SHELBYVILLE, KY (WAVE) - Outraged neighbors have accused a local government of sticking them with the city's repair bill. The city of Shelbyville wants its sidewalks fixed. And planners want homeowners to pay for it. Residents argue that's what their taxes are for. So they turned to the WAVE 3 Troubleshooter Department for help.
"I think it's insane that some man can tell another man to fix their property," said Shelbyville resident Terry Nethery, one of the property owners facing a huge sidewalk repair bill.
And from one end of town to the other Shelbyville's sidewalks have people all bent out of shape.
"I pay city taxes, county taxes, state taxes, federal taxes," said homeowner David Block. "That's frankly what a lot of those services are supposed to provide."
Block is part of a vocal group that says the city of Shelbyville should repair its own sidewalks. Mayor Tom Hardesty is not part of that group.
"The city council and myself have noticed a lot of dangerous and dilapidated sidewalks in our community," he said.
Hardesty is leading the charge to enforce a 16-year-old ordinance that says property owners are responsible for maintaining city sidewalks touching their property including paying to replace broken sections.
"I am a firm believer that the sidewalk benefits the owner more than it benefits anybody else," Hardesty said.
So earlier this month the city sent out letters to 140 different property owners telling them they to foot the repair bill for 400 damaged sidewalks around town.
The city engineer told us it can cost as much as $10 a square foot to replace a sidewalk. That means Calvin Walker, owner of Walker's Paint and Body, could be close to $10,000 to fix three blocks of crumbling sidewalks adjacent to his body shop.
"What happens once we fix the sidewalks?" Walker said. "Are they going come out here and make us fix the street next?"
Mayor Hardesty said the city plans to put liens on the property of owners who don't follow their repair order. Hardesty said he knew the move would be unpopular, but told us other cities have the same policy.
"Carrollton, Eminence, LaGrange, Lawrenceburg, Lexington, Louisville and St. Matthews have similar ordinances," the Mayor said.
But we called around and only Lexington fines or puts liens on property owners who refuse to make sidewalk repairs. Spokespersons from other cities said sidewalk maintenance ordinances are not strictly enforced and government usually pays for the repairs. I also found out using property liens as penalties for owners who don't fix sidewalks is extremely rare. Local attorneys are even preparing to fight Shelbville's ordinance in court.
"The question is whether the ordinance as it's drawn in Shelbyville passes constitutional muster," said Gilmore Dutton. "And I don't think it does."
Despite all the complaints, the Mayor said there are people who support the city's crackdown.
"Some people are unhappy with what we are doing and some appreciate our efforts yes," Hardesty said.
But not Calvin Walker.
"You know I'm just asking for a fair shake here," he said. "You know we pay the taxes so let them keep this property up."
Shelbyville just created an appeals board to rule on cases where property owners ordered to fix sidewalks claim the damage was done by city workers which is a common theme around town.
The Mayor said he doesn't want to hang residents out to dry but he says fixing the city's sidewalks is vital to Shelbyville's economic development and residents safety.
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Copyright 2011 WAVE News. All rights reserved.
David Block
Calvin Walker
Mayor Tom Hardesty
Gilmour Dutton
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