WATERLOO REGION — Joan Leening has a snowblower and diligently goes out within 24 hours of a snowfall to clear the 60 metres of sidewalk that wrap around her corner Kitchener house.

So she didn't pay too much attention when she got a notice reminding her to clear her sidewalks. The bulk of the snow on the sidewalk was gone, with her snowblower leaving a flat, hard-packed layer of snow.

But when a second notice came a couple of days later, she read the fine print.

"It says you have to clear it right down to the concrete," she said. If she fails to, city crews will come and do the job, and present her with a bill of $300 or more.

"It just stunned me."

She has used a snowblower for years, and says it never clears right down to bare concrete, since the machine is set to clear at least a centimetre above. Setting it any lower risks damaging the city's sidewalks, as well as the homeowner's driveway.

The city's requirement for bare concrete strikes her as unreasonable, and if followed to the letter, would mean anyone with a snowblower could face fines or be required to shovel.

"If you can't use your snowblower, what are people, particularly elderly people who really depend on their snowblower, going to use?" she wondered.

Leening isn't alone. Elisabeth Jastrau's elderly parents received a similar notice, even though their sidewalks weren't appreciably worse than anyone else's.

"Looking up and down their street, none of the properties were shovelled down to the cement," Jastrau wrote in an email.

"With the large amount of snow we received the other day, most people have shovelled so that it's possible to walk on the sidewalk, but leaving the sidewalk snow-covered."

It's a standard the city itself often fails to meet on the sidewalks it's responsible for, Jastrau notes.

"They use a mini snowplow, and leave lots of snow on the sidewalk. By no means do they clear the snow down to the cement."

Cambridge and Waterloo officials say their bylaw enforcement people use their judgment.

"If an officer sees that there's been an attempt, we can extend the time" by which the walk must be cleared, said Jim Barry, Waterloo's director of municipal enforcement.

Kitchener says the standard is straightforward: "Clear of ice and snow" means down to the pavement. "We do appreciate that it's a challenge, but it's the only standard we can go with," said Shayne Turner, Kitchener's director of bylaw enforcement.

"It's one thing for me to be able to walk on packed snow, but someone in a wheelchair can't get down the sidewalk if there's snow."

Sidewalk clearing is a hot issue, both for those who get notices or fines, and for those who complain about sidewalks clogged with snow.

"We've been inundated with complaints," said Dennis Purcell, Cambridge's director of building and enforcement services. "We've had hundreds. Hundreds and hundreds."

All three cities post their snow clearing policies on their websites.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Kitchener and Waterloo require sidewalks cleared within 24 hours of a snowfall. Owners are issued an order to clear the walk; failure to do so will mean a city crew comes in and bills the owner. In Kitchener that fee runs $300-$500.

Cambridge allows residents 36 hours after a snowfall, but the city will hire a contractor to clear an unshovelled walk, and the homeowner gets the bill, which can be $60 to $150.

So far this season, Cambridge has called in a contractor about 100 times, Kitchener has sent out city crews to clear walks about 150 times, and Waterloo just 10 times.

Waterloo discourages repeat offenders: a bylaw officer who finds that a property owner has failed more than once in a season to clear the walk will charge an $80 fee, even before city crews do their work and bill the owner.

This year, the heavy snowfalls have meant bylaw officers are dealing with thousands of complaints.

Kitchener has one officer dedicated to investigating sidewalk clearing in winter, but has received almost 2,000 complaints. The city can draw on up to six other officers to help out when they can, but the huge number of complaints means it can be several days before a bylaw officer can investigate and a sidewalk is cleaned up.

All three city websites list agencies that will help homeowners who can't shovel their own sidewalks, but owners could face fees or have to meet eligibility requirements.

Cities say there's good reason why they're strict about sidewalk clearing. "We're all citizens of this community," Purcell said. "It's just taking responsibility for each other, so that people can walk safely and without undue difficulty. Just think of a young mother, with a few kids in tow, trying to get to the school bus stop."

Clear sidewalks are "a matter of convenience and safety," he said.

- Frigid wind chills hit -35 in Waterloo Region

- -30.3 C sets new cold record for Feb. 13 in Waterloo Region

- Cold weather puts a strain on home furnaces