Janesville, Beloit, other cities begin declaring snow emergencies

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - With three days of heavy snow, strong winds, and bitterly cold temperatures moving into southern Wisconsin, cities and towns across the region are bracing for the impact of the storm system.

The latest projections, as of Wednesday morning, show the first flakes are expected to fall that evening and when all is said and done three to seven inches of snowfall will be common throughout the region, with areas north of Madison possibly getting more than eight inches.

There is also growing concern that blizzard conditions may develop Thursday night through Friday night as winds could gust to near 50 mph.

With that forecast in mind, city officials are beginning to declare snow emergencies for their communities. We will track the emergencies as they are declared and list them – as well as what they mean – below.

Snow emergencies not on the list can be reported by emailing news@nbc15.com

Beloit:

City officials urge residents to stay home or, if they do need to go out, to use extreme caution on the road. The snow emergency in Beloit will run from 8 a.m. on Thursday through 11 a.m. Friday, during which time vehicles are prohibited from parking or standing on city streets. Officials let the order expire early, noting it was originally supposed to go through 8 a.m. Saturday. Drivers are asked to park their vehicles in a driveway or approved off-site parking lot. (see list below) Residents should also remove trash and recycling carts from curbsides.

Krueger Park Upper (Hackett Street at House Street): East Lot

• Krueger Golf Course (1611 Hackett St.): South Lot

• Wootton Park (4th Street at Maple Avenue): Entire Lot

• Rotary Center (1220 Riverside Drive): Between Designated Signs

• Jones Pavilion at Riverside Park (access via Portland Avenue): Entire Lot

• Heritage View Parking Lot at 627 Pleasant: Between Designated Signs

• Third Street (South Lot): West Side of Lot Along Fourth St.

• Third Street (North Lot): North End of Lot Between Designated Signs

• Ironworks (Fourth Street): Center Area Between Designated Signs

• West Grand Avenue Lot (229 W. Grand Ave.): Center Area Between Designated Signs

Brooklyn

The snow emergency will run from midnight on Thursday until 6 a.m. on Saturday. During that time, drivers are not allowed to park on a street or alley in the village. Any vehicles parked in the street are subject to be ticketed or towed.

Evansville:

A snow emergency is in effect from 2 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 22, until 2 a.m. the next morning. During that time no parking is allowed on city streets and all vehicles must be parked on private property or in public parking areas. Violating vehicles will be ticketed and towed, the city warns. Once the snow is cleared to the curb, on-street parking will be allowed again.

Fort Atkinson:

The City of Fort Atkinson has declared a Snow Emergency to take effect Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022, at 12 p.m. until Friday, Dec. 23, 2022 at 8 a.m. During a Snow Emergency all vehicles must be removed from public streets and alleys.

Grant Co.

A towing ban went into effect at 9 a.m. on Thursday and is expected to last 48 hours. If a vehicle is not a hazard to the plow operators or other traffic, it will be left until the roads are deemed safe to be removed.

Iowa Co.

Iowa County Sheriff’s Office has issued a tow ban effective December 21, 2022, at 10 pm for vehicles that pose no risk to moving traffic. This ban will be in effect until the roadways are deemed safe to start pulling vehicles out of the ditch.

Janesville:

Winter weather emergency restrictions will go into effect in Janesville at noon on Thursday, Dec. 22, the city announced. During the emergency, vehicles will be prohibited from parking on city streets until plows have finished clearing the streets of snow and ice. From that time through six o’clock the following morning, vehicles still parked on city streets will be ticketed. The city noted that drivers who cannot park in a garage, driveway, or other lot will be allowed to use one of its downtown municipal lots, located at:

East Wall Street Lot at E Wall Street & N Parker Drive
City Hall Lot at W Wall Street & N Jackson Street
S High Street Lot at W Court Street & S High Street
Hedberg Public Library Lot on Water Street
River/Union Street Lot at S River Street & Union Street
N Parker Drive Parking Ramp at N Parker Drive and E Wall Street

More emergency winter weather information for Janesville is available on the City’s Snow & Ice Control webpage or by calling the Snow Hotline at (608) 755-SNOW. To report problems or concerns, please call the City Services Center at (608) 755-3110.

Lodi:

A snow emergency will go into effect on Wednesday, at 6 p.m., and remain active until Saturday at noon. During the emergency, drivers are barred from parking on-street even if a plow has come through, because they are planning to make multiple passes, the city explains.

Marshall

The snow emergency in Marshall will go into effect at 2 a.m. Thursday morning and will last until 8 a.m. the next day. During the emergency, no street parking is allowed. Drivers who have no access to off-street parking can use the municipal lots in Veteran’s Park, on Howard St., or the one on Main Street.

McFarland:

The McFarland Snow Emergency starts at 8 p.m. on Wednesday and will run through Friday at 6 p.m. During the snow emergency, vehicles are not allowed to be parked on public streets to assist with snow clearing. Residents and others must park vehicles in driveways or other private property. Vehicles on public streets during the snow emergency are subject to citation or removal at the owner’s expense.

Portage:

The snow emergency in Portage will start at 4 a.m. on Thursday morning for all snow routes. At 6 a.m. a parking ban for all streets not in the central business district goes into effect. On Friday, parking will be prohibited in the central business district from 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. The emergency will remain in effect for 48 hours unless it is canceled by the city.

Pardeeville:

A snow emergency will go into effect at 2 a.m. Thursday morning and remain active until Friday at noon.

Richland Center:

The snow emergency in Richland Center will begin late Wednesday night, Richland Co. Emergency Management reports. The emergency order goes into effect at 10 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21, and will run through 7 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 23. During that time, vehicles are barred from parking on city streets and highways from 10 p.m. until 7 a.m. the next morning. Vehicles found parked on city streets will be ticketed and could be towed.

Overnight, off-street parking will be available at: : Parking lot south of the Fire Department, Parking lot south of the City Auditorium, Parking lot north of Advanced Pump & Well, Parking lot on S. Jefferson St. across from Kwik Trip, Parking lot north of A-1 Furniture. Overnight, off-street parking will also be available at the Community Center parking lot, City Hall parking lot and the parking lot on W. Seminary St. near the Mill Pond Park.

Stoughton

During the snow emergency, which will take effect as of Midnight, Wednesday December 21st and will end at 8:00am on December 24th, parking is even/odd between Midnight and 8:00 am. The side of the street depends on the address of the houses on that side of the street and what the date will be after midnight. The odd side of the street is any address ending in an odd number and the even side of the street is any address ending in an even number. For example if it is 7:00 pm on February 5, you should park on the EVEN side of the street because it will be February 6 after midnight. Failure to follow the snow emergency ordinance could result in a parking ticket.

Sun Prairie

The City of Sun Prairie Public Works Department is declaring a snow emergency staring at 12:00 am Thursday December 22, 2022 until noon on Friday, December 23, 2022.

Click here to download the NBC15 News app or our NBC15 First Alert weather app.