Residents invited to Dec. 12 meetingAllentown Mayor Stuart Fierstein tried to center the discussion on whether pedestrian safety on roads maintained by Monmouth County was of enough concern to warrant the installation of sidewalks.
By: Mark Moffa
ALLENTOWN – Responding to complaints from residents that there are not enough sidewalks, and that some of the existing ones are in disrepair, the Borough Council last week discussed options for resolving problems.
Mayor Stuart Fierstein tried to center the discussion on whether pedestrian safety on roads maintained by Monmouth County was of enough concern to warrant the installation of sidewalks.
Areas of Main Street (Route 539), Waker Avenue (Route 526) and Yardville-Allentown Road (Route 524) without sidewalks could be paved.
Mayor Fierstein told council the issue of fixing the borough’s current sidewalks should be kept separate from the issue of installing sidewalks on the county roads because the two initiatives involve different sources of funding.
But council members talked about existing sidewalks anyway. Some expressed displeasure with the current system for handling sidewalks that are in disrepair. Homeowners, apparently, are responsible for the sidewalk in front of their houses.
Currently, according to Councilman Michael Schumacher, the borough is only enforcing sidewalk repairs when a property is for sale.
At the point of sale, when a property needs to be inspected before a certificate of occupancy can be issued, the buyer and seller can enter into an agreement on who will pay for new sidewalks or the seller can just fix it before selling the property.
Mayor Fierstein said the borough needs to take its annual survey of how many pieces of concrete need repair.
"We need to give a little more direction besides just taking a survey," said Councilman David Strobino. "You need some kind of timeline that says you need to get something done by this time or we’re going to enforce the code."
Mr. Strobino also said the borough needs to make sure it doesn’t set a double standard.
"If there is a public statement saying there is a safety issue then it needs to be applied to every road (and sidewalk) equally, not just county roads," he said.
Mr. Strobino said the borough’s Environmental Commission is opposed to any additional sidewalks. He also said that Public Safety Director Harvey Morrell has not concluded that the broken sidewalks are a public safety hazard.
Council President Peter Pantages said he has received an "overwhelming" number of comments from residents on pedestrian safety.
"I think it’s a safety issue," he said. "If it’s for the betterment of all, then it’s what should be done.
"We need to ascertain the scope of the problem," Mr. Pantages added. "Money, to me, is not an issue."
Council members hope to have additional information on the scope of the sidewalk situation by their next meeting, Dec. 12.
At that time, the public will be invited to share their thoughts on sidewalks and pedestrian safety in Allentown.