ST. PETE, Fla. — Ever since Hurricane Helene flooded many homes, people in Shore Acres have been trying to put the pieces back together.
Now, one man who has been displaced for more than a year said a sidewalk initiative in the city of St. Pete is creating issues for his family.
WATCH: Shore Acres homeowner said new stand-alone sidewalk is a nuisance, asks city of St. Pete for removal
"Hurricane Helene came in, and we got a fair amount of water in the house," said Nick Farmer.
Nick Farmer and his family have been displaced from their home for a year and a half, and he said it's been costly.
"Then we got hit with the permitting fees, which were close to $10,000 for the rebuild, and then at the end, we got this lovely sidewalk to nowhere," he said.
To add to his journey back to his home, he now has a sidewalk that connects to nothing but grass at both ends.
"This is kind of the straw that broke the camel's back. If you look in our neighborhood...you have to travel 3/4 of a mile to a mile to get to the nearest sidewalk," said Farmer.
According to St. Petersburg Land Development Regulations, when you rebuild a home, the city’s engineering design standards require sidewalks to be installed to improve pedestrian accessibility and city-wide connection.
"I’m really frustrated with it…and as we were talking about earlier, I not only have a sidewalk in the middle of my front yard but now it’s going to cut my driveway in half as well," said Farmer.
Nick said the sidewalk might cause more flooding issues for his family.
"This sidewalk is going to create drainage issues, it's obviously an impervious surface, might trap water behind it," said Farmer.
Not only does Nick say it is visually strange, but he also said the sidewalk will impact future family activities.
"We used to have wiffle-ball games in this front yard, now we have a pretty hazardous tripping surface in the middle of the wiffle-ball field. We used to play a lot of tag out here," said Farmer.
The city allows homeowners to opt out of sidewalk installation if it's physically impractical, but they would have to pay a fee of roughly $40 per linear foot.
"This sidewalk right here, if I didn’t want it, would have cost me $12,000 out of pocket, which is not money I have recovering from a storm," said Farmer.
Nick said he has asked the city for a better solution…and so far, there hasn’t been much communication.
Tampa Bay 28's Casey Albritton also reached out to city leaders and hasn't heard back yet.
Nick said he wants to see more exceptions for sidewalk installation.
"This thing cutting right through the middle of my yard is just really upsetting," he said.
Share Your Story with Casey
Casey Albritton is dedicated to telling your stories throughout South Pinellas County. From St. Petersburg to Largo, she’s there to share the triumphs and struggles of the community she calls home. So, let Casey know about the stories that matter to you.
.
'Who wants to slap him?': Teacher arrested for child abuse at Manatee County middle school, MCSO says
Manatee County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) detectives arrested a sixth-grade teacher who is accused of telling a student to slap another student.
