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905.02 SIDEWALK PROVISION FOR BUILDING PERMIT.
No building permit shall be issued to any applicant for the construction of a new building on any parcel of land in the Municipality unless the plan includes a provision to construct or repair sidewalks when the parcel of land upon which it is proposed to build has no sidewalks or has sidewalks which, in the opinion of the Director of Public Service and Properties are in need of reconstruction.
(Ord. 59-30. Passed 4-7-59.)
905.03 SIDEWALK SPECIFICATIONS AND REGULATIONS.
The minimum specifications for the construction of sidewalks in and upon dedicated thoroughfares in the Municipality shall be as set forth in the following sections.
(Ord. 59-30. Passed 4-7-59.)
905.04 WIDTH OF SIDEWALKS.
Sidewalks which are constructed in and upon dedicated streets in the Municipality shall not be less than five feet in width, except that they shall be constructed to conform in width to existing sidewalks in those portions of streets where some sidewalks have already been constructed.
(Ord. 59-30. Passed 4-7-59.)
905.05 CONFORMITY OF NEW AND EXISTING SIDEWALKS.
The conformity of newly constructed sidewalks with those which have already been installed shall be obtained according to the following rules:
(a) Where a sidewalk is to be constructed throughout the width of an existing lot or sublot or other parcel of land regardless of the length of the newly constructed walk, it shall be constructed as to its width to conform exactly to the width of the existing walks at the termini thereof, provided the widths of existing walks at each terminus of the newly constructed walk are the same and are at least five feet wide at these terminal points.
(b) Where a sidewalk is to be constructed throughout the width of an existing lot or sublot or other parcel of land and the existing sidewalks at either terminus of such newly constructed walk are of different widths, the newly constructed sidewalk shall be built to conform to the wider existing walk, but in any event it shall be built not less than five feet in width and shall taper gradually to any narrower walk at either terminus, beginning not less than fifteen feet from such terminus and having the reduction of width on the curb side.
(c) Where a sidewalk is to be constructed throughout the width of an existing lot, sublot or other parcel of land and the walk is to be less than sixty feet in length and the existing sidewalks at either terminus of the newly constructed walk are the same width but less than five feet wide, the newly constructed sidewalk shall be constructed in width to conform exactly to the width of the existing walks at the termini thereof.
(d) Where a sidewalk is to be constructed throughout the width of an existing lot, sublot or other parcel of land and the walk is to be less than sixty feet in length and the existing sidewalks at each terminus of the newly constructed walk are of different widths, the newly constructed sidewalk shall be constructed in width to conform to the width of the wider of the two existing sidewalks and shall taper gradually to the narrower walk at its terminus, beginning not less than fifteen feet from such terminus and with the reduction in width taking place entirely on the curb side of the newly constructed sidewalks.
(Ord. 59-30. Passed 4-7-59.)
905.06 MATERIAL SPECIFICATIONS.
All sidewalks shall be constructed of concrete and shall meet the following minimum specifications:
(a) Cement. The cement used in concrete shall be Portland cement of well known brand and shall be subject to test by the Director of Public Service and Properties in accordance with Standard Methods of Sampling and Testing (Designation C 77-37) of the American Society for Testing Materials.
(b) Grading. Excavation of subgrade shall include removal of all earth, loam, shale, rock, roots, briars and undergrowth. All spongy material shall be removed. Fills are to be made with cinders or other material acceptable to the Director.
(c) Forms. Concrete shall be thoroughly mixed before being deposited in clean steel or wooden forms adequately braced to prevent distortion from the specified dimensions. All forms shall be of a size sufficient to produce a walk of a minimum thickness or depth of four inches, except at driveways where the thickness shall be six inches.
(d) Placing Concrete.
(1) The concrete shall be thoroughly tamped and consolidated so that none of the stone appears on the surface. The forms must be kept clean and shall be coated with a suitable oil before filling with concrete.
(2) Foundation beds shall be sprinkled immediately prior to depositing the concrete.
(3) Concrete when mixed shall be rapidly deposited in the forms and any concrete not in final position within thirty minutes after completion of the mixing shall be discarded. Under no circumstances shall concrete be used that has partially set and the remixing of such materials is prohibited. The concrete shall be deposited between bulkheads of a uniform thickness and to the full depth and width of the walk; irregular or sloping surfaces shall be avoided. The concrete, after being placed, shall be thoroughly compacted and brought to the proper pitch and grade with a templet or straight edge.
