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A petition was circulated earlier in the year to install four-foot wide sidewalks on the south end of Sleepy Hollow Road from 512 Sleepy Hollow Road to 805 Country Club. There are currently no sidewalks on either side of the street in the three-block area.

The project would cost about $37,000 with the municipality contributing $10,000 and residents on the south end responsible for the rest -- a maximum of $1,300 a property.

That has upset residents like Perry Black of 805 Country Club at the corner of Sleepy Hollow, because he must pay for sidewalks installed on his side of the street while his neighbors across the street do not.

"I feel discriminated against. Why not put them on both sides?" Black said "This is not in my best interest. Thirteen hundred dollars is a lot of money to come up with especially when we're facing property assessment increases."

Other residents say safety concerns prompted them to petition for the sidewalks.

"You have a potential for serious accidents," said Reggie Jennings of 480 Sleepy Hollow Road, whose wife Lynne drafted the petition. "This is not a foolproof way to protect residents."

Municipal Manager Steve Feller said sidewalks are not mandated, but in their absence pedestrians must walk as near as possible to the outside edge of the roadway.

But some residents feel this still poses a safety concern for children and other pedestrians.

"It's more dangerous now than it was in the 70's and 80's," said Christine Aspiotis of 453 Sleepy Hollow Rd. "I'm shocked and saddened to see how many people are against this."

Mt. Lebanon police Lt. Ken Truver said there are no records of any recent vehicle-pedestrian accidents on Sleepy Hollow Road.

About 65 percent of the municipality has sidewalks, Feller said.

"I'd like to see sidewalks in as many locations as possible," said Commissioner Ty Ely. "But I also understand the cost factor and we'd like to come up with a favorable solution. We don't want this to become so expensive that people won't be able to afford to live here."

If the sidewalk issue, which was tabled last week, is eventually approved notices would be sent to the affected property owners requiring them to construct the sidewalks within 30 days. If a property owner fails to do the work, the municipality will install the sidewalks and the property owner will be billed. Payment would be expected within 6 months although a 3-year payment plan could be an option, Feller said.

Ely said commissioners will investigate other funding sources for the sidewalks. No timetable has been set, but Ely expects the commissioners to discuss this prior to the commissioners meeting on July 11.

"It's extremely unfair for three blocks of residents to bear all of the expense," said Trudy Labovitz of 504 Sleepy Hollow Road.

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