When sidewalks need fixin'

It's a government responsibility, not unlucky neighbors

Sometimes in my newspaper column I write about global, big-stuff issues. Sometimes the subject matter is more pedestrian. This past week I wrote about city sidewalks, which is about as pedestrian as you get.

Yup, it’s a terrible pun, but darned irresistible.

It was also irresistible to take the opportunity to chastise the City of Geneva, NY for routinely sticking city residents with the bill for fixing problems in the sidewalks in front of their homes or businesses. Since 1968. The problems this year and rising repair costs prompted residents to cry foul and ask for relief from the city council. They didn’t get it, yet.

But all that’s best explained in my Finger Lakes Times column from Friday, May 22 printed below. Read on. And watch your step on Geneva city streets.

==================

Geneva City Council: Fix the damn sidewalks

By Michael J. Fitzgerald

The ongoing kerfuffle over damaged sidewalks in Geneva has a simple solution. City of Geneva: Just fix them now.

The sidewalks currently in need of attention are located in the city’s right of way in various locations in front of homes. It’s a good bet many of these problem sidewalks were put into place by the city or by contractors at the city’s direction. The city owns the sidewalks, too.

And while the problem sidewalks are getting repaired, Geneva’s City Council should get busy repealing the Geneva City Code section that places responsibility for maintaining sidewalks entirely on the shoulders of adjacent property owners. Whatever it costs the city, it’s going to be cheaper than a lawsuit when someone is seriously injured from a tumble and goes after taxpayer dollars.

This code section has been on the books since 1968.

1968! Jaysus!

I’m surprised citizens haven’t stormed city council meetings regularly to demand the repeal of this 58-year-old law. It’s a mystery, too, why it has not been a campaign issue in city elections in the intervening decades.

Who is responsible for maintaining them is really not all that different than who is responsible for maintaining the street in front of a house or business. Imagine if some city hall bright light decided homeowners and businesses needed to take care of those pesky potholes that show up regularly in front of properties. Those road hazards are routinely repaired by the city or contractors, repairs paid for presumably with property tax dollars and/or grant monies.

So should it be for fixing the sidewalks. The walkways are a public benefit.

Decades ago, I attended a Sacramento City Council conference at which an elected council member railed about “irresponsible people” in her district who had not repaired sidewalks damaged by tree roots. Sacramento is proud of its canopy of tall leafy trees, a necessity in summers when temperatures can crest 100 degrees Fahrenheit for days. But the roots of those big trees gradually creep underneath sidewalks, lifting them up dangerously, causing problems for pedestrians.

Ditto for what can happen in Geneva, thanks to tree growth.

The Sacramento sidewalk law - similar to Geneva’s - said homeowners were responsible for keeping sidewalks ship-shape, even if the city had planted the tree that caused the damage to the sidewalk. I suggested to the council member that I was going to call a tree service to remove the majestic shade tree planted on city land next to the city-built sidewalk in front of my house. I said I would miss its shade and ambiance, but I didn’t want to pay for damages caused by a tree I hadn’t planted or repair a sidewalk I had no hand in building.

She was not amused. Trees planted by the city are protected by law, she said. No chopping allowed.

Okay.

So, then I suggested I would instruct the city to hold off on plans to plant a second tree in a nearby open slot in front of my house out of fear that it, too, could become a sidewalk-busting hazard for which the city would expect me to pay to repair in the future.

Wrong again, she said. The city had every legal right to plant a tree anywhere in the city’s right of way, regardless of my wishes or property concerns.

This is how seeds of anti-government attitudes are planted.

It’s a Catch-22 that doesn’t serve the citizens of Geneva. It’s pretty simple, Council your sidewalks and citizens are calling for help. Answer, please.

Fitzgerald has worked at six newspapers as a writer and editor as well as a correspondent for two news services. He splits his time between Valois, N.Y., and the Pacific Northwest. You can email him at Michael.Fitzgeraldfltcolumnist@gmail.com and visit his websites at michaeljfitzgerald.blogspot.com and michaeljfitzgerald.substack.com.