Is it weird if I offer to repave the sidewalk in front of my house?

[Jumpem]

I've never heard of it being the home owners job to maintain a sidewalk. That is nuts. Next they will want you to pave the part of the road in front of the house.

The homeowner is also responsible to keep the sidewalk free of snow here.

 

[pcgeek11]

I could understand cutting the grass and snow removal etc. But the sidewalk and curb belongs to the city and should be maintained by the city. That is why you pay taxes.

 

[GregGreen]

It might be just an upstate NY thing, but the city my parents live in (Jamestown) will start fining you if your sidewalk is in major disrepair/un-shoveled. The city owns it, you own everything around it, but you have to fix the concrete.

I just read the other day that one of the Buffalo suburbs recently had an inspector go around all the sidewalks spray painting even the most minor of damage in a money grab type operation -- fix it or pay (I think it was either East Aurora or Williamsville).

EDIT: It was Amherst, link is here: http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/amherst/article452299.ece

 

[Jumpem]

I could understand cutting the grass and snow removal etc. But the sidewalk and curb belongs to the city and should be maintained by the city. That is why you pay taxes.

Taxes are about 4% of house value here. Local governments don't consider that high enough to include maintaining sidewalks.

 

[PaperclipGod]

Are you allowed to cut down trees on the treebelt then? Cuz repairing sidewalk damage from tree roots every 3 years wold get old really fast.

 

[pcgeek11]

This reminds me why I will never move up north. Fuck that.

 

[Newbian]

Are you allowed to cut down trees on the treebelt then? Cuz repairing sidewalk damage from tree roots every 3 years wold get old really fast.

Without a permit I would say no.

You usually don't own that land as the city needs it in case they need to do improvements but you are supposed to take care of it such as mowing.

 

[zinfamous]

so OP opened a lot of threads at the same time....was he just trying to get some last minute nerd advice before dropping the bomb?

:hmm:

 

[paperfist]

Are you allowed to cut down trees on the treebelt then? Cuz repairing sidewalk damage from tree roots every 3 years wold get old really fast.

That's kind of interesting cause if there are trees between the curb and the sidewalk the city will cut them down free of charge (near Syracuse, NY) but if it's after the sidewalk it's your responsibility. So yes we can cut our own trees down and here we don't need a permit.

The sidewalk is our responsibility to maintain as well. Leave too much snow on it and be fined. I never heard of anyone being fined for a sidewalk in disrepair, but you shell out the costs to fix it.

You can also get a ticket if you park on 'your own' lawn if it's between the curb and the sidewalk...

-----
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/faqs/sidewalkfaqs.shtml

NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) has a Sidewalk Repair Program that replaces more than 2 million square feet of sidewalk a year. DOT's Sidewalk Repair Program focuses most of its work on City-owned property and in neighborhoods with predominately one-, two- and three- family homes. Despite the large scale of this program, this amounts to less than 1% of the City's total sidewalk area a year. DOT relies on property owners to maintain the rest of the sidewalks.

New York City law requires property owners to, at their own cost, install, construct, reconstruct, repave and repair the sidewalk adjacent to their properties, including the intersection quadrant and pedestrian ramps for corner properties, in accordance with DOT specifications. Section 7-210 of the NYC Administrative Code makes property owners potentially liable for personal injuries caused by their failure to maintain reasonably safe sidewalks. Property owners must keep their sidewalks clean and are also responsible for snow removal.

Property owners are encouraged to perform repairs to their sidewalks before a condition becomes a defect which would give rise to a violation.

Upon failure of a property owner to install, construct, repave, reconstruct or repair the sidewalk pursuant to a Notice of Violation issued by DOT after an inspection, DOT may perform the work or hire a contractor to perform the work and the Department of Finance (DOF) will bill the property owner pursuant to Section 19-152 of the NYC Administrative Code.

 

[Mike Gayner]

Taxes are about 4% of house value here. Local governments don't consider that high enough to include maintaining sidewalks.

Really? Property taxes here are about 0.5% (half a percent) of the property value and the city maintains our roads and sidewalks.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Seriously? Where do you guys live? It's definitely all city-maintained around here. You're actually expected to lay a new sidewalk where you live? I've never heard of that before.

seriously once you get out of high school and eventually own your own home , you will understand that in almost all cities it is your responsibility to maintain the sidewalk!!

 

[Ryland]

In RI the first 4 feet is state/town's responsibility for upkeep so it is definitely location dependent.

