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Sterling Heights says snow emergency enabled rapid clearing; council debates ticketing and outreach
Summary
City officials credited crews for rapidly clearing major and local streets after a multi-day storm, while councilmembers and residents pressed for clearer messaging and stiffer penalties after 740 citations and about 550 voluntary removals during the declared snow emergency.
Sterling Heights officials said a declared snow emergency allowed crews to clear major and local streets after several rounds of heavy snow, but councilmembers and residents pressed the city Tuesday over outreach and enforcement after hundreds of citations.
Assistant City Manager Dale Duajakowski told the council the city declared a snow emergency on Feb. 10 and dispatched 36 plow vehicles and 60 Department of Public Works employees working 16 shifts to clear more than 60 miles of major roadways and about 289 miles of local streets. "Over 60 miles of major roadways and an additional 289 miles of local streets need to be plowed and or salted during significant snow and ice storms," Duajakowski said. He added that 740 citations were issued and about 550 vehicles were removed from roadways, usually after staff sought voluntary compliance at doorsteps.
The nut graf: The storm response shows the scale of the city's snow operations, but councilmembers asked whether the city could reduce citation numbers with better outreach or change enforcement to deter repeat violations.
Councilmember Yanez pressed staff for more detail about the 550 vehicles that were removed. "No. Those are not—we try to get voluntary compliance," Duajakowski replied, saying officers and code enforcement typically ask residents at their doors to move cars rather than immediately tow. Yanez said he wants a follow-up survey of people who received tickets to learn whether they knew about the emergency and city notifications or simply ignored them.
During public comment, resident Yvonne Niaz said the city should avoid using the word "emergency" for recurring snow events and asked staff to rethink plow scheduling when snowfall is light between rounds. Niaz said her street was plowed in the early pre-dawn after only about 2½ inches, and she suggested crews could rest between light rounds rather than repeatedly plowing the same neighborhoods.
Councilmember Reicke (spelled in the record as Reicke) defended enforcement levels and asked staff to consider raising the snow-emergency fine. He said the current $25 fine may lead some residents to treat the citation as a low-cost choice. "If you lived in Michigan for more than a year, you know this is likely to happen," Reicke said, adding that 740 tickets represented a little over 1% of the city's vehicles and that enforcement is necessary so plows can safely clear streets.
Assistant City Manager Duajakowski said staff will continue to use email and text notifications and monitor enforcement data. He confirmed the city maintains a database of prior offenders used by officers and code enforcement when writing tickets; that record-keeping began recently and Duajakowski said the city may extend the retention period to capture repeat violators.
Ending: Councilmembers asked staff for follow-up data and outreach plans. Duajakowski did not set a deadline on further reporting during the meeting; council direction was limited to requests for more information about notification reach, repeat offenders and an assessment of enforcement policy and fines.
