Salyersville’s Sidewalk Saga is leading to concerns for citizens.
Sidewalks are an essential part of every municipality, with the responsibility of maintenance and replacement falling on the local authorities when they become too deteriorated for safe use. In our town of Salyersville, the downtown sidewalks have been neglected for a significant period of time, even during my 35 years of recollection.
As a child, I often struggled to maintain balance while walking, and as an adult with a minor mobility issue, the situation has become more challenging. This longstanding communal issue has persisted across multiple mayoral terms, spanning decades without resolution.
Notably, even with Stanley Howard assuming the mayoral office once again, the matter remains unaddressed.
On 8/3/2024, I documented the state of the sidewalks and noted specific issues such as the condition of the steps leading up from the curb.
The buildings are 70+ years old, at the YOUNGEST. This particular building was built in 1940 and has served the community faithfully for all these decades; however currently it has fallen into a state of disrepair that I’m sure can be fixed; however at this moment in time I’m genuinely worried about a brick falling off the building and hitting a passerby.
This particular area of the city exhibits several glaring issues, encompassing both the sidewalk and the front of the building at large.
This area of the steps has a large hole in it, that the plant life has grown through (Plants growing into concrete can cause it to further crack and fall apart) and partially obscures the hole unless you’re looking directly at it. This can cause someone to fall, break an ankle or more.
Also note the uneven bottom step, as it prevents you from comfortably placing your foot/weight on the step without having to re-position yourself.
Along this particular stretch of sidewalk, there are a total of 7 drains; however only 2 of which have steel grates covering them. Another 2 have been filled in, and the remaining 3 are open to someone potentially stepping into them. This poses a fall hazard for anyone walking along the sidewalk, especially in a scenario where 2 people pass each other.
On the end of the sidewalk towards the red light area, the concrete is broken in many areas, as well as being a trip hazard from the differing heights of the sidewalk.
This is nearly the equivalent of having a 2″x4″ piece of lumber lying across the sidewalk as people try to get to wherever they’re going.
The city wants tourism, and for more people to come and visit the town; however, it is basically as NON user-friendly as possible in terms of parking spaces and being able to actually walk down the street from place to place.
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