Bergenfield, NJ Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)

Section 273-4 of the Streets and Sidewalks chapter makes the owner or occupant of premises abutting a blue stone or concrete sidewalk responsible for maintaining it: broken flagstone must be repaired, the joints between flagstones must be kept even, and concrete surfaces must be kept roughened so they do not become smooth and slippery. Where the Borough has legally established a grade for a sidewalk, the owner must keep the walk at that grade. If a sidewalk falls out of repair, the owner or occupant does not get to wait for a deadline embedded in the ordinance itself; instead, the Borough Council sends written notice, and the owner or occupant must then repair it forthwith, restoring it to a good and passable condition consistent with the surface and grade standards in Subsection A.

If the owner defaults, the Borough may step in at its option, have the Foreman of the Public Works Department supervise the repair, and certify the cost to the Tax Collector, who adds it to the next tax bill as a lien-backed charge. This sits alongside § 273-8, which separately authorizes the Borough to run its own program repairing sidewalks buckled by tree roots at least a half foot into the public right-of-way, coordinating the timing with the Shade Tree Committee so root pruning lines up with the repair work.