Evansville, IN Property Maintenance: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (2026)
Key Facts
- Duty holder
- Occupant, or owner if unoccupied
- Standard
- Remove snow/ice; sand or salt if impracticable
- Deadline
- As soon as weather permits (no fixed hours)
- Penalty
- $10-$2,500 civil penalty, EMC 1.05.180
- Repeat exposure
- Each day is a separate offense
Summary
Evansville requires property owners or occupants abutting a sidewalk to clear snow and ice, or sand/salt it if removal is impracticable, and clean it as soon as weather permits; violators face a civil penalty up to $2,500 per day.
The occupant of a premises or owner of an unoccupied premises abutting a sidewalk shall remove the snow and ice which may collect on the sidewalk. In the event that snow or ice on a sidewalk is frozen so hard that it cannot be removed by normal means, removal would cause damage to the sidewalk, or weather conditions are such that removal of the snow or ice is impracticable, the person responsible for the sidewalk shall sprinkle the sidewalk with a material such as sand, salt, or sawdust so as to make the sidewalk safe to walk on. The sidewalk shall be cleaned as soon as the weather permits. [Ord. G-74-26, passed 8-5-74. 1962 Code, Art. 5, Ch. 2, § 7; 1982 Code § 96.12; 1983 Code § 9.96.12.]
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance G-2026-12, passed June 22, 2026).
Full Breakdown
EMC 12.05.170 places snow and ice removal duty on the occupant of a premises abutting a sidewalk, or the owner if the premises sits unoccupied. There's no fixed hour deadline: the sidewalk must be cleared, or -- if ice is frozen too hard or weather makes removal impracticable -- sanded, salted, or sawdusted, and kept safe until it can be cleaned once weather permits. This sits in Evansville's own Streets and Sidewalks chapter, not Vanderburgh County's code, and enforcement runs through Chapter 12.05's penalty section, EMC 12.05.560, which incorporates the citywide EMC 1.05.180 civil-penalty scale.
Violations & Fines
Ignoring the removal-or-treatment duty on an abutting sidewalk exposes the responsible occupant or owner to a civil penalty of $10 to $2,500 per violation under EMC 12.05.560/1.05.180, with each day a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a fixed deadline (like 24 or 48 hours) to clear snow in Evansville?
Who is responsible for clearing snow from a sidewalk in Evansville?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Evansville
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