[Ord. No. 859, 8-17-2021]
A.
All persons are hereby required to keep the sidewalks and/or hike-and-bike trails in front of, or adjacent to, the property or premises owned or occupied by them or under their control, and within the City, clear and free from rubbish, filth, refuse, fat, oil, grease, dirt, snow, ice, free from any overhanging limbs that present a severe risk of falling on pedestrians, free from weeds, and free from any and all obstructions or dangerous agencies of any kind and description whatsoever. Violation of this Section shall be punishable under the provisions of Section 100.220 of this Code.
B.
No person shall remove, damage, or otherwise destroy or damage any City sidewalk and/or hike-and-bike b:ails without having lawful authority to do so. Any person our company who shall damage a sidewalk, including the City, shall restore the sidewalk to its original as-built condition. Violation of this Section shall be punishable under the provisions of Section 100.220 of this Code.
C.
It
shall be the duty of the owner of a property which fronts and/or abuts
any sidewalk or hike-and-bike trail to keep such sidewalk in good
repair at all times. If a sidewalk or trail contains broken or deteriorated
portions or portions which due to roots or other causes have been
elevated so as to create a trip hazard such owner shall, upon notification
from the City, repair such sidewalk or trail to a safe and useable
condition. If any such owner fails to do so, the sidewalk or trail
may be repaired by the City and the cost of the repairs shall be assessed
as a special tax lien against such abutting property, also as hereinafter
provided. Any person who receives such a notice to repair may request,
in writing, within ten (10) business days of receiving such a notice,
a hearing before the City Administrator to determine if such notice
was rightfully issued and/or the manner of repair which is appropriate.
D.
It shall be the duty of the owner of a property which fronts and/or abuts any sidewalk or hike-and-bike trail to remove all snow and ice from such sidewalk within forty-eight (48) hours from the time of the inclement weather event which caused such snow and ice accumulation. If any such owner fails to do so, the procedure for abatement as established in Subsection (C) shall be used.
E.
In
the case of the following causes of damage or deterioration of a City
sidewalk or hike-and-bike trail it shall be the responsibility of
the City of Knob Noster, and not the property owner, to repair or
replace such sidewalk:
1.
Damage from parkway trees or shrubs.
2.
Damage from work performed by City employees or other contractors
working on behalf of the City.
3.
Damage to any sidewalk that abuts City-owned property beyond that
of standard City easements or rights-of-way.
4.
Damage to any sidewalk entrances and exits at street intersections
that may require compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
F.
All
sidewalks repaired or constructed in the City shall be done according
to the officially adopted standards of the American Public Works Association
Kansas City Metropolitan Chapter.
G.
The
duty of any property owner to repair the sidewalk as provided in this
Section shall be limited as follows:
1.
No property owner with a sidewalk covered by this Section shall have any duty to repair or replace the concrete or other surfacing material to the standards provided in Subsection (F), above, if the defect in question existed prior to March 1, 2021.
2.
The City Administrator shall cause a survey to be done to document
the condition of sidewalks in the City as of March 1, 2021, or as
soon thereafter as is practicable. A photo or video of a sidewalk
shall constitute prima facia evidence of its condition at the time
the photo or video was taken.
3.
Nothing in this Subsection (G) shall relieve a property owner from the owner's duty to keep the sidewalk clean from dirt, snow, ice, debris, and other materials as provided in this Section, nor to remove any weeds growing in the sidewalk, nor to maintain the physical sidewalk in at least the condition that it was in on March 1, 2021.
4.
Any section of sidewalk which is substantially repaired or replaced
after March 1, 2021, shall no longer be eligible for this exception.
The term "substantially" shall mean for any given section of sidewalk
that at least fifty percent (50%) of the section has been brought
up to then-current standards.
