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Op-Ed: Be Considerate; Shovel

A concerned member of the Crown Heights community submitted this op-ed, in which he laments the apparent lack of consideration some homeowners have towards the elderly and those with young children when it comes to shoveling the snow in front of their property.

by Anonymous:

As we recover from an almost ‘historical blizzard’ and enjoy the beautiful scenery from our windows, there is one thing that’s often overlooked. It seems that Crown Heights has become immune to our fellow neighbors, landlords and store owners who don’t shovel the snow off their sidewalks.

I do want to point out and thank all those who consistently shovel their sidewalk, bundling up for the job and doing it properly. Many are lightly salted to avoid anyone slipping, and this is much appreciated. Thank you!

Today though, I walked behind an elderly man. He was dressed in full gear, but there are no boots yet created that will enable us to walk through a foot of un-shoveled, melting snow. Kicking his way through the snow, every few homes he had to slow down- way down- to navigate past yet another home owner who abandoned his responsibility.

A few minutes later I noticed a mother with a stroller. The sidewalk was partially cleared: it had a narrow path that measured 6 inches wide (I’m being generous), and had snow falling in from the walls of snow on each side. Even with her expensive, large wheels, she had to heave first the front, then the back of the stroller through. That was until someone kindly stopped and offered to help her.

Any individual- with or without a stroller, young or old- has a hard time walking through piles of un-shoveled snow. Once its ice, it’s more than inconvenient: its real danger. No rubbers or boots are enough. Mothers have to literally pick up their strollers or small children to get through the snow. Although it has become standard, please understand that it’s inconsiderate to leave the snow or ice outside your home. A shovel doesn’t cost more than $15, and if you are unable to shovel- asking someone to do it for you is under $15 as well.

I don’t want to tell on other Yidden, and certainly don’t want to cause negative feelings among our community. When I pass a home that has a sidewalk full of slushy, dirty snow, or ice still sitting in the same place for over 12 hours, I assume that the home owner needs an extra push. Perhaps the only option would be to call 311 and report the address to the government.

Looking forward to safer and kinder streets,

Your neighbor

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26 Comments

  • The City owns the Sidewalk

    100% proper thing to do for the elderly.

    However, the government mandating homeowners to take responsibility for government owned territory is wrong.

    It’s the city’s failure to clear the sidewalks and they dump the responsibility to we the people.

    For Lexus SUV’s and minivan shoppers – that yeah, the government cares for and clears their road. But for the elderly on the sidewalks – that’s YOUR problem, people.

    Why aren’t parked car owners responsible to clear their portion of the road? They brainwash you so well that you actually have come to believe it is those who pay property tax every year pay for the privilege to serve the public.

  • שכן טוב

    Now my “your neighbor” is threatening to call the police on me.

    What happened to our religious teaching, “love your neighbor as thy self”???

    Maybe she thinks its for her neighbors “good”, since she is only trying to “help” because her neighbor “needs an extra push”.

    maybe her neighbor needs an extra slap in the face as well??

    Instead of running around handing out expert advice, how about picking up a shovel and doing it yourself.

    במקום שאין איש השתדל להיות איש

    Looking forward to “kinder” neighbors roaming our streets.

    Your “other” neighbor

  • שכן רע

    while at it, please don’t dump all that snow onto my turf, then knock on my door offering to shovel for a dollar, then break my window if I say no

    And also please don’t use a squeegee on my windows.

  • Frustrated!

    My sentiments EXACTLY. Why are people SO thoughtless? Especially when some have quite a few children in their family old enough to shovel??

  • declasse intellectual

    Is there not a regulation on the books that states that the sidewalks must be shoveled? However, I have seen far too many sidewalks in front of homes, apartment buildings and businesses not touched in Crown Heights, in Boro Park and elsewhere. If the police have been so vigilant in giving out tickets to car owners, why not for this violation? Some places the first violation starts at $100.00. And, then have you ever tried to cross the street; now with the way the city plows, that has become an Olmypic obstacle course. And, no excuses accepted, a I have been in other cities whee they have had much more snow and the streets and sidewalks are cleared and in better condition then they are here.

