North Whitehall Adopts New Sidewalk Ordinance

North Whitehall Township Supervisors recently adopted a new sidewalk ordinance that officially places the responsibility for maintenance and repairs on homeowners.

Until now there was no law that said homeowners with sidewalks were legally responsible for them. The ordinance is not, however, in response to homeowners who weren’t shoveling snow or maintaining their sidewalks; rather it is something PennDot required.

Township Manager Jeff Bartlett said the requirement was made necessary because federal funds are being used to upgrade the intersection at Sand Spring and Rte. 309.

In order to keep that project going the township had to agree to be responsible for any repairs to sidewalks. Since the township didn’t want that responsibility they had to make official the fact that homeowners are responsible.

“We have so few sidewalks in the township and for the most part people have maintained their sidewalks and shoveled the snow,” Bartlett said. “We didn’t ask for this it kind of came with the intersection.”