Shelby, MI Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)

Adopted January 27, 2025 by Ordinance No. 02-24B as part of the new Article III, Sidewalk Maintenance, § 430-23 splits responsibility for sidewalk cost between the Village and abutting owners. Subsection A states the general rule: the Village bears the cost of sidewalk replacement or repair. Subsection B carves out the exception that governs most real-world claims: where a sidewalk defect creating a pedestrian hazard is caused by a condition existing on the abutting property, such as, but not limited to, trees or other growth, surface drainage, on-site construction, vehicular traffic, or other on-site activities, the abutting property owner becomes responsible for repairing, maintaining, or otherwise keeping the sidewalk safe.

That owner is also made liable for all consequential injuries, damages, expenses, or costs resulting from the unsafe condition, and must fully indemnify the Village for any damages, costs, or expenses the Village incurs because of the owner's default, as well as any liability the Village faces to third parties. In practice this means a homeowner whose tree roots buckle the sidewalk, or whose downspout erodes it, pays for the repair and shoulders any lawsuit that follows a pedestrian's fall, while ordinary wear the Village itself did not trace to the abutting property remains the Village's cost.

The enforcement mechanism sits in the following sections: § 430-27 lets the enforcing officer issue a notice to abate noncompliance, and § 430-28 authorizes the Village to perform the repair itself and bill the owner if the defect is not corrected within 48 hours of that notice.