Pawtucket, RI Property Maintenance: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (2026)

Article VI of Chapter 351, "Snow and Ice Removal," was rewritten in its entirety on June 12, 2008 (Ch. No. 2894). Section 351-20A bars snow from remaining on a sidewalk, defined as the portion of the street between the curblines or roadway edge and the adjacent property line meant for pedestrians, for more than the first 12 hours of daylight after a snowstorm ends or after snow falls from a building. Ice gets a shorter window: no more than two daytime hours, unless it is covered with sand or another suitable substance.

Subsection B places the removal duty on the owner, occupant or other person caring for the building or lot bordering the sidewalk. Subsection C bars dumping the cleared snow or ice onto a street or another owner's property. Subsection D puts enforcement in the hands of the Director of Zoning and Code Enforcement, who also sets the policy for what counts as a sufficient cleared path, and Subsection E requires the City to publish a reminder notice, including in non-English newspapers, every late October. The article applies citywide to any sidewalk-bordering property, residential or commercial, and its 12-hour daylight-hours measure, rather than a flat calendar-day deadline, means the clock runs only while the sun is up.