[pttttt]

Not just picking on the Quad Cities - these sidewalk snow removal laws seem to be a liberal fad nationwide. Some of them don't just charge for removal; they have daily accumulating fines.

So hey, liberals, what about the 80-year-old homeowner on a fixed income who might not have $50 in ready cash for shoveling the sidewalk? Or the disabled homeowner? This is one of the nastier liberal extortion ideas yet.

[AppyPappy]

Yup. Why do people elect morons who write these laws?

[TightSqueeze]

So hey, liberals, what about the 80-year-old homeowner on a fixed income who might not have $50 in ready cash for shoveling the sidewalk?

There are none left, they have all moved to Florida.

[HEY4QDEMS]

Boston fines you for three days and then if it is not cleared the city will do it but they don't send you a bill, they file a lein against your property.

[Jim Noble]

You must not have a lot of snow where you live.

We've had 100" since Christmas, and it is a necessity for people to clear their sidewalks to keep small kids out of the road.

[logic101.net]

The city takes care of the streets. The home-owner can take care of the sidewalk. He/she takes care of his/her driveway, right? The sidewalk isn't that much more. Heck; the real killer is the end of the driveway anyway (not the sidewalk), where the salted snow from the road piles up.

And no, I am NOT a liberal! Some personal responsibility is reqired!


MARK A SITY
http://www.logic101.net/

[buffyt]

The homeowner must clear the sidewalk within hours of the snowfall? Sheesh! My father-in-law is 83 and lives in Golden, Co., and we just spent a week at his house the week of Feb. 5. We had a blizzard on about the 7th. I didn't even want to go outside. It was too cold for me to go out in the garage. My husband went out and cleared the driveway. I can see how it could cause a heart attack with a man 83 years old!

[freeeee]

This issue comes down to one question: Are sidewalks public or private property? Does the city or the homeowner own the sidewalk?

Well, let's check:

Can the homeowner exercise private property rights on the sidewalk, such as:

Owning a deed to the sidewalk? No.

Forcing trespassers to leave the sidewalk? No.

Right to sell the sidewalk? No.

Establishing rules for the use of the sidewalk? No.

Right to build on the sidewalk? No.

So, we have established that the homeowner has absolutely no private property rights over the sidewalk. Yet, the homeowner is said to have legally binding responsibilities for something he doesn't own. (Responsibilities without rights) In effect, the city is compelling forced labor from the homeowner, in exchange for absolutely no compensation.

What difference does the proximity of a property to the homeowner's land make? None! These laws make the homeowner into the city's SLAVE. It doesn't matter how little or how much work is demanded from the homeowner, the fact that forced labor is coerced from him, no matter to what extent, is sufficient to establish this fact. You're either a slave or not, just like you're pregnant or not. There is no middle, no "slightly pregnant".

Essentially the city is saying it doesn't want the responsibility that comes with ownership of the property. Well then it needs to sell the sidewalk to the homeowner, and stop claiming the rights that come with the responsibility it shirked, by gunpoint no less.

[jim_trent]

Think this through for a moment.

Sidewalks are usually on public property. The City could shovel them. My City has about as many people as the quad-cities put together and it has 4,000 lane miles of roads. Sidewalks are probably 2/3 of that. Can you imagine how many people and how much equipment that would take to clean them. Naturally, it would be paid for by taxes. Do YOU want to pay those extra taxes?

Or, they can pass a law making the adjacent property owner responsible. True, it is an imposition.

Or, the City can do nothing and pay a multi-million dollar settlement when someone slips on the ice and sues. That has happened here.

Those are your choices. Which one do you support?

[Eala]

these sidewalk snow removal laws seem to be a liberal fad nationwide. Some of them don't just charge for removal; they have daily accumulating fines.

Real nice for the person who happens to be away.

[SamAdams76]

What whiners in this thread. Just put on a pair of boots when you go outside and slog through it. What's the big deal? It will all melt soon enough anyhow. Keep nanny government off our backs.

[The Toad]

I live near Chicago and thankfully we don't have oppressive sidewalk clearing laws. In fact, I refuse to clear mine due to the lawsuits that can be slappin on you if you clear your side and someone falls. Not clearing it becomes an "act of God".

When I walk my dog I have to sometimes walk on uncleared sidewalks but shrug it off. It's unfortunate but I'm not about to be sued.

[NorCoGOP]

Folks, just do what I did when we bought our house 3 years ago...

I bought a snowblower - I thought "corner lot, long sidewalks, good driveway...no way I'll shovel all that"....

What happened? NO SNOW since.

I've used it three times in three years - where prior, at the older house, I had to shovel three times a month or more.

Snow blowers = no-snow insurance!

[Station 51]

My solution to clearing my sidewalk of snow was to live in Texas. No, such laws down here.

[ThinkPlease]

As a crazy man who runs outdoors in the winter as much as possible, I thoroughly cuss out anyone who doesn't shovel their walk within a few days. However, I wouldn't wish a government fine on them in a million years. Even the Peoples Republic of Ann Arbor(PRAA) wouldn't dream of a fine like this. After all, they have a problem getting the plows out on time....

[Aliska]

I've been turned in once already. They really get tough on you if you don't get your walks cleared.

What really ticks me off is that I live on a corner and I have done the whole sidewalk only to have the city plow zoom by and bury my sidewalk so bad with heavy snow from the street that I can't clear it off without a snowblower. I noticed with this latest snow which wasn't too bad that the plows did the same on the side streets as well. My son usually gets over in time to help out now.