Long before the first shift arrives, the lots off Harris Road have to be open, which means somebody is out in the dark with a plow and a spreader. Slotnick Services clears them — drives and lots pushed back to the pavement, walks shoveled, salt laid where ice sets up in the shade. Ypsilanti Charter Township winters do not always announce themselves; freezing rain can glaze everything overnight without an inch of snow to show for it. Getting out ahead of that is the job. By the time headlights swing in, the ground is clear and nobody has to think about it.