With the first big, heavy snow-dump of the season over the Thanksgiving holiday still sloshing around in our streets and driveways, it’s a good time to remind readers that it’s important to shovel their sidewalks.

The city can and does ticket homeowners and — in some cases, renters — if the sidewalks cutting through their property are not cleared within 48 hours of a major snowfall. If the city has to have the sidewalk cleared, it sends the offending homeowner the bill, which can near $100 a pop.

Last February, News staff writer Steve Schulwitz reported 20 residents had been ticketed for failing to shovel their sidewalks.

We shouldn’t need the city to remind us to be good neighbors.

Clear sidewalks allow our neighbors to safely walk their dogs or take a walk themselves to enjoy the Winter Wonderland we become every year. They allow our children to walk safely to school. They allow our mail carriers and newspaper carriers to deliver, without risk of injury, the newspapers, mail, and Christmas presents we count on.

We know shoveling can be back-breaking work, but it’s just part of living Up North. If you can’t shovel the sidewalks yourselves, it’s your responsibility to have them cleared.

It’s the price we pay for living in the most beautiful part of God’s Earth.

(THE ALPENA NEWS)