DENVER — City leaders held a news conference Wednesday afternoon to discuss Denver's preparations and plans for the snowstorm that's due to move onto the Front Range on Wednesday night.
Mayor Mike Johnston was joined by Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) Executive Director Amy Ford and Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas at the City and County Building.
Johnston said the city will use a Tier 4 response — its highest response level — to respond to the storm, which is expected to drop 10 to 16 inches of snow on Denver. Such responses are rare — Ford said it's been three or four years since the city last deployed one.
"A tier-four level for us is heavy accumulation, major drifting potential, several days of clearance, active work on our paths and our cycles where we're doing more than one day of response,” said Ford.
Johnston said the city will be deploying all of its plows. That includes 54 big plows to clear major roads and 36 to handle residential streets. Major roads will be plowed every 12 hours and residential streets will be plowed every 24 hours. They will continue operating through Friday.
Ford said the residential plows will shave the top few inches of snow off the street, helping clear a path to the main streets. They will not bring the streets to bare pavement and do not carry deicer.
"The goal is not to get to bare pavement,” said Ford. “The goal is to actually sort of ease and smooth that pass. If you recall, we had some instances where we had, let’s say, severe icing and rutting, and the goal of the residential plowing program is to actually avoid some of that."
This is to avoid the disaster of December 2006, when ice covered residential streets for weeks. It got so bad that the city's plows couldn't handle it. They ended up using road graders to chop up chunks of ice.
Johnston said for those who plan to ride their bicycles, the city will be clearing protected bike lanes.
"We are ready," he said.
Ford urged city residents to stay safe and avoid driving if possible. Those who do drive should have good tires, bring storm wear and weather gear, and be aware of their surroundings.
City residents must also remember to shovel their sidewalks, Ford said.
Thomas said he does not anticipate any interruption in police service during the storm.
The city is activating severe weather shelters from 6 p.m. Wednesday to 9 a.m. Saturday at the McNichols Civic Center Building at 144 W. Colfax Ave. and the Stone Creek shelter (formerly a Best Western hotel) at 4595 Quebec St. Those with pets should use the Stone Creek shelter.
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