Montgomery County Councilmember Roger Berliner called on the county’s department of transportation Thursday to find a solution to long-term sidewalk closures for development projects in the county.
Berliner said during a council committee hearing that having sidewalks closed by developers “seems to be the rule rather than the exception in a lot of the communities I represent.”
In downtown Bethesda in particular, several large-scale projects recently have resulted in multiple long-term sidewalk closures, forcing pedestrians to cross streets or walk into roads to get around them.
Berliner introduced an amendment in 2007 to the county’s road code that later passed that says sidewalks should only be closed to rebuild or repair a sidewalk, for work on abutting structures or by utility companies. That amendment allows the sidewalk on the other side of the street to be used for closures of less than two weeks, but accommodations are required on the same side of the street for closures longer than two weeks.
Emil Wolanin, the county’s chief of traffic and engineering, said transportation and enforcement officials are finding that developers are given waivers for short-term sidewalk closures, but then continuing to close the sidewalks past when they’re permitted.
“If they can get away with it,” Wolanin said, “they’ll encroach further and further out.”
Wolanin also pointed out that some developers continue to use a closed sidewalk as a staging area if enforcement officials aren’t checking on the status of their waivers. He said the department is examining how to issue stop-work orders at sites where sidewalk closures extend past the permitted date.
Berliner said the transportation department should require developers that are permitted to close sidewalks to post a sign showing the exact dates for the closure.
“After that date,” Berliner said, “any of us can say, you are not authorized to be here.”
In August, Berliner requested that the transportation department provide the number of requests it had received over the past three years from developers to close a sidewalk for more than two weeks.
Wolanin said the department is working on the request, but described it as a “monumental job” of sifting through plans for more than 2,000 projects.
Berliner responded: “I’m less interested in statistics than a solution, let’s get to the solution.”
Berliner Requests Sidewalk Closure Information
Latest Bethesda Sidewalk Closure Leads to More Business, Safety Concerns
Sidewalk closure on Farimont Avenue at Norfolk Avenue where an apartment building is being constructed.
Long-term sidewalk closures have taken place on Bethesda Avenue near the Lot 31 project. This picture was taken of closures in July. Credit: Kat Ignatova
A Kettler project previously closed the sidewalk on Old Georgetown Road, as pictured in this July photo, but it has since been reopened. Credit: Kat Ignatova