Focus on Maintenance & Operations: Walk this

This photo provides a measurement of how uneven the city of Elyria, Ohio’s, sidewalks are. To address the problem, the city stepped up to help citizens make necessary repairs. (Photo provided by the city of Elyria, Ohio)

Walk this way:

Cities step up to help homeowners with sidewalk repairs

Here is a long view of the sidewalk problems Elyria has. Uneven, cracked and crumbling sidewalks are not only an eyesore, but quite dangerous. Unfortunately, some citizens are confused about their responsibility to maintain them. (Photo provided by the city of Elyria, Ohio)

By JULIE YOUNG | The Municipal

Cracked, crumbling and uneven sidewalks are not only a neighborhood eyesore—they are also a safety hazard. However, when a repair is required, property owners are often surprised to learn that they are responsible for the public pathways that are adjacent to their property. While this can vary depending on location or how a neighborhood homeowner association’s bylaws are crafted, the path to resolution rarely runs smooth. To help property owners shore up their sidewalks, some cities are stepping up to create programs that ensure the work gets done.

BEFORE AND AFTER: This cracked walkway is not only an eyesore, but it is also a safety hazard. In order to shore up these sidewalks, the city of Milford, Del., has created a sidewalk program to help residents fix unsightly and unsafe pathways. Also, pictured is the same sidewalk after its repair. (Photo provided by Milford, Del.) Years of neglect have left some sidewalks in Elyria, Ohio, nearly nonexistent such as this one that has been affected by grass, tree branches and time. (Photo provided by the city of Elyria, Ohio)

Enforcing old ordinances

Like most communities around the country, the city of Milford, Del., has an ordinance requiring property owners to maintain their sidewalks. However, no one bothered to enforce that ordinance until July 2018, when Milford launched its Sidewalk Repair Program and sent out a group of university students to assess the city pathways and determine walkability.

The backlash was immediate. As letters went out demanding property owners make the necessary repairs or allow the city to complete the work (and bill them later), residents expressed outrage that an antiquated code could suddenly break their budget. Fortunately, the city founders created a provision for that as well.

“Property owners who meet the low-income criteria may apply for financial assistance provided the city funding is available for the cost of sidewalk repair or replacement,” it reads.

While the repair work has been ongoing with Mitten Construction handling the initial program in August, the Milford city council recently awarded the Jacques Concrete Company a $380,760 contract to complete the remaining work throughout all four wards in areas that had not been covered in the first round.

According to city engineer James Puddicombe, a good portion of the money from the initial round of sidewalk work was paid back to the city, which allowed them to roll the funds over to subsequent phases. The funding combines $104,591 from the available sidewalk funds, along with $276,170 in realty transfer taxes. He expects that $289,000 of the current contract will be reimbursed to the city by property owners.

“The bids went out around June 19, 2022, and the bid opening occurred on July 22, 2022. The project calls for 180 days from start to completion though inclement weather may delay the start date,” said Milford City Manager Mark Whitfield.

Residents seeking a sidewalk discount may fill out an application and return it to the city’s customer service office along with supporting documentation.

Navigating the need

In August, the Elyria, Ohio, City Council Utilities, Safety and Environmental Committee voted unanimously to create a program that would provide interest-free, five-year loans (up to $5,000) to qualified homeowners so that they can make necessary sidewalk repairs. This is a voluntary program with priority given to residents who have received a notice of violation resulting from a complaint.

According to city engineer Kathryn McKillips, through this program, property owners continue to be responsible for the condition and maintenance of their sidewalks, but the program offers an affordable way to pay for it.

“Every year, we receive complaints from residents regarding bad sidewalks,” she said. “In some cases, the property owner of the bad sidewalk knows it needs to be replaced, but either doesn’t know how to go about getting the work completed or doesn’t have the funds needed to pay for the work all at once.”

To qualify for assistance, a property owner needs to agree to have the cost of the work placed on their tax duplicate as a special assessment. The program is open to all residential owner-occupied properties.

McKillips said the city council has agreed to provide $50,000 for the first year and, depending on the interest from the public, additional funds will be requested in future years. The goal is to have the repayments through special assessments fund the program for years to come.

“Because the program is so new, we have a list of seven property owners wanting to participate,” McKillips said. “(We’ll know how successful the program is) once we get the work completed and get feedback from the participants. We’ll know a lot more once we get through one round of requests.” Often residents are confused about who pays for sidewalk repair in front of their homes and don’t have the money in their budgets to fix them, but some cities, such as Milford, Del., are stepping up to make the process a little more affordable. (Photo provided by Milford, Del.)

Other municipal sidewalk programs

• Carmel, Ind., offers a Sidewalk Repair Grant Fund offers a 50% reimbursement (up to $3,000) for the repair/replacement of sidewalks and the removal of trees on their property affecting the sidewalk. Property owners must occupy the homes on said property, solicit three competitive quotes and include them with their grant application package. The program began in 2020 with a $50,000 budget, and, according to the city council, it is another way to partner with homeowners to keep the community’s residential infrastructure in top shape. • Lake Geneva, Wis., offers a sidewalk cost-share program that reimburses residents up to $1.75 per square foot for replacing/ repairing their (damaged) sidewalks. However, in August, the city officials announced that they are considering a 50/50 split of the repair/replacement work to encourage more residents to get the work done. At the present time, few take advantage of the existing program citing the effort it takes to apply for the program is not commensurate with what they would receive in return.