I’ve lived in my current residence in Newton Center since 1981. I’ve always made it a point to shovel our sidewalk–during (sometimes 2 or 3 times) and shortly after snowstorms–feeling a community obligation to clear the passageway, especially for school children and their families, those with baby carriages, seniors with less secure footing, and anybody else. I didn’t shovel because of an ordinance. I did it because that’s what neighbors do for their neighbors. I enjoyed the exercise and the fresh cold air, sure, but I also enjoyed contributing in a small way to the quality of life in the neighborhood. And standing around gabbing with others similarly engaged and those walking down the street.
Now we have an ordinance requiring me to to shovel the sidewalk in front of my home within 24 hours of when the snow stops falling. I’m upset because I’ve lost that feeling of generosity. Now, I shovel to be law-abiding. Instead of jumping outside right away, some part of me says, “No hurry. The 24-hour clock just started ticking, and you can get around to the shoveling later.” I know that’s irrational and immature. Maybe I’m just a child of the 60’s, when our slogan was, “Question authority.”
I feel that something is lost when we are told to do what we’d want to do anyway. I don’t know why the City Council felt it so important to address this issue now in the manner they chose. I don’t know that the state of Newton’s sidewalks after storms was any worse now than it was in the 1980’s, 1990’s, and 2000’s. Maybe this is a variant of “when you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” Perhaps it’s, “When you have the power to legislate, you tend to pass ordinances.” I don’t like feeling cranky about this. I hope they think twice before telling us again how to be good neighbors.
Agree with you Paul. Only time will tell if the ordinance actually help, or just good PR for the Mayor.
On a related note…shoveled the sidewalk last night when I got home from work. This morning when I left for work (walking to the T for anyone who cares), I noticed there was more snow from overnight. A dusting at best, less than 1/4 inch at worst.
Was running late and decided to leave it as is, but is that enough snow to warrant a warning or ticket?
Per the ordinance, how “clear” do the sidewalks have to be? Down to the asphalt or is a dusting of snow ok?
I can’t agree with Paul on this one. Too many residents near me fail to shovel their sidewalks at all, let alone within twenty-four hours of the end of the storm. And this sad reality has been true for years. In recent winters I have watched children on their way to Zervas or their bus stop forced into the street. A busy street on the day after snow is no place for a pedestrian.
Like Paul, my wife and I clean our sidewalk conscientiously after storms, well within the city mandate. For the safety of school children and seniors, dog walkers and those out for exercise, this law deserves enforcement. Most Newton residents unable to clear their sidewalks can afford to pay others to do so. To be sure, those who cannot should get relief from the city or from their neighbors. Otherwise, let’s hold the citizens accountable.
You make a good point as well, Bob. Not everyone is conscientious….as the 3 of us. 🙂
@paul…wait a minute, didn’t you post on how you are irritated that people are not following the leaf blower ordinance? If there ever was an idiotic ordinance that should make you question authority, I would suggest you choose the leaf blower ordinance over this one. I hate most of the ordinances in Newton, but this one I’m actually ok with. Like you mentioned, my kids walk to school so I have always been out there shoveling first thing even without being ordered to do it. My neighbor, not so much….they haven’t shoveled in years.
Yup, @IM, I did. I’ve never been one for consistency. It’s one of the privileges of being a curmudgeon!
Paul,
I wouldn’t say you’re a curmudgeon because of this. As I previously said on another thread, “psychologically and emotionally this ordinance eliminates the voluntary good neighbor feelings in shoveling your walk and instead makes it a police state mandate.”
Then couple that with the apparently encouraged reporting on your neighbors to the authorities. Sounds like the surveillance state to me.
And to top it off, do we need yet another fine?
I have been similar to Paul whereas I always clear my sidewalk… not just by the minimal amount but extra wide. I think of the moms trying to get some fresh air with their babies In strollers and those who have a tough time getting around. That said lately I’ve been thinking of the inequity caused by those who are lucky enough to have the City plow their sidewalks (neighbors around the corner benefit from this). However for the rest of us who don’t clear our sidewalks we could potentially get fined. It doesn’t change my nature to clear my sidewalk for my neighbors to get thru but it does make me feel less positive about it. Frankly I would advocate for the City to clear all the sidewalks except for the fact that the sidewalk plows often leave an icy trail. Maybe the City should be paying us to clear the sidewalks instead. :).
