Minister: Municipalities would struggle to clear snow from all streets
The Property Owners' Association (Eesti Omanike Keskliit) wants local governments to take over responsibility for maintaining public sidewalks and is calling on the Minister of Infrastructure Vladimir Svet (SDE) to change the law. However, Svet says local governments already struggle to find money to do so.
"According to Section 97(6) of the Building Code, the owner of a plot of land is obliged to arrange for the cleaning of the pavement adjacent to his property, including snow and slush control and leaf clearance. The private owners have a compulsory duty to maintain, at their own expense, the property of another person," the association wrote to Svet in an open letter.
As Tallinn already maintains some streets, this creates an unequal situation for property owners, the association says. It also raised concerns about civil liability.
"While the Building Code makes the owner of the property responsible for the maintenance of pavements, it does not exempt the owner of the pavement from liability and claims for damages if the owner of the pavement, i.e. the municipality, has maintained the pavement itself but has done so inadequately," the letter states.
Svet told ERR the issue ultimately comes down to funding.
"If the state were now to remove the obligation on owners to maintain the pavement in front of their house, this would mean that the responsibilty would fall on the local authority," the minister explained.
"It would cost local authorities tens and tens of millions of euros to cover this cost – if you think of the country as a whole. In Tallinn, it costs the city several million euros to maintain just some of the sidewalks."
Svet, who previously served as deputy mayor of Tallinn with responsibity for street maintenance, recalled that an earlier estimate put the cost of clearing all of Tallinn's sidewalks of snow at €27 million.
"Ultimately, a decision by the state would mean that local authorities would have to find the money from somewhere. In the current difficult times, it would obviously be very difficult for local authorities to tackle this task, and in a situation where several taxes are about to come into force, it cannot be expected that the city would start collecting any snow tax," Svet said.
The minister suggested that local governments, property owners, and maintenance companies should find a solution together.
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Editor: Mari Peegel, Helen Wright
