Snow Removal

Snow removal is an important winter responsibility of Landscape Services. Since there is a reluctance on the part of the administration to close the campus due to weather, Landscape Services staff works diligently to get the campus open in time for morning classes and remove snow as it accumulates during the day.

All department personnel are involved in snow removal; operating snowplows, sweepers, snow blowers or shoveling by hand to make the campus as accessible and as safe as possible. All parking lots, streets, and sidewalks on campus are mapped and assigned to an equipment operator or a crew of scoopers. Areas are prioritized so that snow removal can be done in an efficient and effective manner. Information on access routes for handicapped students on campus is provided by the Office for Services for Students, Staff & Faculty with Disabilities. These areas of campus receive priority treatment for snow removal.

During winter snow events, we use ice melt products that environmentally safe and not harmful to the payment.

The snow removal process is initiated by a phone call from the campus managers to the individuals on the top of the calling‐tree list, followed by all employees being called and told when to arrive for snow removal. Starting times are determined by the amount of snowfall and predicted weather forecast. Landscape Services utilizes Doppler radar information available through the internet.

Our goal is to have parking lots cleaned and accessible before students and staff begin to arrive on campus. The employees arriving early (midnight, 2:00, 3:00 and 4:00 a.m.) for snow removal generally leave after eight hours if lots and walks have been cleared. Depending on availability, a small crew of employees are asked to work during typical University working hours to be available for calls regarding problem spots on campus.

On a rotating basis, crews are assigned to be on call for evening and weekend events held at the Champions Club, Devaney Sport Center, Kimball Hall, Morrill Hall, Johnny Carson School of Theater, Lied Center Nebraska Union, Ross Theater, Sheldon, Temple, Visitor Center, Westbrook , Wick Center and other locations as needed. Snow removal for the parking garage is done by Landscape Services and they require specialized snow removal equipment.