Garland, TX Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)

Section 31.134 makes the abutting property owner responsible for keeping the sidewalk, parkway, and driveway next to their property in good and safe condition, and lists specific hazard triggers rather than leaving the standard vague: a two-inch or greater elevation difference between adjoining sidewalk sections, a fissure creating a gap of one and one-half inches or more, a spalled finish that destabilizes the walking surface, missing corners or sidewalk pieces, cross-slope exceeding 5 percent, sunken or slanted sections that pond water, and uplifted or sunken sidewalks with longitudinal grades over 5 percent or steeper than the adjacent curb.

A defective or hazardous sidewalk is declared a nuisance, and the owner must reconstruct or repair it within 30 days of a written notice from the Streets Department, except for the portion of residential property fronting a street classified Type A through E on the Thoroughfare Plan; failing to repair within that window is itself an offense (§ 31.136). If the owner still does not comply, the City may do the work itself and bill the owner personally, and after 30 days of nonpayment the City files a lien on the property, second only to tax and street-improvement liens, carrying 10 percent annual interest (§ 31.137(A)).

The City may also make emergency repairs to an immediately dangerous condition and invoice the owner directly, though the owner can demand a hearing on the reasonableness of the cost within ten days (§ 31.137(B)). The abutting owner, not the City, is primarily liable for injury or damage a defective sidewalk causes (§ 31.135).