  • Neighborly

    Just want to say that I am a bubby and still find the time to shovel not only MY sidewalk, but two of my elderly neighbor’s sidewalks, as well. I also shovel out the 2 corners closest to my home so that people can cross the street corners safely and easily.

  • Unacceptable

    When I see a sidewalk un-shoveled and I know the family has MANY able-bodied children, it is SO contemptible to me. They are outright Thoughtless and inconsiderate!! If they’ve raised lazy children, then hire someone to shovel. There is NO excuse to NOT shovel.

  • Kop Mentch

    HELLO, is anyone home?!

    The sidewalks belong to the city and are city property. They do NOT belong to the homeowner. Why in the world does a homeowner need to maintain CITY PROPERTY?

    Maybe the homeowner should also shovel the STREET in front of his house (I guess the city didn’t think of this!). Better yet, the homeowner should be required to fix all cracked sidewalks and pot holes in the street in front of his house!

    Maybe the homeowner must trim and prune the city trees and repair fire hydrants in front of his house!

    The whole idea of downloading the city’s responsibility of maintaining CITY PROPERTY onto the homeowners is totally absurd and MUST be challenged!!

    When the city gives me exclusive RIGHTS to the sidewalk, then I will accept exclusive responsibility, but as long as the sidewalk is public property, the public (aka as the City) is responsible for it!

    There is no difference between responsibility for the sidewalk and the street. The sidewalk is where people walk and the street where cars go. If the homeowner has a “public duty” imposed that he “must” maintain the sidewalk, then why not also impose the duty on the street in front of his house???

  • Anonymous

    I totally agree!!!
    No one cleans the snow on their sidewalk- except our family and a few others……
    It’s really dangerous!!!!
    Plz clean ur snow!!!

  • SEREL MANESS

    I AGREE WITH THE WRITER,THERE’S ALSO THOSE THAT GO AWAY TO THE SOUTH OR VISIT GRANDCHILDREN,OR THE LANDOWERS THEMSELF CANNOT SHOVEL THE WALKS,I HAVE SEEN ELDERY LADIES DOING IT THEMSELVES,I COULDN’T OFFER AS I TOO HAVE MY LIMITS,PERHAPS PEOPLE BE WILLING TO DO IT FOR THEM OR IF YOU KNOW YOU AIN’T GONNA BE THERE AT LEAST ASK SOMEONE ELSE TO DO IT

  • Are u crazy?

    H-E-L-L-O, it is CITY property!
    The city DOWNLOADS it’s property – the side walks, to the home owners.

    Why does the home owner need to clean the side walk which is OWNED BY THE CITY???

    Maybe the home owner should also shovel the street in front of his house???

    Maybe the home owner must maintain the city trees too?!

    And while we are at it, the city should also get the home owner to repair any fire hydrants, cracked side walk AND pot holes on street in front of his home!

    The whole BASIS for obligating the home owner to maintain CITY PROPERTY is NUTS!!

    Problem is, once the city IMPOSES this UNFAIR obligation of maintaining the side walks onto the home owner, we, the simple minded people, now blame the home owner when the CITY’S PROPERTY is not shovelled!

    We drink the kool-aid and blindly accept this unfairness, to the point that the writer and many commentators are ready to lynch the home owner!.

    • Ezra

      You’re obviously not a homeowner. I am, and as a matter of fact, we are indeed responsible for cracked sidewalks and suchlike. (Or, if you leave it to the city to do, they’ll bill you for it.) In the same way, a homeowner is responsible for the first 18 inches into the street in front of their house, and can be ticketed for litter there (which has happened to me in the past).

      So yes, the OP is correct. It is absolutely the responsibility of the homeowner to clear a proper path (or to have someone – be it a family member or a hired worker – do it).

