Buffalo, NY Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)

Buffalo City Code Chapter 413, Article VII governs sidewalk construction and maintenance. Section 413-48 makes it the duty of every owner or occupant of any premises fronting a public street or ground to keep the sidewalk in good order and repair and to allow no accumulation of dirt, refuse or other material on it. That duty sits alongside related obligations in the same article: Section 413-43 lets the Commissioner of Public Works order an owner to grade and level the sidewalk between the street line and curbline at a fall of no more than half an inch per foot, and Section 413-44 requires the owner or occupant to lay, re-lay and keep in repair sidewalks, plus the water, sewer and gas service pipes serving the premises, whenever the Common Council orders the work.

If an owner or occupant ignores a Commissioner's notice for 20 days under Section 413-44 or 413-45, the Department of Public Works can do the work itself and the Common Council assesses the cost against the property as a lien, reported monthly under Section 413-45(D). One carve-out: if a sidewalk is damaged by trees or roots on city-owned land, Section 413-44(E) puts the repair cost on the Department of Public Works, not the owner. Anyone reconstructing a sidewalk needs a written permit from the Department of Public Works under Section 413-46, which sets a four-foot minimum width, requires concrete, and bars wood, plank or asphalt patch repairs except for the city's own temporary fixes. The Commissioner of Public Works advertises annually for construction and repair bids under Section 413-47, with contracts awarded under Charter Section 665.