BELFAST – The Police Department is alerting residents that the winter parking ban will go into effect Nov. 1 and will remain in effect until April 30, 2009.

Any vehicle parked overnight on any city street for more than one hour between midnight and 6 a.m. will be ticketed or towed at the owner’s expense.

Residents can park overnight in the municipal parking lots at Cross Street, Beaver Street and Washington Street.

The following are instructions for residents who use the municipal parking lots to park their vehicles overnight. To facilitate winter snow removal, park in municipal lots as follows:

. Beaver Street parking lot: Park vehicles on the side of the lot next to the opera house building. On the day after a storm, park vehicles on the courthouse side of the lot.

. Cross Street parking lot: Park vehicles in the middle of the parking lot overnight and during snowstorms. On the day after a snowstorm, park vehicles around the outside edge of the lot.

. Washington Street parking lot: Park vehicles on the Washington Street edge of the lot overnight and during snowstorms. On the day after the storm, park vehicles in the middle of the parking lot.

For further information about the winter parking ban, call the Police Department at 338-5255.