The kicker on all of this is I have been told that if we under take a renovation it is likely that we may be required to foot the bill for improving the sidewalk in front of our house so just by being unlucky by buying a house where the sidewalk was not maintained by the City and is off the plow route I get doubly penalized. Just doesn’t seem fair.
Feeling very curmudgeonly about having to shovel sidewalks at all! @Bob Burke, tell us about the halcyon days when the CITY shoveled, and connect the dots to where we are now, please? TY.
Actually we evidently do need another fine. City council voted this week to fine for large item removal from the curbside instead of removing the first five for free. The argument was ‘social engineering’.
My spouse and I have always shoveled the sidewalk because it is the right thing to do. We live on a quiet street, however, none of my neighbors should have to walk in the street because the sidewalk isn’t shoveled.
Here are some of my pet peeves:
The MWRA doesn’t shovel the sidewalk and the middle school and high school bus stop is there. If the city doesn’t clear one plow length of the sidewalk, then the kids stand in the street on a curvey incline (how safe is that)? The city has told us it isn’t their responsibility to clear that sidewalk. They said the neighbors should do it (how much sidewalk should one resident have to shovel?)
Houses that are near the schools that think they are covered by the city’s sidewalk plow but aren’t, so many kids are now walking in the street. (The drive way is clear but not the sidewalks).
Residents who can’t shovel and just don’t care (again, residents have to walk in the streets). I know there are ways for residents to contact the city and have a plan, but for those who don’t, I just don’t know what to do.
Houses that are under construction, so the owner doesn’t live there, but yet the house has contractors working on it but the sidewalk is not shoveled, leaving neighbors to go into the street. I realize that the contractors get paid by the owner, and it costs money to have a contractor shovel, but someone has to shovel.
The first go around of a snow storm did not work for the city.
The city engineers had inadequate computer software to fine
261 sidewalk complaints. So much for enforcement.
How long does it take the engineers to go out into the residential streets and take pictures? Then each homeowner must be notified.
What a ridiculous law! No wonder it has never been law before.
The city revenues for services are now 37%. The schools take 63% of the former 50/50 split. Now we understand why city services are so sub standard. Just think Mayor Fuller announced recently that the city will spend $13 million of renovations for an expanded pre school program in the recently vacated Horace Mann school. Most of the pre school students are from out side Newton borders. What is going on?
Paul, I’m guessing your question is rhetorical. The reason we need an ordinance is obvious. Without a continuous path, you might be helping only yourself or your immediate neighbors. All it takes is a single person failing to follow your example and people are forced out in the street. That’s enough to make it dangerous for everyone and impossible for some people to make a habit of walking in the winter (kids, seniors, disabled). Altruism only gets you so far. Yes, along my street, a few blocks from yours, we set a good example and everyone routinely shoveled without any ordinance, but we know that doesn’t work everywhere. Wish it did.
You can still feel good about clearing your sidewalk.
I’m a cranky curmudgeon because the city has decided to add my sidewalk to the plow route. Now I’m actually punished for getting out early and shoveling, where the plow piles up snow over my work. I now have an incentive to wait until the plow goes by.
Why do we have an ordinance now after so many decades of not having one?
Perhaps because finally our society is beginning to give higher priority to the rights of pedestrians, including but not limited to those folks with disabilities. We’ve been a car centric culture at the expense of other ways of moving around.
Curmudgeon or not, Paul’s bringing up being a child of the 60’s with the mantra of “question authority” makes me smile.
I have followed that mantra (along with “don’t settle for the first answer,” “find a back door” and “change is the only constant in life“) since the 60’s, passed it on to my kids and they did to theirs.
Its easy in Newton to support one ban/fine and not support another because Newton’s laws are inconsistent. Newton likes to proclaim it is a Welcoming City but has laws and proposed new laws that don’t support that sentiment – such as ones that accentuate Newton’s economic inequality.
