Snow Emergency In Ferndale This Weekend

With meteorologists predicting heavy snow accumulation and a long-duration storm, the City of Ferndale declared a snow emergency Friday, effective from 7 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10 through 7 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 11. Crews from the Department of Public Works (DPW) will be on the roads all weekend, plowing streets and clearing roadways. Ferndale Communications Director Kara Sokol released a statement about what residents should do during this period. Item number one: get your car off the street, or face fines and possible towing.

In a snow emergency, cities issue alerts for all vehicles to be removed from roads and streets. Streets need to be clear so plows can operate. If you’re wondering what the odds of getting a ticket are, Sokol has that covered. She poses the question “But the police won’t really ticket, will they?” and her reply is “Yes! During a typical snow emergency, the Ferndale Police Department writes between a dozen and a couple hundred tickets.”

Sokol says that Ferndale Police will be working closely with DPW to make sure cars left on streets are ticked and even towed if safety requires it. If you can’t park on the street, where can you park? Sokol says the city has designated snow emergency parking all over town. Residents can park in the West Breckenridge Parking Lot (just west of Woodward Ave. behind Treat Dreams), the East Breckenridge Parking Lot (east of Woodward Ave. behind The Fly Trap), at the Kulick Community Center (1201 Livernois Ave.), in the Martin Rd. parking lot, and at the Harding parking lot (on Mapledale Ave. at Wolcott St.). Parking in these lots is free during a snow emergency, including overnight.

The snow emergency begins Saturday because the city prioritizes major roadways where there isn’t street parking, according to Sokol. Cars must be off the streets by 7 a.m. Saturday, but you’re free to resume street parking “once the plow has been through and cleared your street curb-to-curb,” Sokol adds.

Ferndale Schools closed Friday, canceling most after school programs, but offering some childcare, for a fee, for kids already registered with the district’s latchkey program.

Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images.