Understanding The City’s Sidewalk Strategy

The city of Lakewood is entering its second phase of a 10-year strategy to improve the city’s 180 miles of sidewalks with the intention of keeping them among the most pedestrian-friendly in the state.

Each year, the city sends inspectors to check the sidewalks for “trip hazards.”

This year, residents with identified trip hazards have some options. They can pay to have the sidewalk fixed themselves or participate in a citywide bid with the city’s contractor — the idea being to lower the price for property owners.

Residents with trip hazards will fall into one of three categories: Grinding the seams of the sidewalk (at $35 per seem); some sidewalks will need to be leveled (an estimated $100 per slab) or replaced (approximately $200).

Property owners with identified sidewalk issues will receive a mailed letter from the city in July.

“One of our goals is to be the most pedestrian-friendly city,” said Lakewood Mayor Michael Summers. “We all have a role to play.”

“We began this project in 2013, and we made some improvements to make it more efficient, more cost-effective and more simple moving forward. We took a more customer-centric approach this year versus a more regulatory approach.”

The second phase of the 10-year plan began in June. The city is using a map that divides the city into 30 sections, and plans to inspect three sections — or 10 percent — each year.

“This project will improve our city’s sidewalks, one section at a time,” said Joe Beno, the city’s director of public works. “It will also ensure pedestrian safety and our goal of being pedestrian-friendly.”

This year, the city is focusing its efforts on sections 7, 14 and 21. For this phase, the city will pay for sidewalks damaged by the trees in the tree lawns.

Have a look at the attached map to see if your street is getting an inspection.

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Volume 10, Issue 15, Posted 3:54 PM, 07.08.2014