Lynchburg staff outline how sidewalks are added and funded; petition process, developer requirements, and grant programs explained

City officials presented an overview of how Lynchburg adds and maintains public sidewalks during the June 10 council work session, describing multiple funding sources and the city's standards for construction and accessibility.

Lee Newland of the planning department (presentation speaker) said sidewalks are added in several ways: as stand-alone city capital projects, as part of Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and federal grants (including Highway Safety Improvement Program, Transportation Alternatives Program and Safe Routes to School), as part of ancillary work on bridges or road reconstructions, and as required work by developers when new streets or subdivisions are constructed. Newland noted the city code requires sidewalks on at least one side of newly constructed subdivision streets and that many private developments must install sidewalks along frontage as part of site-plan review.

Newland said the city also has a petition provision in its code allowing property owners to request sidewalks with a 50-50 cost share between the owner and the city "contingent upon funding being available." He said the city gets relatively few petition requests. He gave technical standards: sidewalks are typically 5 to 8 feet wide depending on road classification and must meet PROWAG accessibility guidelines (a body of guidance linked to the Americans with Disabilities Act). He also provided a construction cost estimate: "Sidewalk's about $110 to $175 per linear foot," he said, and those figures exclude design, retaining walls, grading, handrails and other possible elements that increase cost.

Newland walked council through recent projects that included sidewalks as ancillary to larger work (Lakeside Drive Bridge, John Lynch Bridge, Link Road Bridge, Kemper Street Bridge, Fenwick Signal) and recent private developments that installed sidewalks (Rosedale, Bosch & Lomb, Centra Health, Liberty University among others). He listed upcoming projects with sidewalks, including Nationwide Drive, Old Forest Road (Kings Drive to the railroad bridge), and Millrace Drive phases funded by Transportation Alternatives Program.

On funding and prioritization, Newland said the revenue-sharing program is awarded every two years (50-50 cost share), the Transportation Alternatives grant is an annual competitive process and the Highway Safety Improvement Program is increasingly focusing on systemic, citywide investments. He said the Smart Scale program generally "won't really work for sidewalks." He also said the comprehensive plan's transportation element (required by state code) can be used to prioritize sidewalk needs and to develop cost projections.

Council members raised questions about maintenance and contracting (staff said maintenance and some construction are contracted out), right-of-way acquisition on roads like Leesville and Timberlake (Newland said many projects become costly because of right-of-way needs and railroad negotiations), and how the city's sidewalk ordinance treats redevelopment (Newland explained thresholds used to trigger sidewalk requirements for existing sites and said developments that already exceed thresholds are given a 5,000-square-foot allowance for additional development before a sidewalk would be required). He said residents can apply for exceptions in places where sidewalks are physically infeasible.

Ending

Staff suggested that the transportation element of the comprehensive plan would be the appropriate place to prioritize sidewalk investments and that many sidewalk expansions depend on available grant funding or city capital projects. Council members asked for further details on prioritization and funding timing as the comprehensive-plan revisions and capital programming continue.