A total of 71 Lawrence property owners thus far have learned the hard way that the city is serious about having public sidewalks cleared of snow.

Brian Jimenez, the city’s code enforcement manager, confirmed Wednesday that his office had issued 71 tickets to property owners who had failed to have their sidewalk cleared within 48 hours following last week’s snowstorm. The city has received 163 complaints, and staff members are continuing to inspect properties.

“The warmup on Monday took care of a lot of the complaints, but we’re still obligated to take a look,” Jimenez said of his staff of three inspectors. “You never know if a property will thaw and then refreeze. Unfortunately, that is what has been happening quite a bit. That is why it is so important to get the snow off early.”

Jimenez said he thinks Lawrence residents are starting to understand the importance of complying with the code. Last year the city issued more than 200 tickets and had more than 700 complaints throughout the winter.

“When we got this snowstorm, I was saying anything under 200 complaints would be surprising,” Jimenez said.

Jimenez said he believes he’s seen more shoveled sidewalks this year than he has in the past. But he said it would be unrealistic for complaint numbers to ever dwindle to just a few.

“I don’t know that anything is ever going to translate into a lot fewer complaints because there are just miles and miles of sidewalks in town,” Jimenez said.

Jimenez is guessing that many people who received tickets last year complied with the ordinance this year. But he said there are a lot of out-of-town property owners who may not be fully aware of the ordinance.

It is likely that several of them soon will get a lesson on the ordinance in their mailboxes. The $20 ticket — plus court costs — go to the property owner, not the tenant.