{"id":116354,"date":"2026-02-17T20:17:26","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T20:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/116354\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T20:17:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T20:17:26","slug":"hellertown-starting-renewed-enforcement-of-sidewalk-ordinance-saucon-source","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/116354\/","title":{"rendered":"Hellertown Starting Renewed Enforcement of Sidewalk Ordinance \u2013 Saucon Source"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the wake of concerns about the safety of borough sidewalks raised by a resident last fall<\/a>, Hellertown officials say they will begin inspecting sidewalks and notifying property owners whose sidewalks are found to be faulty beginning March 1.<\/p>\n

That announcement was shared in a Feb. 12 Facebook post by the Borough of Hellertown<\/a> in which harsh winter weather was cited as a potential culprit for damaged concrete.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith repeated freezing and thawing, it is very common for sidewalks to shift, lift, crack or become uneven,\u201d it noted. \u201cThese winter conditions can create tripping hazards that may not be visible until the snow and ice have completely melted.\u201d<\/p>\n

The borough is asking residents to examine the condition of their sidewalks, curbs, driveway aprons and ADA ramps once the snow that may be covering them has melted. A sizeable snowpack has been on the ground since late January, but with daytime highs in the 40s this week, much of that snow and ice that has made walking more difficult is now disappearing.<\/p>\n

Officials said examples of damage that could result in a failed inspection include concrete slabs that are heaved by half an inch or more, large holes or cracks, missing slabs, missing ADA ramps, sunken concrete or sidewalks that are too narrow.<\/p>\n

Concrete sidewalk repairs and replacement can cost thousands of dollars, and the post indicated that the borough will work with residents who may suddenly be faced with a large bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Borough\u2019s goal is to work cooperatively with residents by providing guidance, reasonable timeframes and clear communication before any enforcement action is considered,\u201d it said. \u201cAs permitted by ordinance, if repairs are ultimately not completed, the Borough may perform the work and assess the cost to the property.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hellertown\u2019s sidewalk ordinance<\/a>\u2013adopted in 1980 and last updated in 2005\u2013is available online for property owners to review.<\/p>\n

Questions about the ordinance should be directed to the borough Zoning and Codes Enforcement office, which is overseen by zoning officer Terri Fadem<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Several residents have commented on the Facebook post to question and\/or express frustration with the renewed enforcement of the ordinance, as well as the borough shade tree ordinance that typically requires replacement of street trees unless a waiver is granted.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is repulsive that the Borough requires home owners to plant trees in areas that will impact their sidewalks while simultaneously expecting miraculously maintained sidewalks,\u201d commented Marina Long. \u201cThis is a disproportionately harsh rule on the elderly and lower income families, prevents homeowners from creating a low maintenance and manageable property and creates hazards for pedestrians. It is (a) truly shameful combination of policies. The borough cannot claim a partnership with it\u2019s citizens in maintaining a walkable and accommodating community while these policies exist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe the borough should be doing this work on the public sidewalks themselves instead of pushing this burden onto the taxpayers,\u201d commented Matthew Incalcaterra.<\/p>\n

Although the majority of commenters expressed opposition to the enforcement effort, at least one resident complimented the borough for promoting pedestrian safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cTHIS! Walking my kiddos to and from the school has been dangerous in the past because of sidewalks being that broken, lifted, etc.,\u201d commented Karen Cooney.<\/p>\n

Still others used the comments thread to share information about their concrete businesses or recommend repair specialists.<\/p>\n

What do you think about the borough\u2019s upcoming sidewalk inspection initiative and the state of sidewalks in Hellertown in general? Tell us by sharing a comment.<\/p>\n

\"SidewalkUneven sidewalk along Constitution Avenue near the Hellertown Area Library that was damaged by tree roots and replaced. (FILE PHOTO)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In the wake of concerns about the safety of borough sidewalks raised by a resident last fall, Hellertown…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":116355,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[119,121,120,10493,22265,7356,204,3401,2696,1020,7363,10496,1087],"class_list":{"0":"post-116354","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-allentown","8":"tag-allentown","9":"tag-allentown-headlines","10":"tag-allentown-news","11":"tag-borough","12":"tag-code","13":"tag-enforcement","14":"tag-hellertown","15":"tag-inspection","16":"tag-ordinance","17":"tag-pedestrian","18":"tag-safety","19":"tag-sidewalk","20":"tag-zoning"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=116354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/116355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=116354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=116354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=116354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}