 

[preslove]

seriously once you get out of high school and eventually own your own home , you will understand that in almost all cities it is your responsibility to maintain the sidewalk!!

You are profoundly stupid.

 

[Train]

Really? Property taxes here are about 0.5% (half a percent) of the property value and the city maintains our roads and sidewalks.

Ya but you live in the Shire or something... so STFU

 

[nageov3t]

"don't ask for permission, ask for forgiveness." -mark brendanawicz, city planner

 

[CPA]

No sidewalks where I live. Another reason I love living in the country outside of city limits.

 

[nageov3t]

No sidewalks where I live. Another reason I love living in the country outside of city limits.

when I walk from my house to a local store, I get to walk on a sidewalk instead of in the road. another reason I love living in civilization.

 

[D1gger]

Wow, I am truly surprised that it would be a homeowners responsibility to replace/fix a damaged sidewalk on City property.

Here, homeowners are responsible for maintenance of sidewalks and boulevards, but that is limited to cutting the grass and shovelling snow off the sidewalk (if we get any).

Any repair or replacement work would be the City's responsibility.

 

[IronWing]

"don't ask for permission, ask for forgiveness." -mark brendanawicz, city planner

This is what I'm thinking. Inquire of the city as to who is responsible for maintaining the sidewalks (don't give your name or address). If they say that you are then just quietly do it. The city will never notice.

 

[Macamus Prime]

Be sure to get a permit before you start working. I've seen NYC order home owners to demolish and redo a sidewalk because a permit was not requested before the work was done. Siting, the contractor they used was not authorized and therefore the work had to be redone for safety reasons.

 

[Tsaico]

In riverside ca, it depends on why the sidewalk needs repair. If it is just standard maintenance, minor cracks that sort, the homeowner is in charge of it. If it was caused by a city tree, worker, project, they are required to fix it. a lot of the city trees push the sidewalks around here, and they are fixing them all the time. Same thing with the meter covers. They get beat up while the meter maids are walking around lifting them up and dropping them back in.

If my trees causes damage, they still fix it, but send me a bill for a couple hundred bucks.

 

[Jumpem]

Really? Property taxes here are about 0.5% (half a percent) of the property value and the city maintains our roads and sidewalks.

Yup. NY has high property taxes.

 

[pcgeek11]

That's kind of interesting cause if there are trees between the curb and the sidewalk the city will cut them down free of charge (near Syracuse, NY) but if it's after the sidewalk it's your responsibility. So yes we can cut our own trees down and here we don't need a permit.

The sidewalk is our responsibility to maintain as well. Leave too much snow on it and be fined. I never heard of anyone being fined for a sidewalk in disrepair, but you shell out the costs to fix it.

You can also get a ticket if you park on 'your own' lawn if it's between the curb and the sidewalk...

-----
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/faqs/sidewalkfaqs.shtml

NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) has a Sidewalk Repair Program that replaces more than 2 million square feet of sidewalk a year. DOT's Sidewalk Repair Program focuses most of its work on City-owned property and in neighborhoods with predominately one-, two- and three- family homes. Despite the large scale of this program, this amounts to less than 1% of the City's total sidewalk area a year. DOT relies on property owners to maintain the rest of the sidewalks.

New York City law requires property owners to, at their own cost, install, construct, reconstruct, repave and repair the sidewalk adjacent to their properties, including the intersection quadrant and pedestrian ramps for corner properties, in accordance with DOT specifications. Section 7-210 of the NYC Administrative Code makes property owners potentially liable for personal injuries caused by their failure to maintain reasonably safe sidewalks. Property owners must keep their sidewalks clean and are also responsible for snow removal.

Property owners are encouraged to perform repairs to their sidewalks before a condition becomes a defect which would give rise to a violation.

Upon failure of a property owner to install, construct, repave, reconstruct or repair the sidewalk pursuant to a Notice of Violation issued by DOT after an inspection, DOT may perform the work or hire a contractor to perform the work and the Department of Finance (DOF) will bill the property owner pursuant to Section 19-152 of the NYC Administrative Code.

Dude that sucks and on top of the very high taxes.

 

[PieIsAwesome]

You might need a permit first and thats about it.

lol. I don't know much about this, but I just thought:

Its your responsibility to maintain the sidewalk. But you need to pay for a $$$$$ permit first. BWAHAHAHAHAHA.

 

[paperfist]

lol. I don't know much about this, but I just thought:

Its your responsibility to maintain the sidewalk. But you need to pay for a $$$$$ permit first. BWAHAHAHAHAHA.

And you can't build squat there. Winning for the state and city