Program expedites
sidewalk repairs

BY GRETHEL SAMUEL

Thursday, November 19, 2009 4:10 PM EST

The fix is in!

No more neighbors’ dirty looks, now you can get your damaged, broken sidewalks in shape for the New Year, if not before.

The New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) recently unveiled a pilot program – Expedient Repair Program – that will help restore sidewalks in Queens to tip top shape, DOT Commissioner Janet Sadik-Khan said.

Normally it takes several years to repair a damaged sidewalk, but now DOT contractors can being working on bad sidewalks within 45 days from the time a property owner submits his or her request either via mail or online to DOT's Office of Sidewalk Management.

Through this pilot program, not only are property owners enhancing their own properties, but those of the neighborhood as well. In addition, they are also removing the chance of legal liability to themselves if someone trips and falls on their broken sidewalk and that fall results in an injury.

DOT contractors charge between $11 and $13 per square foot, however, property owners who do not want to use them, can use private contractors. There is an online database available which lists license contractors at www.nyc.gov/sidewalks.

“New York City’s sidewalks are the front yards to our homes, and pedestrians safety depends on keeping them in a state of good repair,” said Sadik-Khan.

If a sidewalk violation has been issued to a property owner for any cracks or other problems with the sidewalk and the property owner has not done the repairs, then the city will take over the repair at the property owner’s expense.

Even with this pilot program in place, there can be a delay. There are currently 673,200,200 square feet of sidewalks in the city and more that 5,000 properties have open sidewalk violations in Queens alone, according to the DOT. It is the property owner’s responsibility to maintain their sidewalk and pay for sidewalk repairs.

For more information on the Expedient Repair Program and to get a request form, go to www.nyc.gov/dot.