Greenwich, CT Property Maintenance: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (2026)

Article 2 of Chapter 11, Streets, sets the sidewalk snow clearing rule for the Town of Greenwich. Sec. 11-7 has stood since October 14, 1958 (Ords. & Reg., § 8-1) and applies to every owner, tenant and occupant of land or a building next to a constructed sidewalk. The clock starts when snow finishes falling or ice finishes forming: subsection (b) gives eighteen hours, not a calendar day, to clear the walk completely. Subsection (c) adds a second duty once the walk is bare: it must be kept safe by spreading sand, ashes, salt or similar material, because an icy but shoveled sidewalk still violates the ordinance.

Subsection (d) sets the penalty at a flat twenty-five dollar fine plus reimbursement to the Town for whatever it spends removing the snow or ice itself or keeping the walk safe, meaning the Town can clear a neglected sidewalk and bill the abutting owner on top of the fine. The ordinance sits alongside Sec. 11-3, which separately bars obstructing a sidewalk with goods or articles without the Chief of Police's consent, and Sec. 11-4, which bars letting roof or porch runoff drip onto a sidewalk.

Because the duty runs to occupants as well as owners, a tenant renting a Greenwich Avenue storefront or an Old Greenwich home is personally on the hook for the walk out front, not just the landlord. The Department of Public Works, which administers Chapter 11's excavation and obstruction provisions, is the agency that fields complaints and can order remedial snow removal.