Portland, Tennessee Blog

Living in the city has its benefits, but it has a lot of restrictions placed on us, too...it's almost as if our property is not our own, sometimes. I do understand the need for regulations, but I wish if they had them, they would be enforced. At any given time on my street, there are at least 6 cars parked on the sidewalks.

How about a "Tow Away" zone per property owner?
;-)

I know it's a touchy subject here also. My house was built in '68. Year before last the city put in a sidewalk. Now I have to park one of my autos in the street. I will get a ticket if I use my own driveway. This is because it will block the newly built sidewalk.

Oh there already was a side walk on the other side of the street on school property.

I also had to move flower beds and other improvements I had made to the yard.

Jerry,

Well, since I am a "Red Hatter" I was sorta leaning toward a shade of purple....lol lol.
Seriously, I just wondered since I have to pay for the maintenance and upkeep on it...why couldn't I paint it ? LOL
I do think it would be ok to put a "Please do not park on the sidewalk" sign up......I'm sure the owner of the car that leaks oil all over it, or cracks it, isn't going to pay to have me fix it... right?
I wouldn't do that, though...it would be "tacky" looking.

DeeAnna,

Good point you brought up...

If you choose to paint it, I suggest a soft lavender. Hey, It's your sidewalk!!

I would put up a "Keep Off The Sidewalk" sign there on your stretch of sidewalk. That way no one could harm your sidewalk.

As I said this is not a perfect situation.
From the edge of the roadway out so many feet is called the right-of-way. Our driveways start at the road edge as they lead to our homes, and the section of our driveway that is in the right-of-way is our responsibility. If that section of your driveway needs repair it would be up to you to fix it.
other pedestrian pathways fall in that category. You are not allowed to place trash, obstructions, plantings, or anything that may prohibit traffic and many citys enforce the fact that you would be responsible for cleaning the snow and ice from the pathway that crosses your property.
The city only recieves about $300,000.00 a year in street-aid money, and as you know, that does not pave many roads and it doesn't leave much for sidewalks.
If we are going to have sidewalks that interconnect the town, someone must pay to build them, then someone must pay to upkeep them.
Without grants or bond loans, I would imagine very few citys pay for sidewalks.

Just like other right-of-way property you do not full control of it, and no one should be parking on public walk-ways.

More about sidewalks --

Once built, is the sidewalk solely my property?
Can I paint it?

Can I ask people not to park on my sidewalk, since it could damage it or be a hazard, and ultimately my responsibility?

Councilman Callis -
Just read your post about the sidewalks. I have a sidewalk in front of my house that the city put in. I didn't ask for it or have to pay anything for it's installation. Now -- from that point on....it's my responsibility to keep it maintained and repaired, right? What about if it gets a crack in it, or it becomes a safety hazard,and someone trips on it or gets hurt, and I haven't repaired it....it's my fault now...and I am the one who will be sued for something I didn't put there in the first place....right?
That doesen't seem fair to me.
Do you think this is how it would be ?

If I am correct....
The way it is written, and the way it is in most city's; is that the sidewalk is the responsibilty of the landowner, whether or not it is in the right-of-way.
When a subdivision is built and there is a sidewalk in your front yard, that becomes your responsibility to up keep it.
Just as with the brick mailboxes that are put in now in new subdivisions, they are in the right-of-way, but they are the property owners responsibility.
This can be a burden and it is a hard thing to manage, especially when you realize you do not have the freedom to do as you would like or obstruct the pathway.
The per foot cost is so high that most city's cannot afford to rehab those sidewalks in residential areas.
This is why planning is looking at all of our options and put a plan in place.

Good luck with getting them out to fix the problem!

Isn't the City required to maintain the sidewalks?
I thought if they put sidewalks in a neighborhood, they were required to repair them.

My sidewalk in front of my house is awful it is not level with my main sidewalk that comes out from the house.I am out there on a daily basis trying to clean it but it never helps the road is tearing up and it blows that asphalt onto the sidewalk daily.I wonder who could fix this?

A lot of people on my street think the sidewalks are to park their cars on !! You can't walk on them sometimes...you have to walk out in the street to get around the cars ! And then there are the bushes that are overgrown all over the sidewalks that causes you to have to walk in the street......SIGH.............

I do believe that sidewalks on both side of new subdivisions and sidewalks in front of new commercial is a doable scenario.
It first needs to pass planning and then council.
There will be some opposition from contractors about price, but I think we have a chance getting it done.
As far as rehab and new construction by the city; well, that will be a little harder due to lack of available funds.
But we should be able to do some rehab projects.
We are going to look into some grants for funding.
Making sidewalks a priority for planning and council will require public input.

My 4 year old pointed out how somebody needed to fix the sidewalks this week at the prarade.

If we could get a sidewalk from my house to the Progressive that would be awesome. Seriously, sidewalks and greenways are a very important part of the city, I like the train of thought you guys have going.

1- New Subdivisions, YES, both sides of road
2- New Commercial, YES if they are built on a road that connects with the down town business district.
3-Refurbish - YES where they are in need in area's of the down town business district, NEW Ones, YES in area's that are on heavily traveled roads, 52, 109, and perhaps Russell, Portland Blvd, Fountain Head Rd & College St. Starting near town and going out, the area's nearest down town & heavily traveled roads leading to schools & parks needs to be addressed first.

JW- I didn't even think to ask that - great question!!

Exactly what are all the current proposed projects, this may help us be able to better prioritize what should come in what order.

Safety first I always say and I think having proper sidewalks is a safety issue. There is enough happening on the roads without having to watch for people walking on them.

The sidewalks can not just be poured and forgotten. They will have to be maintained every so often. So I think some money needs to be set aside for this.

That's a good question Councilman Callis. Just off the top of my head, I would think that infastructure would take priority over non-essential, or less essential projects. And of course I would think water would come before sidewalks. But that's just me.

When and if 109 is constructed, TDOT is supposed to place sidewalks on both sides; according to what I have been told last.
There appears to be some hold ups on the project from TDOT.

Planning will be looking at a plan for sidewalks and the regulations in the next up coming months.

I guess one decision to be made is, what priority should be given to sidewalks from the city's standpoint?
Should we budget money each year and what or if any, projects should take a back seat?

I agree with Michelle in the refurbishing of sidewalks on 109 is a waste, but side walk in front of the mini-park on 109 is terrible. During the festival this past week, there was a lot a foot traffic on it, and with the uneven surface, one could lose their footing and fall under a semi!

Yes, yes, and yes!!!

Does the city not have a sidewalk plan?

It'd be nice if the city would cut the bushs away from the sidewalks that are there now..so people could use them . Talking about sidewalks...is it against any city ordinance or anything to park your car on the sidewalks so people can't use them? They do that a lot on my street. You have to walk around the cars parked on the sidewalks !

I think sidewalks are primarily a safety and accessibility issue for pedestrians, but they also improve appearances. College Street (between Hwy 109 and Portland High School)is another stretch of road that has a lot of pedestrian traffic.(mostly children)

To answer your direct questions:
1.yes
2.yes
3.yes, but would be curious to know what criteria would be used to determine where the greatest need exists.

Also, if and when HWY 109 is widened, the construction plans should include sidewalks. I think refurbishing sidewalks there would be a waste of money prior to widening.