Kokomo, IN Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Obstruction Rules (2026)

Section 97.03(A) of the Kokomo Code of Ordinances broadly bars obstructing or endangering, or permitting anything to obstruct or endanger, the public's free passage or proper use of any street, sidewalk, alley, or public place, subject only to the exceptions written elsewhere in the same section. Subsection (B), carried over from the 1975 Code § 22-5, narrows that general ban for one common situation: goods, wares, and merchandise may sit on a sidewalk for a reasonable time while a business loads or unloads them, but only if removed within 24 hours.

Section 97.02 backs the obstruction rule by separately barring interference with or damage to construction equipment or material used to build a street, alley, or sidewalk. Section 97.04 extends the same obstruction concept to rubbish and debris, barring anyone from depositing it in a street, alley, sidewalk, or public place except with the city's direction or consent. Section 97.03(D) adds a signage-specific obstruction rule: no temporary or permanent sign may be installed in the public right-of-way, and the City Engineer can order an owner to remove one, with the city removing and destroying it if the owner fails to act. Together, these sections in Chapter 97's General Provisions give the city several overlapping tools against sidewalk and street obstructions.