Longmont gears up for storm with snow plows, services

Mar. 13—All 14 of Longmont's snow plows are scheduled to be in operation throughout the course of this week's forecast winter storm.

"The street operation crews will be working in 12-hour shifts beginning late (Wednesday) and early (Thursday) morning," Scott Hansen, Longmont Utilities & Public Works communications and marketing specialist, said in an email. "These shifts will be continuous until Friday evening."

Longmont is responsible for plowing most major roadways within its limits, and the Colorado Department of Transportation clears Colo. 66 of snow, according to Hansen.

Hansen said that motorists should be particularly careful on bridges and overpasses due to the possibility of more ice in those areas. Shaded areas, streets with sharp curves and unplowed roadways should also be treated with extra caution.

"Every road the city plows is treated with the same attention and materials to ensure the safest possible travel conditions," Hansen said.

In the event of a power outage, crews with Longmont Power & Communications "plan to restore power throughout the storm as needed," so long as it's safe to do so, Hansen said.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for Longmont and other Denver metro areas, beginning Wednesday night and extending into Friday morning.

Heavy, wet snow is expected with total accumulations of between 10 and 20 inches with up to 24 inches possible in some areas, according to the storm warning forecast. Wind gusts of up to 35 mph are also possible during the day Thursday.

Longmont Public Safety Spokesperson Robin Ericson said in an email Wednesday that the department may see an increase in calls for service depending on the amount of snowfall. Subsequently, response times may be a little longer due to road conditions and the associated call volume, Ericson said.

"We request that if the storm is significant, community members consider their vehicles' capacity to navigate the snow and the reason for their travel before heading out onto public streets," Ericson said. "Vehicles parked and stranded on public streets prohibit plowing and police and fire emergency response."

In addition, businesses, homeowners and tenants are expected to remove snow and ice from public sidewalks abutting their properties, "within 24 hours after any snow or ice stops falling," according to city laws.

Longmont does not have a formal program to help seniors with snow removal but does refer them to Cultivate, a volunteer nonprofit group based in Boulder. Cultivate offers the SnowBusters program, which helps seniors with snow shoveling and ice removal.

Cultivate is a volunteer-driven program for seniors that serves Boulder, Broomfield and Weld counties. SnowBusters' client enrollment is full for the 2023-2024 season.

For people experiencing homelessness, Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement will offer a day shelter beginning at 8 a.m. Thursday at Messiah Church, 1335 Francis St., which will remain open through the evening and overnight.

An overnight shelter will be available again starting at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Messiah Church.

At the Longmont Humane Society, any time severe weather is expected, the nonprofit group tries to plan as much as possible in advance to alert staff and volunteers as to what to expect, said Shelby Stromberger, shelter manager.

"If the weather turns out to be worse than originally thought, we'll adjust our walk schedule accordingly, like doing shorter, more frequent walks to ensure the dogs get enough weather-appropriate exercise and potty breaks," Stromberger said in an email.

The Longmont Humane Society typically makes a call to volunteers to help with snow shoveling and put down pet-friendly ice melt, Stromberger said.

"We'll also set up space heaters in our cat areas to compensate for the cold creeping in through the windows," Stromberger said.