Are commercial building owner's required to shovel sidewalk?

[Bill Call]

Last night my wife and I noticed a young man on crutches struggling to walk on snow and ice covered sidewalks by Beck Center. We stopped to give him a ride to the Library.

Aren't building owners required to shovel their sidewalks?

[Jeff Endress]

Bill

There was a previous thread on the snow shoveling issue. I believe it's "for shame Lakewood officials"....something like that, that discussed the topic.

Short answer, the ordinance requires property owners to keep walks clear.

Jeff

[Lynn Farris]

I was over on CWRU's campus on Sunday. I was so impressed they had a little plow that they drove up and down the sidewalks and while I was waiting on my daughter they shoveled several blocks and walkways. And she wasn't taking that long.

I keep seeing all the new vehicles the city has for leaf removal and it would really be great with kids walking to school and all the senior citizens who own homes if we had some little plows, maybe trade in a huge leaf removal machine for a plow and at least hit the big streets.

[Grace O'Malley]

I think an area that needs attention is Franklin Blvd on either side of the high school.

The school itself does a great job of clearing the walkways; I was impressed.

However, the kids walking to school along Franklin have a tough time with icy and snowy sidewalks. Often, the street plows throw throw the snow up on the sidewalks and make it worse for walkers.

Most of Franklin has no real tree lawn so these kids are right on the street. It's very dangerous. If they fell they could easily slide into the path of a car. That's not even mentioning a car sliding up onto the sidewalk.

[Michael Dever]

Jeff, you're right, it is up to individual property owners to keep their sidewalks clear and within a reasonable time. Lynn, as for the equipment to plow the sidewalks, some of our neighboring communities provide this service but I believe its a luxury that we can not afford or need. The cost just for the equipment is approximately $80,000!
So, in the spirit of the Christmas season help a neighbor or someone in need to clear their walk. It's healthy and promotes a sense of community.

[Tim Liston]

Michael I disagree with you. Plowing of our sidewalks is a needed service and should be funded.

Cities are very much like businesses. In business you try to create important differences in your product(s) and parlay those into profit. The software my company creates has many unique characteristics that we use to create sales opportunities. If we didn't we'd have to compete strictly on price and we likely would go out of business.

Lakewood is no different. Lakewood has unique characteristics. One (among several) is that Lakewood is quite densely populated. That was one of the big factors behind Scene magazine's recognition of Lakewood as a great place to live. Certainly there are other characteristics that set Lakewood apart: lakefront setting, proximity to downtown Cleveland, etc.

But what good are our unique characteristics if our leaders don't parlay them into “revenueâ€Â￾ (or in this instance, happy residents)? Lakewood needs to take every opportunity to leverage its density in ways that Westlake (for example) cannot. We already have neighborhood schools, transportation options (buses) and a lakefront park, services that Westlake is hard-pressed to match. But two other such opportunities come immediately to mind. One is sidewalk plowing. Lakewood can plow the sidewalks of five families (as we are five times as densely populated) for what it costs Westlake to to plow one. The other is wireless internet access, another service that we can fund for a small fraction of what it would cost our neighbors/competitors to the west (on a per family basis). I'm sure there are other such opportunities as well.

I don't compete with other software companies on their terms. And until Lakewood stops trying to compete with other cities on their terms (e.g. the ill-conceived West End project), it will continue to languish.

My take precisely echoes what JO would say: build the Lakewood brand. Ditto the Grow Lakewood report, which also discussed some of the opportunities that reflect Lakewood's unique character. Deliver the services that can be offered cost effectively because of who we are. Plow the sidewalks. And get serious about wireless internet. We can light five homes for what it would cost Westlake to light just one.

The most important sentence in the Grow Lakewood report, IMO, was that “it's OK that not everyone wants to live in Lakewood". Spot on! But that means we have to fight like hell to attract and retain the ones that do, and that can ONLY be done by leveraging what makes Lakewood different and special.

How can you assert that plowing the sidewalks is not needed. Today, Lakewood is virtually impassible by foot. It may be the responsibility of homeowners and business to plow their sidewalks but it ISN'T HAPPENING. And I'll tell you just how to fund it. Dispense with the valet trash service. Now THERE'S something that's not needed. And Westlake can do that just as effectively as Lakewood can. Why is it that I have to take my recyclables to the curb but not the remainder of my trash. That makes no sense. Plow the sidewalks instead.

Thanks Michael.

[john crino]

I passed a Lakewood City sidewalk plow this morning. So lakewood has at least one already. I lived in another city where the participants of the community service shoveled public sidewalks to complete their service.
Doesn't lakewood have a supply of convicts they can put to work?

[Jeff Endress]

Now there's a picture......The Lakewood Municipal Chain Gang, shoveling snow in front of First Fed......

BUT...its not a bad, or unrealistic, idea. You're right, I've seen the plow also, taking care of the I90 bridge sidewalks. Does anyone know how many man hours would be expended running a miniplow down both sides of Madison and Detroit (business district). How many more if you kick in major NS streets (W117, Bunts, Belle, Warren, W. Clifton). AND how many more if you did ALL the streets?

