Clearing snow on roads, sidewalks, and parking lots one at a time

Business parking lots, sidewalks, driveways, and cars were packed with inches and inches of beautiful snow.

People were helping each another clear away as much snow as they could as people. A few drivers had issues getting their car out of the snow but eventually got freed.

Some people had no problem navigating in the snow like the mail carriers and delivery trucks. However, a semi-truck did have difficulties getting up a hill. After a few failed attempts, the driver finally made it up the hill.

A short time later, a business owner was plowing the sideways and parking lot of a business on Ninth Street. He told me that he didn’t want his employees driving around in the snow, so he shut down the busy for the day.

This was the fourth place that he plowed so far, and he will do three more driveways to do before heading home. It’s important to handle the snow cleanup now instead of later.

"When you get this much of it, if you don’t take care of it now, it’s going to turn into russets. It’s going to get cold in a day or two and that’s going to freeze solid. You’re not going to be able to move your car and get it out of the way," said Steve Stern, owner of Green Home Solutions of Duluth.

Some roads are starting to get cleared by city and county street plows. Other roads don’t get cleared as quickly. With the new snow emergency in effect, it’s a possibility that more roads will be plowed in the area more than before.

"Hopefully this new system they’re doing is going to make this work better. Because pass winters like three or four years ago, man we had a lot of snow. So feel big ones. There were whole parts of the city that became inaccessible," says Stern.

And when it comes to shoveling and plowing those driveways, parking lots, sidewalks, and other areas, Mr. Stern said the best time to start is just as the snow is coming to an end.