New Yorkers enjoy snowy Central Park, as it records most accumulation in more than 2 years
NEW YORK -- Heavy, wet snow began falling shortly before daybreak Tuesday across New York City's five boroughs.
Some accumulation started to stick on city streets and sidewalks, making for a pretty snow day for some but a messy commute for others.
CBS New York's Vanessa Murdock spent the morning in Central Park, which recorded about 4 inches -- the most in more than two years.
Watch Elijah Westbrook's report from Columbus Circle
Snowball fights and strolls with human's best friend brought out rosy cheeks and big smiles.
Upper West Side resident Shari Shepard and 9-year-old Jane Hurd stepped out into the winter wonderland with big plans to build a snowman.
"Really excited, because I have a snow day," Hurd told Murdock.
"It's ended up even better than we thought it would be," Shepard added.
Erin Patel just arrived with students from England for a street photography class. Now, the city blanketed under fresh snow becomes their backdrop.
"I have never seen New York, let alone in the snow, and this is absolutely adorable, spot on perfect, couldn't have asked for better weather," he said.
Murdock also met a dog named Pepper, who at 10 years not-so-young loves the snow. Owner Jason Williams said the park is the place to be when Old Man Winter steps up his game and delivers.
"It's beautiful, it's the best time to be in the park," he said. "It's nicer to go in the park than it is on the dirty streets."
Kirsten Lindberg would not miss the chance to ski across the postcard-perfect landscape.
"It's just my favorite thing to do, so it's worth keeping these things in my tiny closet all year-round just for today," she said.
Snow cover in Astoria Park was a little less, but still, kids sledded and rolled until their hearts felt content.
Watch Vanessa Murdock's report
Sadly, for many adults, fresh fallen snow does not equal 100% fun.
"When it first touches the ground. After that, it's a pain in the ass," Astoria resident Doros Evalgelites said.
Scraping windshields was necessary, and shoveling is a must to avoid the city's wrath.
"We need all property owners to clear paths on the sidewalk in front of their property so that the sidewalks are safe and passable," New York City Department of Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. "Our enforcement teams certainly will be out tomorrow enforcing these rules, it's a matter of safety."
Roy Chi was out for hours clearing sidewalks at multiple properties in Queens.
"I realize I have to pace myself now. I think the first property, I took it too hard," he said.
Perhaps he'd rather be breaking a sweat circling Central Park in sneakers in the snow, an experience described as "pretty special" by Tim Paulus.
"This is such a treat. Once you get going, you warm right up and it's so beautiful and more, I guess, romantic, if you will," he said.
Some had no choice but to navigate the slush-covered streets, treading carefully on foot to avoid drenched feet. Others opted for electric scooters.
Central Park Conservancy crews cleared out footpaths for the thousands of people who flock to the park.
New York City public schools were fully remote Tuesday, and officials with the Department of Sanitation and MTA told CBS New York their preparations paid off and things were running smoothly for the morning rush. Crews are standing by to deal with falling temperatures later tonight.
Stick with our First Alert Weather team for the latest storm timeline and snow totals.