While I tend to believe that our backyard trash pickup keeps the front yards neater on garbage day (notwithstanding the recycling), I'd go for a compromise IN A HEART BEAT.

Nov.15 through April 15, NO Backyard pickup. INSTEAD, you get the walks shoveled/plowed. Probably less man hours, maybe a net wage and benefits savings, plus a lot safer city and probably some saved broken bones. We get a couple of plow blades to retrofit on the new "Cushmans". I'd be surprised if the TOTAL cost would be 80,000.

If it snows before November 15 or after April 15, you're on your own.

Jeff

[Lynn Farris]

Tim and Jeff, I'm with you, I'd go for your compromise.

Very clever idea about the Cushmans. I think that an ingenious engineer could figure it out.

[Jason Stewart]

I keep seeing all the new vehicles the city has for leaf removal and it would really be great with kids walking to school and all the senior citizens who own homes if we had some little plows, maybe trade in a huge leaf removal machine for a plow and at least hit the big streets.

Are these machines leaf removal trucks actually being used? If so, where? There was a 3 week stretch where McKinley and Larchmont (my street) had heaps of leaves lining the streets. I can't quite remember if they were actually removed prior to the snow, but I don't think so.

That's my gripe for the day... now more on the actual subject.

Mr. Liston,
I would tend to disagree with you that sidewalk snow removal is a needed service. It is a desire or a want, but not a need. Nor is backyard trash removal a need. Again both are or would be great services to provide to residents, but they are not needs.
From looking at the City's CAFR (which is available on the Auditor of State's website), the City is financially strapped. I don't think that is any secret. You feel that the city should appropriate funds for sidewalk snow removal, but would you also be willing to provide the funds via an income tax increase?
Also, using your rationale, it is also my responsibility to mow my yard. If I were to stop doing this, should the city send out a lawn mowing crew to take care of it for me?

Mr. Endress, though I like your way of thinking, your compromise is contrary to the logic of providing the service in the first place. Why is okay to have the garbage on the curb for 5 months of the year, but not the other 7? Especially when those 5 months would be the hardest months for senior citizens to get their trash to the curb.

[dl meckes]

Also, using your rationale, it is also my responsibility to mow my yard. If I were to stop doing this, should the city send out a lawn mowing crew to take care of it for me?

In fact, this is exactly what the city can and will do. They will then bill you for the job.

This does take some time, however, because you have a period after a citation to rectify the problem.

[Jerry Ritcey]

Jason Stewart wrote:

Also, using your rationale, it is also my responsibility to mow my yard. If I were to stop doing this, should the city send out a lawn mowing crew to take care of it for me?

One difference is I won't break my leg tripping over long grass on my way to work. The fact that the sidewalks are not plowed by the city I attribute to another in the list of increasing hostility in design and infrastructures to pedestrians. Could it be done cheaply enough? I don't know, but smaller towns with less people have done it.

[dl meckes]

I came across some interesting info:

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041205/NEWS01/412050301.

This simply talks about how towns in the Rochester NY area handle snow removal...

[Jeff Endress]

As Jason Stated;

Why is okay to have the garbage on the curb for 5 months of the year, but not the other 7

Good question. In fact we DO have garbage out 12 months of the year...only we call it recycling. Given budgetary issues, perhaps it is time to re-examine whether the lack of ALL garbage on tree lawns for pick up day justifies the expense of backyard pickup.

But my point here was simply to indicate that if snow removal is a greater priority than lack of ALL garbage on tree lawns, that would justify the acceptability weighing the budgetary constraints.

Also;

Especially when those 5 months would be the hardest months for senior citizens to get their trash to the curb

I would argue that this concern is a classic "red herring".

1) Because we have curbside recycling, those seniors must make that curbside trip in any event.
2) While I don't have the statistics, I believe that the overwhelming majority of seniors are living in homes where there is a central rubbish facility (apartments, Gold Coast Condos, etc.) so the lack of Backyard pickup would have no impact on them
3) The impact on ALL persons, senior or otherwise, is felt on all unplowed streets. Feeling safe to get to the backyard garbage can without falling on unplowed snow may be a concern, but of more concern is the overall condition of the city's unplowed sidewalks.
4) The seniors in question are ALSO responsible for their snow removal, which, no doubt, poses a greater risk than depositing the garbage at the curb.

FWIW

Jeff

[Mark Crnolatas]

Agreed on the putting plow blades on the Cushmans. I live on a street where it's rare to see a cleared walk, and it is a busy one at that.

Hate to keep looking to the past, but when I was little kid , it was rare to see a sidewalk UNcleared, unless it was mega cold or just after a major snow. Now it seems all over the city the opposite is the norm.

Another option could be something like the Honda and some other companies who make all terrain 4 wheelers, the "off road" type that snow plow blades can be fit on. Another option to think about. Just not 80,000 worth.

What kind of deal could be worked out on a few of those, if needed?

Mark Allan Crnolatas
"A society or group of people exist soley in it's ability to maintain an atmosphere of peace and civility. It's failure is directly relative to the degree of the lack of these conditions".