Clearing sidewalk snow will remain the responsibility of property owners and shop keepers, Langley city leaders have decided.

After a city council meeting Jan. 5, the city council agreed to stick with existing rules which leave the maintenance of private sidewalks in the hands of merchants and land owners, rather than with city workers as was recently suggested.

“In the end, we are going to stay with our procedure of property owners taking care of icy sidewalks in front of their buildings,” said Mayor Fred McCarthy in a phone message to The Record. “But we’re going to have some de-icer available from the city for people to purchase because there isn’t a hardware store in the city.”

In late November, Langley was hit with snowfall that led to icy sidewalks and roads. Slick conditions lingered for days because of low temperatures and the city’s slow response, frustrating a pair of business owners to the point of voicing their displeasure during the Dec. 15 council meeting.

“I think if there’s a feeling that the city is actually taking care of their part, which is the road surfaces, to get into Langley, business owners will step up,” said Dan Haldeman, who runs a mental health clinic in Langley.

“We’d just like to think that the city administration is on our side and is supporting us as business people here,” he added.

Following up on the business owners’ concerns, McCarthy asked Public Works Director Stan Berryman to research the issue. In a memo, Berryman laid out the circumstances of the Nov. 29 snowstorm, the ensuing ice and the steps his department will take in the future.

As a reminder to owners of property abutting public sidewalks, Langley will send out a memo citing city code that mandates sidewalks be maintained by them, not the city.

“It’s real common the research shows, and every place I’ve ever been shows it,” Berryman said. “It’s a resource issue.”

“Up here, it’s such a rare event that it’d be hard to staff up to do that,” added Berryman, who most recently was a public works director in Colorado.

Several cities, as cited by Berryman’s report, put the onus of sidewalk maintenance and clearing on the abutting property owners. Yakima, Seattle, Moses Lake and Everett all had part of their municipal codes included in the study as proof that Langley’s code is not unique.

Langley’s responsibility will remain with its own property, including streets and some sections of sidewalk, such as those in front of the library, city hall, part of First Street and along the bend of Camano Avenue.

In future snow storms, Langley will have de-icer available for purchase. The city currently buys it for $14 per 50-pound box, which will be resold to any property owners needing it for their sidewalks for a proposed $20 per 50-pound box.

Either by shovel or chemical, clearing sidewalks of snow and ice is important for all parties in Langley.

“People should do it, especially if you’re a merchant,” Berryman said. “That’s how people come in.”

One point he does plan to discuss with McCarthy is the use of an email message to remind business owners and public sidewalk-abutting property owners of their responsibility in the event of snow or ice.