  • It is a LAW to clean you sidewalks

    Hate to break it to you all but there is actually a law stating that homeowners and shop owners must shovel their sidewalks within 4 hours of the snowfall.
    http://www.myfoxny.com/story/24644660/what-you-need-to-know-about-nycs-sidewalk-snow-shoveling-law

    And if the law isn’t wnought to convince you, stop being selfish and ridiculous saying oh it’s the city’s property. That is downright childish and inconsiderate to your fellow yidden.

  • Meir

    We have a neighbor who never shovels his snow. Today I sent your article to him and he shoveled his snow right away.

    Thank you for your article!

  • Chaim H.

    G-d Almighty should bless me that I should have a large property, (health and strength) to shovel the snow from, oh ye, a large corner house will be great!.

    **************
    To all those lazy individuals using excuses as to why not to shovel.
    I understand you may have no love (Ahavas Yisroel) for anybody else in your neighborhood and therefore don’t care about anybody getting hurt or killed.*

    But what about your very own family, your wife, your kids or perhaps your parents, have you no love or care in the world for their safety, I mean, after all its “not your responsibly, it’s the cities”?

    If you have any legal arguments to make, take it up with the courts…sue the city etc…until them, shovel YOUR snow!!!

    **********
    March 21, 2011 R’ Hendel Keller of Crown Heights passed away at age 34, after critical injuries sustained after he slipped and fell on snow/ice, while making a delivery (for Raskins fish).

  • It is a LAW to never tal-tale to a government

    According to a religion called Judaism.

    Hate to brake it to you but that law is firmly based in halakha.

    And if the law isn’t enough to convince you, stop using the reporting laws of NYC as an excuse or right to do away with the laws of ethics.

  • Crown heights resident

    I am saddened that the first response by some people is, “that isn’t my responsibility.” For shame. Crown Heights is a community and shoveling your sidewalk is the right thing to do.

    And for all the folks who complain that the government shouldn’t force you to shovel your sidewalk, if you are reaping the benefits of NYC services, perhaps you should reject that assistance.

    I recently broke my foot and am temporarily using a cane. I know not to walk down certain streets because there are many homeowners who dont shovel.

  • Wondered

    I have seen some really sophisticated snow-removal machines, some of them ridden and some pushed like a lawnmower.

    I have always wondered why the community council does get such a machine to shovel the streets (at least Kingston) since there are many elderly people living here. We have many organizations for the elderly k”ah but, IMO, the physical safety of all our residents, including the elderly, comes first. This in no way, means to absolve property owners (and it’s not just the homes. Many ‘vacated’ properties never clear the snow) from clearing their snow.

    Also, for the poster who keeps griping about the sidewalk being city property – get a life ( or a law degree) . If we had a dollar for every stupid city law we would all be millionaires.

    p.s. B”H, I am a homeowner and I shovel my sidewalk completely.

    • CHLEAKS

      Because the Crown Heights Jewish Community Council Inc, is a corrupt entity.

      An entity who has pocketed over 50 million of our tax dollars.

      I wonder, why you would even expect them to do anything, is there anything (program/assistance) that you can point to and contribute it to the CHJCC (that benefits everyone in the community)?

  • Ethics

    Fine, let it be unethical to actively not clean the snow within my own personal space.

    But if you react by passively entering my space, claiming it as yours, and covertly tatelle-taling to an authority resembling a childhood authority figure, while hidden behind the protection of anonymously – that is even MORE unethical.

    Its like if the Israeli landowner didn’t clean his snow, a palestinian would become so angry that he will become a suicide bomber in order to take avenge for all those people who nebach had to get a pair of boots and ‘schlep’ through the snow.

    Which is more unethical???

  • Ethics

    Or, come to think about it, its like if the police were perceived to be unfair while they were doing their job – not everybody is perfect – someone would get so mad he’d shoot two police officers in the head, take a bunch of jews hostage, and kill another four.

    Which is more unethical?

  • mad winter

    Please don’t use name when you don’t know what the truth it was not snow ok someone in the know Keller famly