Santa Fe, NM Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Santa Fe City Code § 23-1.6
- Duty holder
- Owner or person in control of the lot
- Notice required
- Immediate notice to public works department
- Appeal window
- 15 days to file written appeal
- City remedy
- City repairs and liens the property
Summary
City code makes the owner of any lot or property responsible for keeping the adjoining footway or sidewalk in safe repair. If a sidewalk becomes loose, broken or unsafe for pedestrians, the owner must notify the public works department right away and get repairs done promptly, or the city can order and complete the work at the owner's expense.
A. No person owning or in charge or control of any lot or property within the city shall permit any footway or sidewalk contiguous thereto or running along the street line thereof to be out-of-repair, loose or broken or to be unsafe to pedestrians. B. The person owning or in charge or control of any lot or property within the city where there exists a footway or sidewalk contiguous thereto or running along the street line thereof which is out-of-repair, loose or broken or is unsafe to pedestrians, shall immediately notify the public works department of the city of the aforesaid need for repair of the sidewalk and when the repairs shall be promptly completed.
Full Breakdown
6 of the Santa Fe City Code puts sidewalk upkeep squarely on the abutting property owner, not the city. Paragraph A forbids any owner, or anyone in charge or control of a lot, from letting the footway or sidewalk running along their street frontage stay out-of-repair, loose, broken or unsafe to pedestrians. Paragraph B turns that prohibition into an affirmative duty: once such a defect exists, the responsible owner must immediately notify the public works department of the need for repair and see that the repair is completed promptly.
7 lets the public works department director step in, issue a notice of violation, and require the owner to repair, improve or reconstruct the sidewalk to current sidewalk standards and ADA standards. That follow-on section gives the owner thirty days to begin the work after being served notice, and fifteen days to file a written appeal with the public works director; unresolved cases go to a hearing officer appointed by the city manager, whose recommendation goes to the city manager for a final, appealable decision.
If the owner still doesn't comply, the city may do the repair itself and place a lien for the cost against the property, enforceable under Sections 3-36-1 through 3-36-5 NMSA 1978, and an owner who ignores a final repair order can also be held liable for any pedestrian injury the disrepair causes.
Violations & Fines
An owner who lets a sidewalk stay broken or unsafe and ignores the notice requirement can be issued a formal notice of violation by the public works department director under subsection 23-1.7. Noncompliance after that notice lets the city perform the repair itself and record a lien against the property for the cost, and an owner who never fixes a hazardous sidewalk after final notice can be held liable for resulting pedestrian injuries.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has to fix a broken sidewalk in Santa Fe?
What do I do if the sidewalk in front of my house is broken?
What if I ignore a sidewalk repair notice?
Can I appeal a sidewalk repair order?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Fe
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