Paul, the ordinance wasn’t ever about you. You cleared your sidewalk. That’s a good thing. You thought of others. And even if you were self-interested, you could say you were protecting yourself from liability. A 2010 Mass Supreme Court ruling said so (at least about your own property):
http://massrealestatelawblog.com/2010/07/28/massachusetts-property-owners-now-have-legal-responsibility-to-shovel-and-treat-snow-and-ice-on-property/
Problem is, much as we like it to be, this issue should never have been about virtue or generosity. Clear sidewalks aren’t a kindness for those who need them, including the disabled, and families, kids walking to school, or your neighbor. And under the ADA, accessibility is a civil right, all year round:
https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/civilrights/programs/ada/ada_sect504qa.cfm#q31
That completely leaves open who should clear public sidewalks, and even in Massachusetts different municipalities handle it differently. If we believe that sidewalks are city property and the city should clear them, like a few other communities do, then we should be willing to staff up immensely and pay for that (none of this “our taxes are too high as it is”).
I get it. I loved sweeping the steps of our house when I was a kid. Then my parents made it a chore, and I hated it. At some point, though, stuff has to get done. We need to make that happen, as best we can, without counting on the generosity of everyone along an entire street to make that street passible.
If that’s not convincing to you, and it might not be, what’s your solution?
Interesting court case, @Mike. Pertinent quote: “Rejecting the old common law rule that property owners could simply leave naturally accumulated snow and ice untreated and escape liability, the SJC held that all Massachusetts property owners must remove or treat snow and ice like any other dangerous condition on property. Justice Ralph Gants reasoned that ‘is not reasonable for a property owner to leave snow or ice on a walkway where it is reasonable to expect that a hardy New England visitor would choose to risk crossing the snow or ice, rather than turn back or attempt an equally or more perilous walk around it.'” That would seem to apply to the portion of the sidewalk that is my property, i.e., the walkway to the front door.
But, the ADA quote you provided, it could be argued, places the responsibility clearly on the city for the portion of the sidewalk that is city property: “As part of maintenance operations, public agencies’ standards and practices must ensure that the day-to-day operations keep the path of travel on pedestrian facilities open and usable for persons with disabilities, throughout the year. This includes snow removal…”
In summary, while the court case suggests we have an obligation when the sidewalk is our property, the ADA description suggests that the Newton ordinance may have improperly assigned the maintenance responsibility on city sidewalks to homeowners. To take it to extreme levels, let’s say that a (city-owned) tree falls on my sidewalk, breaking it and creating a dangerous hole. Could the City make me responsible for fixing that hole? I think not.
But perhaps this is all angels-on-the-head-of-a-pin sophistry. Now, all that remains is to see whether the ordinance makes any difference at all, or whether it was just a feel-good vote. How might that question be answered? What’s the baseline against we would compare the pre and post situations? Did anyone think about that when they voted for this?
Paul. I have to agree it’s a shame to make ordinances to get people to “do the right thing”.
That said, it’s a bit like that for many of our laws and so it becomes an ongoing discussion on what modifies behavior. Newton appears to be entering a new phase of attempting to attach fines to things (or ban things) we do or don’t want people to do when they already should know better. Pick up after your dog may be one of the best examples. Keep your dog on a leash is another. Then add in all the traffic items: Don’t speed. Stop for people in cross walks. Don’t park where it’s posted “no parking”.
I wonder if there is really any change in behavior knowing that there is some chance you could get caught and fined? My guess is that it will probably stop some people from “breaking the law” but who really knows how many? We all know enforcement cannot be always present (or maybe it can????).
I remember on more than one occasion having to walk in the street down Centre St. at 6:30PM as cars sped by on the way home from the bus stop when the sidewalks were all iced over from never having been cleaned. It was a scary walk esp. in the dark.
The sidewalk snow clearing ordinance is the reason we don’t have clear sidewalks in Newton. Vocal supporters of the ordinance have done pedestrians a tremendous disservice by allowing public officials to escape a fundamental responsibility they are elected to perform. Most people simply don’t understand that proper snow removal is a massive job requiring a well coordinated effort. A citizen shovel brigade will never be a match for the right motorized equipment and a good municipal snow clearing plan.
The problem is when the plow piles up wet heavy snow-slush back on our cleared driveway after my wife and I have cleared it. This is something we have always done for the 40 years we have lived here. According to the city we are responsible for removal of this ‘fresh’ snow.
