You want wintry precip, you want to root for a weak primary(>1000mb) over the GL. Allows for a strung out system that won’t scour out any cold that bleeds south from that high.
I think it’s a good thing to have heated walkways in areas where there is snow and ice like there. Makes it safer and reduces overhead on having to shovel/salt/sand it. Liability should be lower as well.