Ashwaubenon, WI Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Obstruction Rules (2026)

Section 19-2-98 flatly prohibits encroaching upon, obstructing, or encumbering any street, alley, sidewalk, or land dedicated to public use, and it extends the ban to a property owner or occupant who merely allows such an encroachment to remain on the public way next to their premises. The only relief comes from the four exceptions listed in § 19-2-99. A sign or clock attached to a building may project up to six feet from the building face as long as it clears at least ten feet above the sidewalk, street, or alley.

An awning is allowed if it clears at least seven feet. Public utility encroachments already authorized by the Village are exempt outright. Goods, wares, merchandise, or fixtures being loaded or unloaded may sit on a sidewalk for up to three hours, but only if they extend no more than three feet onto it. Anything else placed in the right-of-way, from a parked dumpster to an unpermitted planter or sign, falls outside these carve-outs and violates § 19-2-98 on its face. Section 19-2-100 addresses construction sites specifically: when building materials are stacked on a street, alley, or sidewalk, the Director of Public Works may require the contractor to protect them with barricades or lights under conditions the director sets, separate from and in addition to the general encroachment ban.

Because Ashwaubenon's separate right-of-way permit scheme in §§ 19-2-77 through 19-2-90 governs excavation and utility work rather than casual obstructions, a business owner cannot cure an unlawful sidewalk obstruction by seeking an excavation permit; the object simply has to fit one of the four listed exceptions or come off the sidewalk.