Medina committee advances ‘safe sidewalk’ program, seeks ballot language to use 108 funds for sidewalks

Finance committee chair Mister Coyne on Tuesday moved forward with a proposal to overhaul Medina’s sidewalk program so the city would take responsibility for replacing and repairing sidewalks while property owners remain responsible for driveways and clearing snow and ice.

The proposal — drafted after Streets & Sidewalks Committee discussion — would establish a calendar-year “safe sidewalk” program that uses annual inspections and a mix of in-house grinding (“shaving”) for minor offsets and contractor replacement for severely damaged panels. Coyne told the committee the city would use GIS to map problem areas and prioritize work by ward.

The ordinance change would keep driveway maintenance on property owners but shifts the duty to repair sidewalks to the city for qualifying conditions. Coyne said the city could buy a 16-inch rotary shaving machine for grinding height differentials of about an inch or less to reduce costs. "The goal is to keep the cost down as much as possible," he said.

Why it matters: Council members framed sidewalks as a public asset used by schoolchildren, seniors and residents with mobility devices. Several members argued that spending tax revenue to maintain sidewalks is consistent with other municipal public-works responsibilities; others said homeowners should still bear more of the cost. Dennis Hanwell, a Medina resident who spoke during public comment, cautioned the council about potential taxpayer claims from homeowners who previously paid for repairs if the city changes course midstream.

Council action and next steps: The committee approved the ordinance changes "subject to the law director's approval" and directed staff to refine language over the next three weeks. The committee also approved a separate motion asking the law director to draft November ballot language to add sidewalks to the permitted uses of Medina’s 108 account (the 0.25 percentage allocation of city income tax that funds roads and utilities). Coyne estimated 108-account receipts at about $2.8–3.0 million per year and said adding sidewalks would allow routine funding without increasing the tax rate.

What remains unresolved: The committee asked the law director and staff to clarify inspection authority and explicit limits for privately owned sidewalks (homeowner associations and private roads), to define how the city will treat properties that already paid for sidewalk repairs, and to spell out criteria that determine when grinding is acceptable versus replacement. The motion was contingent on the law director’s final review and edits.

Public comment: Sally Gardner (who identified herself on the record) asked whether homeowners association sidewalks would be covered; Coyne and staff said the draft will explicitly limit the city’s responsibility to sidewalks in the city’s public right-of-way and not privately owned sidewalks.

The committee’s approval allows staff to produce final ordinance language and ballot wording for council consideration at the next meeting.