Long wait for sidewalk repair

DIDSBURY - A local elderly couple say they have been waiting since 1991 to get the sidewalk in front of their house fixed by the town.

The uneven and cracked sidewalk on 16th Street is a real hazard to the children and seniors who often walk down the street, said homeowner Bea Niedersteiner.

In June of 2017 a friend visiting Bea and her husband Werner tripped on the sidewalk hitting her head and required several stitches, she said.

After notifying the town, Neidersteiner said that someone from public works inspected the sidewalk and she was told it was definitely in need of repair and would be fixed back in September of 2017.

"Every year for 15 years I made a point of asking when I went to the town to pay the taxes," she said. "Halfway down it's broken in half. In front of the driveway it's split so it drops. It's a broken sidewalk so, of course, it always pools and fills up with ice. You can trip on it. That path is used all the time. The high school is right there."

In October of 2017, Neidersteiner said she came home and saw some barricades and thought the town was finally going to fix the sidewalk.

"They did the one next door that no ones lives in," she said. "It's the duplex that's owned by the province. No one's lived there for four years."

Greg Skotheim, manager of public works for Didsbury, said that in 2016 a section of sidewalk was replaced adjacent to the Niedersteiner property due to having a significant trip hazard due to a low spot that had sunk.

"The Niedersteiner property has a crack and is older but is still structurally viable," said Skotheim. "I am hoping we can upgrade this street in the next few years and at that time all the sidewalks and curbs will be replaced."

Skotheim said that over the last five years the town has replaced $500,000 of very poor sidewalks that are crumbling and represent a trip hazard.