New Tools to Prepare Property Owners for Sidewalk Fee
Starting this year, the City and County of Denver will begin charging property owners a fee to fund a citywide sidewalk repair and construction program approved by voters in 2022. The sidewalk program will repair existing sidewalks, widen sidewalks that are too narrow and construct sidewalks where they’re currently missing. A fee to fund the program will be included on people’s stormwater bills, with the first half of the annual sidewalk fee charged the first half of the year and the second half of the sidewalk fee charged the second half of the year. Per adjustments made to the original ordinance, the vast majority of property owners will pay a $150 flat fee annually. Information about our sidewalk affordability program can be found at www.denvergov.org/DOTIrebates.
Residents can visit www.denvergov.org/sidewalks for frequently asked questions and to access the new tools and resources listed below that were designed to support the launch of the new sidewalk program, including:
- a new fee lookup tool property owners can use to confirm their sidewalk fee, based on their address and property frontage.
- a form people can use to apply for an instant rebate on their sidewalk fee based on income and household size. Property owners already receiving the instant rebate for solid waste management services will automatically receive the sidewalk rebate and need not re-apply until their current trash rebate ends.
- a place on Denver’s Online Services Hub where people can report major sidewalk damage. Note that sidewalk repairs are not on-demand, but damage reports received by the department are being inspected and triaged and those that meet certain criteria are being placed on a spot repair program. Reports of major sidewalk damage that have been received and inspected by DOTI and that meet spot repair program criteria can be viewed on this map along with their status. Examples of sidewalk issues that may be addressed in the spot repair program include:
o adjoining sections of sidewalk with an elevation difference greater than one inch
o adjoining sections of sidewalk with gaps greater than one inch
o extensive raveling and major breaking
Note the city does not currently have a timeline for when specific segments of sidewalk will be repaired or installed as part of the new sidewalk program. As it begins to receive revenue from the sidewalk fee in 2025, DOTI will secure a concrete contractor to make spot repairs and professional services support to develop a sidewalk master plan required by the ordinance that will include an initial investment plan. Currently, the department is looking to procure program management support.