Published on October 29, 2020

With winter approaching, the City of Bath reminds owners and/or occupants of properties in the downtown area of their responsibility for removing snow and ice from the sidewalks adjacent to their sites after a storm, and icicles that overhang streets or sidewalks.

The streets ordinance requires that snow be removed within 4 hours of the end of a storm during the day, or before 10 AM of the next day if the storm ends after dark, excluding Sundays. It is not necessary to do snow removal during the night or on Sundays. It’s sometimes not possible to clear the entire width of the sidewalk. In those instances, a clear path at least 4’ wide is acceptable. The ordinance also requires that owners and/or occupants keep the sidewalk safe by removing ice that may form, or treating it with salt/sand so that the footing is secure, and seeing that there are no dangerous icicles hanging from their buildings over the sidewalk. The purpose of the ordinance is to help keep the sidewalks safe and convenient for those using them.

The Ordinance is available on the City’s website at https://www.cityofbathmaine.gov/city-ordinances - Chapter 15, Sec. 15-20 - or from the Codes Enforcement Office.  Anyone with questions is encouraged to contact the Bath Codes Enforcement Office at 443-8334.