As for enforcement, we got a notice from the city after the first storm that we hadn’t cleared our sidewalk. Wrong! What wasn’t cleared was the sidewalk that is part of the condo development built next door to us but we got tagged. Although a prompt phone call to City Hall seems to solved the problem, I am concerned that the city inspectors made no attempt to ascertain whose property was in violation. They put a tag on out door but never bothered to knock.
It’s my opinion that the City over-clears our roads, and that some of the road-clearing budget could be expended toward sidewalk clearing.
In New England, we should expect some snow. As drivers, we can prepare for it: by outfitting our vehicles with modern winter tires (the current technology is amazingly good); by learning good slippery-condition driving techniques; by relying on modern vehicles to have anti-lock brakes, stability control, and (barring the above) good seatbelts, airbags, and other safety systems; and by not going out in a damn snowstorm unless we have to. My wife often says: I’m glad to live in New England, where we don’t get earthquakes or massive floods or frequent tornadoes or huge hurricanes; where the worst Mother Nature throws at us is a big snowstorm, which is not going to kill you unless you’re a dumbass.
But importantly, we as drivers can make these preparations regardless of our age, physical fitness, or social status. If we can afford a car, we can afford to buy winter tires, and to learn to drive when the roads are not pristine. But the same can’t be said of us when we’re pedestrians. Good winter footwear helps, but is not going to improve our balance as we age. The best wheelchair is not going to navigate a plowed-in curb cut.
I clear my sidewalk. It’s the least I can do for my neighbors. For the most part they also do their part. But if I try to walk to the train or on errands, there are two problems: one, it just takes one negligent neighbor to block my path. That’s what the sidewalk-clearing ordinance is trying to address, and it’s important. But the other problem is even worse: the city’s plows (owned or contracted) often block sidewalks at corners. It’s totally unfair to residents on corner lots — who have twice the frontage to clear in the first place — to also have to clear the leaden snowbanks at the corners. I think the City should take some of the plowing budget and, instead of endlessly circling the same routes clearing down to bare pavement, figure out a way for those same employees and contractors to free up the corners for pedestrians.
One has to include “treatment”as well. A cleared sidewalk that has turned to black ice will force me to walk into the street.
Just shoveling alone doesn’t make for a walkable sidewalk.
But the whole thing seems silly to me. Especially the lawyers.
I grew up in Syracuse New York. 2 feet of snow for a snowfall was common. Often had to walk to school in the street. And drivers were cautious for that because we were all in the same boat.
The streets were much better plowed than here in MA, and, by real city employees.
Last year I broke an axle when my car ( going well under the speed limit ) slid off the rode going down a slight incline and into the curb. I called the police, who phoned into the DPW to get some sand on the area, because it hadn’t been sanded. My car was blocking the road and not driveable.
When the tow truck came, I overheard the tow truck driver say to the policeman ” they told us to stop sanding”.
I presume the tow truck driver either drove a plow or his company also did sanding.
So- “THEY told us to stop sanding…”
Smoking gun there. I had to fight the insurance surcharge ( you’re deemed at fault if there’s no other cars involved) and won.
Who was the THEY – his boss or the city? I don’t know, but it’s always about saving money. Just ask Boeing.
Folks, if your corner is plowed in by a city plow, report it to 311 (on the city website or on your land line).
DPW takes responsibility for clearing the corners. They may sometimes need to store snow for a short period during a storm, but except in extreme conditions (2015 anyone?) the corners should be piled no higher than the rest of the street.
Paul, the FWHA document is a federal interpretation of the ADA and Section 504. While the document says that the public agency must maintain sidewalks, how it is done is an implementation issue that I don’t think the federal government can dictate.
Many communities rely on private citizens and businesses to do the clearing. Other municipalities do it internally.
I agree there is a big question about requiring private entities to fulfill a governmental responsibility. Imagine if we cleared roads the same way. The place to resolve those questions is the courts, and it could happen anywhere in the country where residents have to shovel their own snow (or sidewalks aren’t cleared at all).
People should be aware, though, just how much clearing all the sidewalks would cost. I would love to see an estimate.
Like everyone else, I too make sure my sidewalk is shoveled after a storm. I do it because I don’t want to fall on my own sidewalk, I don’t want the kids walking to the school 100 yards from my house to fall and I don’t want anyone in general to fall or have to walk in the street.
But, it will be a cold day in hell before I EVER pay a fine to the City of Newton for failing to clear property that belongs to the City.