Key takeaways
- Plow lanes, the drop-off and accessible spaces during the storm; clear stalls after checkout.
- With valet parking, the 2010 ADA Standards require an accessible passenger loading zone whose 60-inch access aisle must stay clear.
- The front desk is the scheduling partner. It knows departures, events and which rows will empty first.
- On a sold-out night, a pile in a parking row costs a guest a space. Plan stacking before the season.
On this page
Why is a hotel lot harder than an office lot?
An office lot empties every night, so it can be plowed edge to edge before morning. A hotel lot is fullest overnight, exactly when snow is usually cleared, and guests arrive and leave around the clock. The people crossing the lot do not know it, are often tired, and are pulling luggage that will not roll over a ridge of slush. Add shuttles, tour buses, banquets, a restaurant next door, and a front desk that hears every complaint first.
What should be cleared first?
| Priority | Area | When |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Porte-cochère, drop-off lane and its access aisle | Throughout the storm |
| 2 | Accessible spaces, aisles and the route to the entrance | Every visit |
| 3 | Main and side entrances guests use, treated | Every visit |
| 4 | Fire lanes and main drive lanes | During the storm |
| 5 | Shuttle and bus loading and parking | Before the first run |
| 6 | Open stalls and row ends | During the storm |
| 7 | Walkways to adjacent restaurants and event spaces | Before meal and event times |
| 8 | Occupied stalls | Cleanup passes after checkout |
What does the porte-cochère need?
The covered drop-off is where every stay starts, with doors open, bags on the pavement and luggage carts rolling. Keep it plowed and treated through the storm, and watch the canopy edge and column bases, where meltwater refreezes overnight. Some hotels treat this one area as a zero-tolerance zone while the rest of the lot runs on a trigger.
If the hotel offers valet parking, the 2010 ADA Standards (209.4) require at least one passenger loading zone that meets section 503: a pull-up space at least 96 inches wide and 20 feet long, with an access aisle at least 60 inches wide running its full length, next to an accessible route and outside the drive lane. A windrow left in that aisle defeats it. More broadly, 28 CFR 36.211 requires public accommodations to keep accessible features working, allowing only temporary interruptions. See ADA and snow.
Know the canopy's posted clearance, too. A pickup carrying a spreader in the bed can stand taller than its cab. Inside the doors, lay enough absorbent matting to catch meltwater from boots and luggage wheels, so the lobby floor does not become the next slip. See salt stains on floors.
How do you plow around cars and clean up after checkout?
During the storm, plow drive lanes, open rows and row ends, and do not box parked cars in with windrows. A guest who has to dig out at 6 a.m. will tell the front desk.
After checkout, much of the lot empties over a few hours. That is the window to clear vacated stalls and push back the edges. Plan the cleanup passes for that window, row by row.
Guest notices make it work. The front desk can:
- Put a notice in key-card envelopes or under doors the night before a cleanup.
- Text or email guests who have agreed to messages, naming the rows and the time.
- Point guests to an area that has already been cleared.
- Tell the crew which rows will empty first, based on that day's departures.
What about events, shuttles and the restaurant next door?
Give the contractor the banquet and conference calendar. A 5 p.m. wedding reception needs the entrance, walks and accessible spaces treated again in the afternoon, not only at dawn. Shuttle vans and motor coaches need a clear loading area and room to turn, timed to the first run. If guests walk to an adjacent restaurant, agree in writing who clears the connecting walk, especially when the restaurant has a different owner.
Where does the snow go on a sold-out night?
Stacking at a hotel competes with parking, and sold-out nights are when space runs out. Mark stacking zones on the site map at lot edges and back corners, away from the porte-cochère, entrances, fire lanes, accessible spaces and the sight lines at the driveways. Agree in advance when piles get relocated or hauled, instead of letting them creep into the rows. See where to put snow in a parking lot.
Before the season, stake what a blade can hit: porte-cochère columns, curbs and islands, light-pole bases, parking blocks, signs, and the landscape lights along entrance walks.
Records and contract questions
Keep timestamped records of visits and treatments, and file front desk incident reports with them. See snow logs. Before signing, ask:
- Is the porte-cochère covered throughout storms, or only on visits?
- How are occupied rows handled, and when are cleanup passes scheduled?
- Who sends guest notices, and how far ahead?
- Are event and shuttle times part of the schedule?
- Who clears walks shared with neighboring businesses?
- When do relocation and hauling start, and how are they priced?
Sources
- U.S. Department of Justice: 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design — 209.3, 209.4 and 503: passenger loading zones
- 28 CFR 36.211, maintenance of accessible features (eCFR)
Written by the Macomb Lawn & Snow Solutions team in Macomb Township, Michigan. We plow and salt homes and businesses across all 26 Macomb County communities, November 15 to April 15. Published October 5, 2026. About us · How we research these guides · How our dispatch works