ST. ANN, Mo. - Police are wasting no time enforcing their snow parking ordinance in St. Ann. Officers started to go door to door Thursday, warning residents to move their cars off the streets—or risk having them towed.

St. Ann’s parking ordinance is clear: whenever there’s an accumulation of snow ice or freezing rain, parking on city streets is prohibited until those streets are cleared. Any vehicle left in violation could be towed at the owner’s expense.

"Obviously, that’s the last resort. We want to hopefully get compliance to get residents to hopefully move their cars voluntarily. Unfortunately, if it does become an issue, we would tow,“ St. Ann Police Department Cpt. Blake Carrigan said. 

Many residential streets are already difficult to navigate with cars buried by snowplows or still parked curbside, which creates problems not just for drivers but also for snow removal crews and first responders.

“So, Sunday night into Monday we had that big snowstorm. There was one vehicle on the east side of town that was parked on the street. We weren’t able to get it moved at that point, one of the police cars weren’t able to get by it to an emergency call, so we were trying to avoid that this go around,” Carrigan added. 

St. Ann residents have already dealt with significant challenges from the last storm, including missed school days, work disruptions, and hazardous roads. This time, the city is taking a proactive approach to avoid further issues.

With more snow expected Thursday night, St. Ann police are urging residents to move their cars now to avoid towing.

For those without driveway space, the police chief has opened the department's lot for parking.