Keeping the streets plowed is a perpetual pain in the tush for residents and municipalities alike. The city of Hastings is hoping that a new three-pronged approach — including a hefty fine increase — can help ease the snow removal process.

Hastings doesn't declare an official snow emergency like Minneapolis and St. Paul. A city ordinance says that anytime there are two or more inches of snow, cars must be off the street until roadways are plowed curb to curb.

But police officers often can't reach each and every block ahead of the snowplow to ticket vehicles. And the $26 fine didn't provide much incentive for residents to scramble to move their vehicles.

At its Nov. 17 meeting, the City Council approved raising that fine to $77. The city also has subscribed to the Nixle system, where residents can sign up to receive a text message, e-mail or phone call to alert them when there is a snow emergency. And more police officers will be called in when the snow falls to ticket vehicles and possibly call out the tow trucks.

The city's plan hasn't been put to the test yet — there hasn't been enough snow. But as all Minnesotans know, it's only a matter of time.

"When we were plowing around cars in the middle of the winter, it got pretty tough," said city administrator Melanie Mesko Lee. "By mid-winter, we had streets that were pretty tough to get through."

The council talked about several other options, too, Mesko Lee said.

One included an overnight parking ban. But a survey of residents last summer found that there wasn't a lot of community support for that idea. The majority of residents did, however, support increasing the fine, putting the responsibility on individuals.

The Nixle system will cost the city $7,500 and is included in the 2015 budget, Mesko Lee said.

Once the snow season is over, it can be used for other notifications. Some cities, for example, use Nixle to alert residents to neighborhood burglaries, fires or other crimes.

For people who don't have off-street parking at their residences, there are public lots available in the downtown area, Mesko Lee said.

"Everybody understands what has to be done," Police Chief Bryan Schafer said. "It's an inconvenience for people to move their cars. With resources what they are, it's impossible for police and towing companies to get the cars moved as quickly as they need to be."

The added revenue from the fines will help defray the cost of calling in extra police to tag vehicles, but it won't come close to covering it, Schafer said.

"That's an inconvenience, too, of course," he said. "But we believe public safety is of the utmost importance. Clean streets, safe streets, is a public safety issue.

"We'll try it," Schafer said. "I think it's a unique approach to snow removal."

Pat Pheifer • 952-746-3284