Minneapolis and St. Paul declare snow emergencies ahead of blizzard, ask residents to move vehicles overnight
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Mayors Jacob Frey of Minneapolis and Kaohly Her of St. Paul announced snow emergencies for their respective cities starting Sunday night ahead of possibly historic blizzard conditions.
The National Weather Service expects up to 18 inches of snow overnight in the Twin Cities, with up to two inches of snow falling per hour starting Saturday night. Parking restrictions for emergency plowing go into effect for both cities beginning 9 p.m. Sunday.
Parking rules can be found on the Minneapolis and St. Paul city websites.
“This may be a very significant snow and I can tell you that our snowplow drivers are in the starting blocks and they're ready to go,” Frey said Saturday afternoon at the joint press conference in St. Paul. “For them, this is the Super Bowl.”
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Her asked St. Paul residents to plan ahead to ensure snowplows operate efficiently.
“Moving now will help you avoid becoming stuck in a snow bank, and will give our crews room to work and make sure you have safe roads to drive on when the time comes,” Her said.
Sean Kershaw, the St. Paul public works director, warned the snow will be “wet and tall” and will freeze in the cold temperatures forecast for Monday.
“Do yourself a favor. Do your neighbors a favor,” Kershaw said. “Because you don't want to be the car that has 18 inches of snow plowed up around you, because you're going to be there for a few days.”
Officials from both cities said vehicles in violation could face tickets or a tow bill if parked illegally.
Both cities are offering free parking to clear the streets.
Free parking is available in St. Paul starting at 5 p.m. Saturday until 5 p.m. Monday at the Block 19 ramp downtown. Some Parks and Recreation lots will also be available once cleared; officials advise looking to stpaul.gov/snow for updates on locations.
Minneapolis is offering more than 700 free spots downtown at the Farmer’s Market and Salvation Army parking lots from 2 p.m. Saturday until 8 p.m. Wednesday.
For $1, people can also park at the Ramp A parking lot in downtown Minneapolis from 6 a.m. Sunday until 8 p.m. Wednesday.
Minneapolis will prioritize main roads on Sunday before the snow emergency. Residential street plowing will begin Monday and Tuesday.
St. Paul will continuously plow main streets starting Saturday through Sunday as the snow falls before the emergency declaration takes effect. Night plow routes begin 9 p.m. Sunday, transitioning to day plow routes Monday.
In St. Paul, garbage and recycling will not be picked up Monday. Kershaw instructed residents to put their bins on the boulevard instead of the street on Tuesday.
Minneapolis garbage collection will continue on schedule.
St. Paul residents can report fallen tree branches via email. Officials asked residents to hold off on calling until Tuesday morning.