(4) Immediately prior to the finishing of the surface, the walk shall be cut into slabs not longer than six feet on any one side. The joints shall be cut through the full thickness of the walk and the opening so made shall be filled with clean, dry sand, well rammed into place. The joints shall be formed by a cutting tool or other means satisfactory to the Engineer. The markings in the surface of the walk at these joints shall not be more than one-fourth of an inch deep. All edges shall be rounded with an approved edging tool to a radius of one-fourth of an inch.
(e) Surface Finish. The finishing of the walk shall immediately follow the placing and compacting of the concrete. Unless otherwise ordered by the Director, a finish produced by rubbing with wood floats will be required. The surface shall be free from depressions or inequalities. The application of dry cement to hasten drying of the surface is prohibited.
(f) Curing and Protecting. In rainy weather, the concrete shall be protected as soon as it is finished. In hot or dry weather, the contractor shall keep the concrete wet. Sprinkling shall be begun as soon as the concrete is set sufficiently to prevent pitting and shall be continued at such intervals as weather conditions may require or the Engineer may direct.
(g) Expansion Joints. Prepared strips of bitumen and fiber or mineral aggregate shall be placed in concrete walks at intervals of at least twenty feet, also at ends where the walk abuts curbing or other lateral walks and along the building line where the walk is laid full width from the curb to the building or other structures. Similar joints shall be placed around water meter covers, gas boxes, hydrants, lamp standards or other fixed objects projecting through the walk. All strips shall be one-fourth of an inch in thickness, except for transverse joints when the temperature is below seventy degrees Fahrenheit, in which event the strips shall be one-half of an inch in thickness. The top of the strip shall be cut off flush with the top of the concrete.
(Ord. 59-30. Passed 4-7-59.)
905.07 OWNER'S RESPONSIBILITY FOR SIDEWALKS.
(a) Every owner, occupant, person or agent having charge of any tenement, building, lot or land fronting on any avenue, street, alley, road or other public highway of the City is charged with the construction, maintenance and repair of necessary sidewalks, or parts thereof within the limits of the City, and such owner, occupant, person or agent shall be liable in money damages to any person, who, while in the lawful use of such sidewalk, sustains an injury to person or damage to property, by reason of the failure of such owner, occupant, person or agent in charge, to maintain the sidewalk in good repair and free from any defect, and as further provided in Section 1107.03 of the Codified Ordinances.
(b) If, by reason of the failure of such owner, occupant, person or agent in charge, as referred to in subsection (a) above, to maintain the sidewalk in good repair and free of any defect, a claim is made or a money judgment obtained against the City, by any person sustaining injury for failure to repair or maintain a sidewalk free of any defect, the owner, occupant, person or agent in charge, shall be liable to and reimburse the City for all money paid by the City on any claim made or judgment obtained against the City, by any person injured by reason thereof.
(Ord. 91-127. Passed 7-23-91.)
905.08 PUBLIC SIDEWALK REPAIR PROGRAM.
Council hereby reaffirms that the existence of broken, uneven or improperly maintained public sidewalks, private walks or driveways is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and/or qualified public nuisance. The City, in addition to any and all procedures available to the City pursuant to the Codified Ordinances and/or the Ohio Revised Code, may take the following steps to abate such nuisance:
(a) The City Engineer, Building Official or his/her designee and/or other Administrative Director designated by the Mayor shall at his/her discretion inspect areas of the City and, upon said inspection, shall cause a written notice to be provided by posting in a conspicuous place on the structure or premises to which it relates that the broken, uneven or improperly maintained public sidewalks, private walks or driveways abutting such lot or parcel of land in the City constitute a nuisance and will be repaired by the City.
(b) The City Engineer and/or Building Official or his/her designee are hereby authorized to solicit competitive bids to abate the nuisance condition.
(c) When any such nuisance condition is abated by the City or caused to be abated by the City, as described herein, then after such work is performed, the City shall certify the cost of nuisance abatement to the County Fiscal Officer for collection as other taxes and assessments are collected, or the City may seek recovery of such costs by civil action against the property owner involved.
(Ord. 2020-027. Passed 4-7-20.)
(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (c) above, the City in its discretion, may authorize the funding for repair of City sidewalks pursuant to the Public Sidewalk Repair Program without taxing or assessing the costs of said repairs to adjacent property owners. The City Engineer on an annual basis shall provide to Council and the Mayor a list of streets and addresses in each of the four wards where sidewalks are most in need of repair. Council, in setting the City’s annual budget, shall determine whether, and to what extent, funds are available for necessary public sidewalk repairs. The availability and expenditure of City funds for this purpose is solely within the discretion of the City on an annual basis and is dependent on a determination that funds are available. (Ord. 2021-032. Passed 5-18-21.)
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