the pavement, which becomes increasingly difficult when met with patches of ice.
Inspectors come to the scene, take pictures, analyze, and write tickets if appropriate.
Since November, Somerville has given out 894 tickets for these slick conditions.
More than a third of those tickets come from the last three days alone.
In the city of Boston, over 1,200 tickets were issued in the last several days as well.
“Its everyone’s job to be part of taking care of our neighborhoods,” said Boston Mayor Michelle Wu. “The city and the public entities are responsible for clearing the roadways and property owners are responsible for clearing the sidewalks in front of and on their property.”
The concern is safety, especially for the elderly, pregnant, or special abilities.
“It’s definitely an adventure, like a checkerboard,” said Somerville resident Ben Scurra. “You go block to block. It’s not even something you can plan out. One block will be perfectly clear and the other won’t be.”
Fines range from $100 for the first offense, to $300 for repeat offenses.
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