CHASKA, MINNESOTA
In Chaska, failing to clear the sidewalk within 24 hours of a snowfall is a misdemeanor. City Code Section 13.16.060 puts the walk in front of every lot on its owner or occupant, and the section itself doesn't describe a warning notice first.
The city can also clear the walk itself and send the bill, either through a civil action or as an assessment collected with city taxes. And the snow you move can't go into a street, a park or a public parking area.
That's why our Chaska accounts separate the two jobs. Lots are plowed on the trigger you pick, and sidewalks are shoveled and salted every time it snows. Crews work out of our Wayzata shop, with every visit logged in Yeti.
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Once 2 inches is down, Chaska's code calls for plowing of all streets, alleys and parking lots, and the city's goal is to have every city street plowed within 8 hours. Your customers and staff will be back on the road quickly. The lot they pull into needs to keep up.
We plow at your contract trigger and come back through daytime storms so lanes stay open while the lot is in use. Snow is piled where it takes the least parking and leaves drivers a clear look at the road when they pull out.
Behind the route are 15 to 20 people, matched to the size of the storm, and a backup machine in every class: two wheel loaders, two compact track loaders, three plow trucks and two sidewalk machines.
Chaska's code is blunt about where that snow goes. Section 10.08.110 says snow removed from private property can't be deposited on a public street, park or parking area, and makes clearing private property the owner's job. Section 13.16.120 adds that plowing, shoveling or blowing snow into city streets is against ordinance.
Section 13.16.060 is short and strict. The owner or occupant of any lot has 24 hours after a snowfall or other accumulation to clear the sidewalk in front of or next to it. There is no separate deadline for businesses, and no minimum depth.
Miss it and the code says the owner or occupant is guilty of a misdemeanor. On top of that, the city can have the walk cleared at the owner's expense and recover the cost in a civil action or assess it to the lot, collected as city taxes.
The section itself doesn't describe a notice or grace period before the misdemeanor applies.
So sidewalks aren't tied to the lot trigger on our Chaska accounts. They're shoveled and salted after every snowfall.
Chaska sends crews out to sand or plow as soon as icy or slippery conditions develop on city streets. On your property, that job is yours. A walk that was shoveled at dawn can glaze over by afternoon as meltwater refreezes, and ice counts just as much as snow when someone falls.
Our salt comes out of a 100 ton supply stored at our own shop, so your property isn't waiting on a supplier in a busy week. We apply it under the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Smart Salting guidance and record each application in your log.
Because Chaska won't take your snow on its streets, parks or public parking areas, every pile has to stay on your property until it is hauled away. On a busy commercial lot, that point comes early in a heavy winter.
When the piles start eating stalls or blocking the view at your exits, wheel loaders load them out and DOT-compliant dump trucks haul them off site. You get your parking back without putting snow anywhere the code says it can't go.
Your trigger is the snow depth that brings crews to the lot, and it moves the price more than anything else in the contract. Chaska commercial accounts choose among four:
Not sure where your property fits? Tell us who is on site and when, and we'll recommend a setting.
Commercial snow is bid property by property. What matters is how big the lot is, which trigger you choose, how much sidewalk there is, and whether snow will have to be hauled off.
Before winter starts, we map each property's push zones and drains so every crew works it the same way.
We use Yeti on every commercial site. Each visit is recorded with the time crews arrived and left, photos of the site, and every salt application.
If a slip-and-fall claim ever reaches you, that record shows what the property looked like, when it was serviced and what was put down. Your business is named as additionally insured on the certificate of insurance we send before service starts, and you'll have direct cell numbers for the people handling your storms instead of a call center.
Our focus in Chaska is commercial, but residential driveways are welcome too. Your driveway is cleared within 10 hours after snowfall stops, on a 2 inch trigger, and every residential truck runs rubber cutting edges so pavers and stamped concrete survive the winter.
The 24-hour sidewalk rule is the same for homes as for businesses in Chaska. The city also suggests holding off on clearing the end of your driveway until its plow has cleared the street curb to curb, since plows typically come through several times.
From November 1 to April 1, once snow needs plowing or a snow emergency is declared, Chaska street parking switches to one side: even-numbered addresses on even days, odd on odd days, with the date before midnight holding until 8:00 a.m. That rule doesn't apply to streets in the business district. Anywhere in the city, a vehicle parked so it blocks the clearing of streets, alleys or public parking lots can be towed without notice. Snow removal details from the City of Chaska and the Chaska City Code.
Freshwater Landscaping
3425 Shoreline Dr Ste B, Wayzata, MN 55391
(612) 999-8067
Office: Mon-Sun 8am-6pm
They have 24 hours after a snowfall or other accumulation, under City Code Section 13.16.060. The owner or occupant of the lot is responsible, and the deadline is the same for businesses and homes.
The code makes it a misdemeanor for the owner or occupant. The city can also clear the walk at the owner's expense and recover the cost through a civil action or an assessment against the lot, collected as city taxes.
No. Section 10.08.110 bars depositing snow from private property on a public street, park or parking area, and the city states that shoveling, plowing or blowing snow into city streets is against ordinance.
Yes. The lot is plowed at your contract trigger, but the sidewalks are cleared and salted every time it snows. Chaska's 24-hour rule applies after any snowfall, so the walk can't wait on the lot.
Half inch, one inch, two inch or zero tolerance. Zero tolerance keeps a crew on site from the start of the storm, clearing continuously, and two inch is the default for most commercial lots.
Yes, although our Chaska work is mainly commercial. Residential driveways are cleared within 10 hours after snowfall stops on a 2 inch trigger, rubber cutting edges run on every residential truck, and the front walk and steps come with the service.
Each property is bid on its own, based on the lot's size, the trigger depth, the amount of sidewalk and whether snow will be hauled off. Contracts can be seasonal, per push, or prepaid in blocks of plow visits and salt applications.
When spring comes, the same company takes care of your grounds through our commercial landscaping service.
The people who plowed your lot all winter already know it, so there's nothing to relearn when the season turns.
Routes fill and then we're closed. Send the basics on your property: lot size, how much sidewalk you're responsible for, when people arrive, and whether you need zero tolerance. We'll build a bid for your site.