The following is a question posed to Mayor Coles via our Ask The Mayor Column:

Hi Mayor Coles,

Thank you for all that you do for our town!

I’d like to bring up 2 things.

When walking around town, there are many areas that weeds, bushes and trees grow into the sidewalk area causing discomfort to walkers and also cause a danger to drivers at corners as they can’t see. Is there a way to bring awareness that sidewalks should be kept clear. There is no reason to have 2 foot wide sidewalks.

Regarding street lights, there are many out all around town. I’d say close to 1 in 10 are out. I know that it was brought up that when people see a light out, they should report it to jcpl. I think a better idea is to have a truck from jcpl or even public works driving through town at night a few times a year to report every street light that is burnt out. The lack of light is a safety issue.

Thanks for your help and concern!

The following is the Mayor’s Response:

Good morning

Thanks for reaching out. Folks letting the sidewalks get overgrown upsets me as well. If there are particular areas, please let me know. The normal course is to have public works or code enforcement let the residents know this is their responsibility. Many times these areas are behind fences in the backyard. Some folks don’t even realize it is their responsibility. We inform them and ask them to take care of it. Often, public works will clean it up initially and expect the property owner to keep it that way

We have folks in town hall working with JCPL every day trying to get streetlights in town fixed as quickly as possible. We will continue to work with them to get the light fixed.

Thanks,

Ray

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