I think you should visit Lakewood prior to deciding to move there, if sidewalks are important to you. If there is no sidewalk there can’t be a requirement to shovel the snow from a nonexistent sidewalk. Every jurisdiction has different rules but most give the homeowner 24 hours from the time the snowing stopped to clear an existing sidewalk before they start fining the homeowner.
A better reasons to keep the house occupied is so the pipes don’t freeze in the winter, and squatters don’t decide to live in the unoccupied house.