South Bend requires owners and occupants to clear snow and ice from public sidewalks within 24 hours after snowfall ends, under Municipal Code Sec. 18-7. Neighborhood Services inspectors can issue a ticket for each day the walk stays uncleared.
Under Municipal Code Sec. 18-7, owners and occupants must remove snow and ice from the public sidewalk abutting their property within 24 hours after any accumulation ends. Neighborhood Services & Enforcement inspectors begin monitoring neighborhoods once that 24-hour window closes. Because sidewalk maintenance is the abutting owner's responsibility under Chapter 18, this duty falls on the property owner or tenant, not the City. Enforcement is per-day: a single storm that goes uncleared can generate a new ticket for each additional day the sidewalk stays blocked, so ice left through a cold snap compounds quickly. Clearing promptly after the snow stops is the reliable way to avoid citations.
Failing to clear a public sidewalk within 24 hours violates Sec. 18-7. NSE inspectors may issue a ticket for each day the snow and ice remain, so repeat days mean stacked fines.
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