I would also like to complain about this. It looked like they did it without any kind of permit.

I filed this way back in July, but no action appears to be taken under the previous Comcate system. I was told that if I wanted to keep it active I needed to file it again under the new SeeClickFix system. Hopefully the City will be better able to respond.

Is it okay to pull out plants from the strip between the curb and sidewalk and fill it with concrete?

I asked the new landlords of the rental property if they had checked with the city before they cemented it over, and their attitude was that they could do whatever they wanted.

This also seems to contradict Alameda's goal of reducing urban runoff.

Status?

Status?

Status? Hello?

Status?

Public Works has received your sidewalk repair request and assigned it to our sidewalk inspector. Given we receive hundreds of these requests per year on virtually every stretch of Alameda’s 260 miles of sidewalk, your electronic submission goes a long way to helping you and Public Works track the request.

Per Alameda’s municipal code and state law, property owners are responsible for the sidewalk adjacent to their property. As a courtesy, the City completes sidewalk repairs when the repair has been caused by a City-maintained street tree. Thus, the City inspector will inspect the repair to evaluate if it is less than ¾ inch and has been caused by a City-maintained street tree. If not, the owner will be sent a notice to repair the sidewalk. If the repair has been caused by a street tree, in most instances, Public Works’ Teamleader and his shop will grind the sidewalk and/or insert a fillet, and place the location on our permanent repair list. This process to get on the permanent repair list typically takes 30 days.

The permanent repair, however, will likely take much longer. A permanent repair is when new concrete is poured to fix the repair. Nearly 700 of these repairs were performed last year, most by the City’s annual sidewalk repair contractor. Those locations, and their number, are chosen based on limited available funds and are completed in order of the repair’s submission date. Even though Public Works has nearly doubled its annual repair rate recently, there is a still a backlog of thousands of sidewalk repairs, largely due to years and years of underinvestment.

Thank you in advance for your help (and patience) in maintaining Alameda’s sidewalks.

fillet is requested.

thanks

Why are you going to put asphalt over the concrete? The whole purpose of reporting this is that the planting strip was removed and paved over with concrete. I filed this back in July of 2015 on the previous comcate system After 14 months, this is the reply?

sorry , I was responding to other location.

In general, City will remove the solid planter strip when City will work at this location.

thanks

This issue was recategorized from Sidewalks to Code Enforcement.

PW Admin Gail assigned this issue to Code Enforcement - CG

This is not Public Works, we do not maintain private planter strips, that is the property owner's responsibility.

Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention. This case has been transferred to our Code Enforcement tracking system and will be closed here in See, Click, Fix. Code Enforcement cases are responded to based on a priority schedule set by the Alameda City Council. Cases involving health and life safety are the highest priority. Should you have questions regarding the status please contact Code Enforcement at 510 747-6818.

Thanks for following up on this issue. My apologies for submitting it to the wrong department in the first place.

It took three years for this to even get transferred to the right department and then it is immediately closed? When I filed this three years ago, Code Enforcement said that it was the responsibility of PW. Now the finger gets pointed back to Code Enforcement. This took three years. Could the responsible manager please accept responsibility?

Do not close this until the problem is addressed.

whe

Steve, it's Liam. Can you call me on my direct line, 510-747-7962, after 3 pm today so I can give you an update on this? Thanks, Liam

Thank you, Liam. Called you at 3:10 and got voicemail. Others are interested as well, so for the sake of transparency, the update can be written here.

Thanks!

Please keep this issue open. Hardening our open spaces (even very small ones) would seem to contradict our goals for resiliency.

Ruth and Steve:

Public Works does not permit hardscape improvements like this in the parking strip, and we are not aware of a permit being pulled for this work. However, the work seems to have occurred along with the adjacent lawn being converted to drought-tolerant, and the sidewalk work is consistent with the adjoining sidewalks and doesn't present a tripping hazard. All of these are factors, including Public Works' limited resources, in considering our enforcement options.

While SeeClickFix is not the right platform for a further discussion about enforcement, I do invite the both of you to keep this issue in discussions of the climate plan and keep the pressure on me, Public Works, and our community to figure out creative, cost-effective ways of replacing permeable surfaces with impermeable ones, especially in our right of way.

As you both know, you can always find me at either 510-747-7962 or lgarland@alamedaca.gov.

Thank you,
Liam

Are they going to receive any fine or penalty for this illegal work?

As a homeowner living next to this converted rental unit, I find it galling that out of town landlords get off scott free, while I have paid for half a dozen permits for the work done on my house.

I respect the laws of this city, and it's frustrating to see out of town landlords taking money out of our community while lowering the quality of life for local residents.