The Town of West Hartford is urging residents to be prepared for the first snowfall of the season, and the Public Works director said crews are ready. A parking ban will begin at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024. [Updated, Sunday, Jan. 7]

By Ronni Newton

Update, Sunday, Jan. 7

West Hartford Public Schools and offices will have a two-hour delayed opening on Monday, Jan. 8. 2024.

Original story

Snow in January shouldn’t be a big deal and a major news story in Connecticut since it’s supposed to snow in New England, but the dearth of the white stuff last winter is creating an atmosphere of excitement – or for some, dread – as the first storm of the season is expected to hit the area Saturday night.

On Friday, Public Works announced a parking ban will begin at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 6. The parking ban ended on Sunday at 7 p.m.

“We haven’t had any real depth in snow in about two years,” Public Works Director John Phillips said Thursday afternoon. “The team is excited,” he said, noting that they’ve gotten some new equipment, including several wing plows, in the past two years and there are a number of new employees who haven’t previously worked with deep snow. The drivers have been out this week learning their routes.

The new plows can reduce the number of passes a plow needs to make to completely clear a street from four or five to two, Phillips said.

“There’s still some question mark about how much snow we will get,” Phillips said, but in a news release the town indicated that 6-12 inches is being anticipated.

“We haven’t seen a substantial snow fall in nearly two years. That’s pretty rare for West Hartford as we usually are reliably cold and active this time of year,” said John Lyons, an avid amateur weather forecaster whose predictions are actively sought by West Hartford residents. “I am also worried about the storm coming on Wednesday. It will be a rainmaker, but combined with snow melt, I’m worried about very substantial and disruptive flooding.”

Snow is expected to begin falling late Saturday night, Jan. 6, and should continue overnight and through mid-day Sunday. Winds are also expected to be a factor, with gusts of more than 30 mph expected into Sunday.

The National Weather Service on Thursday issued a winter storm watch for the West Hartford area that begins at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6 and runs through 1 a.m. Monday, Jan. 8. Temperatures overnight Saturday into Sunday are expected to dip to 29ºF but will reach a high of 35ºF on Sunday.

While a snowstorm on the weekend may not pose much of an inconvenience for residents needing to get to work or school as a storm during the week, Phillips said that he hopes people will be patient as Public Works will need to be doing their plowing work during the day Sunday, when people are anxious to get out and about. “It takes eight to 10 hours to clean up the entire town,” Phillips said, and some streets will be first and others will be last.

It will be critically important that crews are able to plow curb-to-curb with this storm because rain is expected by mid-week and snow dams must be avoided and storm drains must be cleared.

The town hasn’t recently had much need for contractors to assist with the plowing process, but Phillips said there are some on call should their services be needed to assist town crews.

Even if there is a foot of snow, it will be falling on bare ground and won’t pose too much of a problem to clear. “We are confident from a Public Works perspective that Monday morning should not be affected,” Phillips said.

As a reminder, the following are snow and parking ban-related protocols for the Town of West Hartford.

Parking ban

A parking ban will begin at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 6, and will remain in effect until further notice. Residents are urged to start planning now if they have limited off-street parking available.

Parking bans are needed to keep roadways free of vehicles so that Public Works crews are able to plow the snow from curb-to-curb, and cars parked on the road create safety hazards.

Owners who do not heed the parking ban will be fined, and the car may be towed.

During a parking ban, residents can park in off-street lots. Schools lots may only be utilized when specifically noted by Public Works, and that is generally when it is anticipated that schools will be closed. For this storm, school lots will be available for use along with other municipal parking lots such as at parks. Vehicles must be removed from school parking lots prior to Monday morning.

Those using surface lots are asked to park next to other cars – rather than leaving parking spaces between them – to assist Public Works in effectively clearing those areas.

Regular fees will be in effect at municipal lots and parking garages.

Motorists may register their plates using one of the kiosks inside a the parking garage or can use either the Flowbird or Passport Parking mobile app.

Enforcement

Cars left parked on the street during a parking ban will be ticketed, and may be towed. West Hartford Police will assist Public Works to keep the roads clear of illegally parked vehicles.

Snow removal contractors are reminded not to push snow from driveways and private parking lots into the street.

Residents are also asked not to throw snow or ice into the street.

“You can help West Hartford achieve its Vision Zero goal of eliminating fatalities and severe injuries on West Hartford streets by doing your part to keep our roads safe,” the town said in an announcement.

Christmas trees and leaf bags

Collection of Christmas trees is on schedule, Phillips said. Any Christmas tree that was not collected by Saturday morning should be pulled back from the edge of the road so that it does not get covered in snow and put back out on the regular collection date next week. Trees buried in snow will not be collected.

Curbside yard waste and leaf bag collection have ended, and while some residents have placed brown bags at the curb there are no trucks picking up that material. All items should be removed from the edge of the road. Leaves and yard waste can be disposed of at the Yard Waste & Recycling Center (with an annual permit) or residents can wait until April when curbside service resumes.

Sidewalks

Per town ordinance 115-24, West Hartford property owners are responsible for removing snow and ice from the sidewalk along their property line within 12 hours after the storm or by sunrise – whichever is later. Residents are required to keep sidewalks clear of snow and ice.

It’s particularly important to keep heavily-used sidewalks – those near schools, public buildings, and commercial areas – free and clear. Snow clearing violations should be reported to the West Hartford Police Department at 860-523-5203.

Trash Collection

The collection of trash and recycling by Paine’s Inc. is expected to remain on schedule.

Hydrants

Residents are also asked to help out the West Hartford Fire Department and keep the community safe by shoveling the area around fire hydrants.

Sign up for emergency alerts

Get alerts about emergencies and other important community news by signing up for West Hartford’s Community Advisory Notification System. This emergency alert system enables the Town to provide you with critical information quickly in a variety of situations by text, voice, and email.

Tthe Ready.gov website also has information on how to prepare for winter storms.

Town officials appreciate the cooperation of residents so West Hartford roads can be safe for everyone.

Check back regularly with We-Ha.com for any updates and storm-related news.

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