Your lungs are burning and your back is aching after shoveling mounds of snow to extract your buried car after a massive winter storm. You run a quick errand, and when you get back, one of your opportunistic neighbours has casually slipped into the spot, forcing you to circle the block looking for a new place to park. It’s enough to make your blood boil.

Some Toronto residents with street parking permits are taking measures to avoid that annoyance after the city’s recent record-breaking snowfall, putting items like cones out in a bid to reserve their spots and ensure their Herculean shoveling efforts weren’t for naught.

But as the City of Toronto reminds residents, you don’t own that specific spot just because you shoveled it.

“Chapter 743 of the Toronto Municipal Code prohibits residents from obstructing a street, with an associated fine of $240,” a City spokesperson told CityNews on Thursday.

The City says enforcement is based on 311 inquiries and residents can submit a request for enforcement through 311.

Meanwhile, the City’s Major Snowstorm Condition and Significant Weather Event declarations remain in effect, with heavy fines for drivers who park on designated snow routes.

“The City recognizes the challenges that snow piles can create for safe travel, parking and businesses, and the parking restrictions in effect are helping to expedite the cleanup efforts,” it said in a release Thursday.

More snow is expected on Friday, with up to four centimetres in the forecast, along with strong wind gusts in the afternoon.