Elmhurst Imposes Sidewalk Fee On Builders

ELMHURST, IL – Elmhurst aldermen on Monday voted to impose a $5,500 sidewalk fee on homebuilders in neighborhoods without sidewalks.

The money would then go into a sidewalk account. It would be spent in areas where the city sees the greatest need for sidewalks, such as routes to schools.

Originally, a City Council committee considered requiring builders to install sidewalks.

But then the committee determined it was more efficient to build sidewalks a block at a time, rather than builders installing sidewalks to nowhere. And the committee said the city could be strategic with the money, using it where it was most needed.

At Monday's council meeting, Ward 4 Alderwoman Noel Talluto criticized the proposed policy from the city's Development, Planning and Zoning Committee, headed by Ward 1 Alderwoman Marti Deuter.

"This is a flat-out redistribution of one person's money to another person determined by the government with little transparency," Talluto said.

City surveys, she said, show few residents consider sidewalks a priority.

She noted the committee estimated the fee would raise $55,000 a year. At that rate, she said, it would take the city more than 300 years to install sidewalks in front of the 2,200 houses without them.

Talluto questioned how the proposed fee would work with the longstanding policy that the city pays half the sidewalk costs on blocks where 60 percent of residents agree to install them.

She said participants in the cost-share program would be "sorry suckers" compared with those who get free sidewalks.

However, Ward 2 Alderman Jacob Hill said no neighborhood has taken advantage of the cost-share program for 15 years. With cost-sharing, he said, it would take well over 300 years to complete the sidewalk network.

Ward 3 Alderman Michael Bram and Ward 6 Alderwoman Emily Bastedo disagreed with Talluto's redistribution argument. They said all of Elmhurst supported those neighborhoods that suffered flooding problems.

Bram, whose northeast ward includes many streets without sidewalks, said 99 percent of his ward hasn't had stormwater issues. But he said his ward has joined the solution, calling Elmhurst "one town working toward the same goals."

Similar to that issue are sidewalks, which provide a public benefit, Bram said.

However, Talluto, whose ward has sidewalks on nearly all streets, disagreed with the comparison.

"The council agreed that stormwater did affect everybody in Elmhurst because we were getting the reputation as the city that floods," she said. "It was affecting everyone's property values. That was the argument in support of everyone helping to pay to fix targeted areas in our community. We do not have a reputation as a city that doesn't have sidewalks."

As such, she said, the sidewalk and stormwater issues were not comparable.

The council voted 12-2 in favor of the fee. Talluto and Ward 7 Alderman Mike Brennan opposed it.

The council's approval directs the city attorney to draft an ordinance for approval at the next meeting.

With a $5,500 required fee, the city could generate $55,000 a year with 10 houses built, according to a city memo. The typical long side of a block in northeast Elmhurst would cost $69,000, with the short side costing $33,000, the memo said.

The fee would not apply to builders in neighborhoods with sidewalks.