KEENE, N.H. – Some Keene residents will have a much easier time parking this winter after the City Council updated the winter parking ban.

Before the decision Thursday evening, Keene had a blanket winter parking ban from November – April whether there was snow on the ground or not. It prohibited on-street parking on all city streets, including the paved portion of the roadway and the entire City owned right-of-way, from 1 am to 6 am.

The issue was brought to the attention of the full council by Councilor Michael Remy who was asking that the Municipal Services, Facilities, and Infrastructure committee take a look at the ordinance and make some changes to make it easier for affected residents to park.

Under the new ordinance, the ban will only be in effect when there is a snow emergency, and the Public Works Department anticipates the need for snow removal. When that happens, the city will send out a notification and will use road signage to ensure everyone who needs to know is informed. Those notifications will include what parking lot residents can park if needed.

At the last night’s Council meeting City Manager Elizabeth Dragon said the first couple of storms may be bumpy, and no one will be towed until its ironed out.