Hamden town officials are cracking down on residents who do not clean up after snow storms.
Dixwell Avenue is one place in town where footprints in the snow mark where a sidewalk should be showing.
“The snow is really deep and I see children walking in the road," Dan Garrett, a Hamden resident, said.
Hamden Mayor Curt Balzano Leng said not shoveling sidewalks can become a public safety issue.
“When people are walking on Dixwell Avenue or Whitney Avenue -- because there’s no other place -- to walk in four lanes of traffic, it’s incredibly unsafe," Leng said.
Hamden's engineering department and the designated 'sidewalk inspector' are increasing enforcement of an ordinance that requires property owners to shovel or snow blow their sidewalks within 24 hours of a storm.
“It’d be great if all the sidewalks were shoveled, but it doesn’t always happen," Garrett said.
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Violators of the ordinance could face penalties. A first offense will come with a warning or citation, a second offense could come with a fine of $100 and repeat offenders could be hit with additional fines.
“We don’t want to fine anybody. We don’t even want to yell at anybody," Leng said. "But we want people to take their responsibility seriously.”
“You have to call on the community," said Hamden resident Hind Elghazzali, who is on board with the town's initiative. "We all live in the same neighborhood and we all want to keep our children safe," she said.
