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Lewistown commission adopts tiered snow-route ordinance after extended debate
Summary
After extensive public comment and commissioner deliberation, the Lewistown City Commission approved a revised snow-route ordinance that creates tier 1 and tier 2 priorities, raises the emergency declaration threshold to four inches and requires enhanced public outreach; it takes effect 30 days after approval.
The Lewistown City Commission voted unanimously to adopt a revised snow-route ordinance that creates two priority levels for streets, sets a 4-inch threshold for a declared snow event and requires the city manager to issue notice before enforcement. The ordinance, approved on second reading, takes effect 30 days after the vote.
City Manager Holly Phelps told commissioners the ordinance aligns routes with priorities identified by police and fire and that the city will rely on multiple outreach channels, including door-to-door notices on tier‑2 streets, the city website, local newspaper and radio. “The chief of police has committed to having someone go to each of the doors on the tier 2,” Phelps said during discussion.
Commission debate focused on clarity, enforcement and fairness. Commissioners amended the draft to remove State Highway routes from the city list, to require clarified timing language (within eight hours of the city manager declaring the event), and to add language about when the manager may declare the event ended. One commissioner supporting adoption said, “My mantra has always been flexibility is a key to sanity,” urging colleagues to approve the measure despite anticipated implementation glitches.
Public commenters urged the commission to proceed and emphasized the need for robust outreach. John Cook, who said he participated on the snow committee, told the commission the proposal was “the best starting point” and urged education and patience as implementation continues.
City staff and public-safety officials described a phased enforcement approach: educational tickets and warnings initially, followed by citations if compliance does not improve. Penalties in the ordinance start at $25 and escalate for repeat violations within a year. Staff said public works will operate two crews—one heavy-equipment crew and one smaller crew—to improve responsiveness during snow events.
The ordinance includes a tier‑1 category that prohibits parking on specified major thoroughfares when a snow event is declared, and a tier‑2 category that requires alternating-side parking from Nov. 1 through May 1 (odd/even calendar days) to allow plows 12 hours to clear one side before the other. The commission directed staff to produce clear maps and a public outreach plan to reduce confusion before full enforcement begins.
The ordinance passed on a roll-call vote with all commissioners voting “Aye.” The commission said it expects early enforcement to be educational and to evolve based on community feedback.
