Please Deice Your Sidewalk

[derekp.livejournal.com]

We're a few days removed from the first winter storm of the year, and yet many stretches of sidewalk in and around Davis Square are still covered in ice. Simpson Ave seems particularly bad as you get towards the Broadway end of the street and Cutter was no Picnic last night either. I can only imagine the folks who live there are renters, as I would think owner residents would not want to risk the liability. One trip to Home Depot or Tags and a few seconds tossing a small amount of rock salt on the ground will fix this. Please everyone do their part to keep the sidewalks in our neighborhood safe all winter.

Is there recourse for pedestrians in Somerville when folks do not clear the sidewalk or does it simply become a legal issue if/when someone slips and falls? I'd like to see the city stepping up to clear bad areas, perhaps citing landlords and residents who repeatedly fail to keep the sidewalk safe.

Comments

[derekp.livejournal.com]

The society part was a line from Seinfeld that I guess isn't all too obvious. I can assure you my hip-breaking anecdote isn't purely hyperbole. In this very thread of a whopping 41 comments, we have someone who broke their tail bone falling on an icy sidewalk. The hip breaking anecdote is no more a stretch than your assertion that "big rent" is for "big service" but that's an argument for another thread.

Clearing the walk *is* probably your landlord's responsibility first and foremost, but I don't think it's 100% unreasonable for your landlord to assume you are doing this given that in your original post you said you used to shovel and rake (presumably when your rent was "small" and you expected "small service").

Again, I ask if you have bothered to inform your landlord you expect them to perform this task? I'm guessing not. I think pass-agg is more your style. You're obviously free to leave your sidewalk iced over. I prefer to help my neighbors even if I don't know their names.

[an-art-worker.livejournal.com]

"pass-agg" EXCUSE ME? Do you know me? Do you pay my rent? How arrogant.

No and no. Get off your little high horse. And you ARE an owner - right? You didn't respond to that. You are probably a landlord too. Your replies don't make sense without that salient point.

Well in your fantasy world, we skip the part about owners and renters I guess. Ok. The deal is: you shovel. It's your equity. My landlord knows the terms. You should too. If you are expecting your tenants to take up your slack then... lame. Welcome to the real world.

[derekp.livejournal.com]

I own, though that's a recent change. I have lived at 3 places in the city. I shoveled the sidewalk at one and at the others, the driveway and walkways were plowed. I am not a landlord nor do I have any plans (or cash) to become one.

I'll have to ask my financial advisor about this shovel equity thing though. I've never heard of it but I wouldn't mind getting some.

[an-art-worker.livejournal.com]

Right.

Point. Game. Match.

[ellf.livejournal.com]

Quoting from above: "No owner, tenant, or occupant of land or a building abutting upon a sidewalk within the limits of any public way in this city, and no agent of such owner having the charge of such land or building shall place or suffer to remain on such sidewalk for more than six hours between sunrise and sunset on any day, any snow or any ice, unless such ice is made even and covered with sand or other suitable material to prevent slipping."

You are a tenant. The law applies to you. You have a legal responsibility to clear the sidewalk - regardless of the rest of the argument, that's what the law says. You live in Somerville (presumably), and are therefore held to its laws.

[bombardiette.livejournal.com]

Wow. Talk about a high horse!

I rent. I shovel. I told my landlord I would. After all, I'm the one who is going to have to walk down my front walk, my sidewalk and get in and out of my drive.

I even toss some ice melt down on the steps. Again, it's my ass traipsing up them every day.

As an aside, you pay big rent because you choose to live in a big rent neighborhood. While absentee landlordism is a real problem, I'm not quite sure how you equate big rent with big service.

I don't expect my landlord to shovel his way out of his own home and then drive 20 minutes to come shovel 10 feet of walkway for me just because I pay rent and would rather wait on someone else to do it for me. I do expect him to come and repair my place when it breaks though. Lucky enough for me, he does.

If you don't want to pay big rent anymore, move to a low rent neighborhood.

[squonk.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

I'm blind and use a mobility aid, and I've just moved from Toronto. I cannot believe the sorry state of the sidewalks down here--it's terrifying, and ridiculous. It pains me to think that the reason for this mightn't be because people are busy or overworked, or even because they're simply lazy. Instead it might be that the self-absorbed, spoiled-brat attitude of entitlement so clearly demonstrated by an_art_worker is also the prevailing one around these parts. Hope that's not true, as it would kind of confirm some of my deepest fears about moving back to the States. (I'm encouraged by many of the other posts here, though.)