(A) It shall be the duty of each owner of real estate abutting upon a sidewalk to repair, at his, her or their own expense, all holes, cracks, chips and other defects in the sidewalk upon which their property abuts, and the materials therefor shall be of similar grade and texture to that used in the construction of the abutting sidewalk. If the owner is a non-resident of the city, or if the owner cannot be found, it shall be the duty of his or her agent in charge of the property to make the repairs as required, or if there is no agent, then it shall be the duty of the occupant of the property to make the repairs.
(B) It shall be the duty of the owner or occupants of property abutting on sidewalks to keep the sidewalks in front of the property or lots clean and free from rubbish and dirt, whether they are washed by water flooding the sidewalks or from any other source. Should rubbish accumulate on the sidewalks of the city and the owner or occupant of the property abutting the sidewalk at the place fails to remove the rubbish, it shall be the duty of the city to notify the owner in writing, setting forth the objectionable condition of the sidewalk. If the owner or occupants fail to remove the dirt or rubbish within three days from the date of notice, they shall be fined as provided in subsection (E) of this section.
(C) It shall be the duty of each owner of real estate owning property abutting a public sidewalk, a public utility strip, cul-de-sac containing an area of vegetation or a dedicated but unused public right-of-way to keep the sidewalk, utility strip, cul-de-sac and dedicated but unused right-of-way free of trash, debris and noxious weeds, and except for trees, shrubs and other ornamental plantings, shall keep the right-of-way mowed to a height of ten inches or less.
(D) The city shall establish a sidewalk repair program using funds from the municipal aid program. The city shall set aside 25% of anticipated yearly revenues, not to exceed $10,000, to be received from municipal aid. If and when this source of revenue terminates, the program shall also terminate unless the City Commission elects to use funds from other sources. The program shall be a 50/50 cost sharing program and will be based upon a first come, first served basis. The program shall be for the purpose of repairing and/or replacing existing sidewalks in bad repair and not for the purposes of constructing new sidewalks or sidewalks on private property. The City Manager is hereby authorized to develop program guidelines, applications and agreement forms.
(E) Violations of any of the provisions of this section shall be punishable by a fine of not less than $10, nor more than $50, and each day of violation shall constitute a separate offense.
(1977 Code, § 19-13) (Ord. 88-16, passed 9-12-1988; Ord. 2015-11, passed 11-9-2015)