Sidewalk Is No Walk in the Park

UPDATE: The Loudoun Board of Supervisors Transportation/Land Use Committee voted 5-0 to recommend that the board fund the proposed examination of possible sidewalk repairs along Ashburn Road.

Residents of Ashburn Station who say they cannot safely access what would otherwise be a neighborhood park are hoping for help from the county.

A lack of pedestrian access in Old Ashburn makes community events like the Ashburn Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department's annual open house difficult for drivers and walkers to navigate. It also makes walks to the park or the W&OD Trail unsafe.

Some residents have turned their attention to the deteriorating sidewalk that once bordered the west side of Ashburn Road through Old Ashburn and has crumbled under years of wear.

"I hate it that I have no safe way to walk my kids to Dinosaur Park, Cedar Lane Elementary or even Carolina Brothers. You can't use [the sidewalk] now. You can't push a stroller. It's just a matter of time before someone rolls off that sidewalk onto the road," said Patti Jackson, an Ashburn Station resident pushing for some type of improvement. "We moved to Ashburn because we thought our kids could walk to school."

Of course, Loudoun County Public School restrictions still would not permit students to walk to Cedar Lane Elementary School, but improved access is Jackson's main goal, she said.

Unlike many modern sidewalks constructed as amenities in new development projects, the sidewalk is not publicly owned, and there's no requirement for private landowners to maintain the walk.

Tonight, the Loudoun Board of Supervisors' Transportation/Land Use Committee is expected to make a recommendation to the board about whether the county should spend $11,000 to examine the costs of fixing the sidewalk, including the purchase of right of way easements and the cost of utility relocation.

The project is focused on the segment of sidewalk along the west side of Ashburn Road from Partlow Road to Stubble Road.

Jackson said attempting to walk to the fire station's open house this year seemed unsafe.

"Part of the time we had to walk in the street," she said. "They don't make downtown Ashburn walkable. They don't make it inviting."

Landowners whose property the sidewalk crosses aren't even sure what their options are in terms of renovating or demolishing the existing scraps of concrete.

Ed Drapela sent a letter to the county asking what his options were for the stretch of sidewalk in front of his house. Drapela said he asked Chuck Harris–the Democratic Broad Run supervisor who served prior to current supervisor Lori Waters (R)–and was told, according to the letter, "that it was my problem as this was not a county sidewalk and was not on county property." Drapela described his portion of the walkway as "falling into Ashburn Road."

"I have been looking into removing or repairing, at my expense, the section in front of my property," he wrote. "Before I commence demolition or renovation, I would like to have a formal document from the county that this is indeed on my property and I am free to do as I wish."

The county's transportation staff recommends spending the money for the necessary studies to determine the cost of replacing the sidewalk, which Americans with Disabilities Act requirements may complicate because the county may need to purchase additional right of way to comply.

The $11,000 would pay for a surveyor and engineer to identify existing property lines and other obstacles, like ditch lines, driveway aprons, fences and utility lines.

Jackson wrote to Waters at least as far back as March 2009 about the issue.

"My son recently took a terrible spill trying to navigate the sidewalk on his bike," Jackson wrote in an e-mail message at that time. "This accident has prompted me to find out HOW to get these sidewalks fixed."

In the meantime, Jackson said, some residents cut through yards in the neighboring community to access Ashburn Park.

"It's not convenient," she said. "You feel bad walking through the yard."

Initially, Ashburn Station residents thought a new path would be constructed to provide access between their neighborhood and the existing community directly to the south; however, the necessary right of way was never acquired from the other community.

Waters initiated the item earlier this year to review the repair costs. County staff has recommended using local gasoline tax revenue from the Bikeway & Pedestrian Facilities Contingency account.

The issue is not the first safety complaint in Old Ashburn, the area around the intersection of Hay and Ashburn roads. Former county chairman Dale Polen Myers has long pushed for improvements to Hay Road because of multiple accidents that have occurred in front of her house.