Troy, NY Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Obstruction Rules (2026)

Sidewalk obstruction in the City of Troy, Rensselaer County, New York, is governed by Troy City Code § 251-3(A), part of Chapter 251, the Public Street Ordinance adopted by the Troy City Council. The definition in § 251-2 gives the word street a wide reach: all public streets, avenues, highways, squares, alleys, lanes, public grounds and sidewalks in the City.

The prohibition reaches three groups of people. It is unlawful to place an obstruction, to maintain one, or to permit one to be placed or maintained. The location test covers the street or sidewalk opposite any lot, store or building the person owns or occupies, in whole or in part, and also any street in the City. The list of prohibited items is broad: any article, thing, case, box, fence, counter or structure which in any manner encumbers or obstructs the street or sidewalk or in any way impedes, restricts or interrupts the full and free use of it. The only exception is for what the chapter expressly provides, so a storefront display or a stacked delivery counts unless an express provision covers it.

The express provisions follow in the same section. Freestanding portable signs, objects, banners, installations and outdoor seating that are periodically moved onto the site must meet the § 251-3(B) criteria, including that no portable sign obstructs any public right-of-way or private property other than that on which it is located and that items other than signs cannot obstruct a right-of-way to the degree that public passage is not allowed. Public passage must be maintained to a minimum of 36 inches in width. Those items need a sidewalk use permit from the Bureau of Code Enforcement, discussed on the City's sidewalk dining page.

Related duties sit in neighboring sections. Owners and occupants must keep the gutter and sidewalk in front of their lot clean, in good order and repair under § 251-4, and cloth awnings over a sidewalk cannot hang lower than seven feet above the sidewalk or extend out more than six feet from the building, must be drawn up at sunset, and cannot rest on posts or pillars on the sidewalk under § 251-5. Excavations in a public street need a permit from the Commissioner of Public Works under § 251-9. Playing ball in a street so as to unduly or unsafely obstruct traffic is barred by § 251-7.