Knox City Council Considers Changes to Snow Emergency Policy

Knox City Council members considered some potential changes to the city’s snow emergency policy when they met on Tuesday.

During a snow emergency, certain residents inside the city limits are required to move their vehicles so the street department can perform necessary plowing on snow emergency routes.

Mayor Dennis Estok said one of the major changes to the current ordinance deals with the amount of snow that constitutes a snow emergency.

Currently, the language reads that a snow emergency is a condition or period of time prior to, during and after a snowfall where two or more inches of ice or snow is expected in the forecast. The amendment removes ice from the equation and changes the requirement to 4 inches of snow.

Additionally, the original wording states that vehicles can not be parked or stopped during a snow emergency between the hours of 4 a.m. and 8 a.m.

The amended ordinance would remove the time frame and replace it with language that prohibits those actions any time during a snow emergency.

The proposed changes to the ordinance will be considered in an official first reading when members meet next on Tuesday, February 26th.

A table with the streets that are currently listed as snow emergency routes in the City of Knox can be found below: