Falls Church City Council members appear to be closing in on simplified guidelines for shoveling sidewalks after winter storms.
City officials authorized a Sept. 14 public hearing on a proposal to create a uniform requirement that snow be removed within 12 hours of a storm’s end.
Currently, the rules differ for residential and commercial properties, and depend on whether snowfall stops during day or night.
The draft proposal also calls for seeking General Assembly approval for the city government to issue citations to those who fail to meet the requirements. City officials say this is necessary because Falls Church’s existing code section on snow-removal fines is unenforceable under state law.
That has not sat well with Council member David Snyder, who believes city officials should try harder to find a legal way to impose fines for the coming winter season.
“We’ve essentially eliminated enforcement for this winter, which seems an odd outcome considering the public wants more enforcement,” he said on Monday. “I guess I’m not entirely comfortable with the outcome.”
Deputy City Manager Andy Young said staff had not found an alternative, given Gillette’s finding.
“The enforcement in our current city code doesn’t comply with state code, so we aren’t able to use it,” he said.
Mayor Letty Hardi said she accepted the city attorney’s interpretation.
“We all would love more enforcement ability,” she said, but “we actually don’t have the ability to fine people. We have to go to the General Assembly.”
If legislation passes during the 45-day session beginning in January, and it is signed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D), it will go into effect July 1. The Council then would have to pass an ordinance enacting fines in advance of the 2027-28 winter season.
“Unfortunately, it’s a couple of steps for us to get there,” Young said.
Like the rest of Northern Virginia, Falls Church was significantly impacted by the Jan. 24-26 storm that dropped a combined 8.5 inches of snow followed by ice in the city.
The deep freeze that followed caused the mix to harden into a cement-like consistency. Any sidewalks that had not been cleared in the immediate aftermath of the storm stayed impassable for days and sometimes weeks.
After the storm, city officials largely focused their ire on commercial corridors where snow had not been removed from sidewalks in a timely manner.
As he had previously, Snyder noted at the meeting that there were times when property owners were not at fault. They had cleared sidewalks, only to see plow drivers deposit snow back onto them, he said.
The Aug. 31 Council meeting was the last for City Manager Wyatt Shields, who retires this week after two decades as the city’s top staff member.
He will be succeeded in mid-September by Seth Hendler-Voss, currently director of parks and recreation in Prince William County.
