JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Sidewalks to nowhere have become a growing trend around Jacksonville, and one builder wants to see it put to an end.
Jacksonville has a long history of pedestrian safety concerns - just last year, it ranked the 6th highest for pedestrian fatalities
That's prompted a more stringent approach to sidewalk development, but one builder says it's led to unintended consequences.
American Classic Homes filed a lawsuit against the City of Jacksonville, claiming a misinterpretation of the law when it comes to sidewalks in neighborhoods.
Local laws have required sidewalks to line one side of the road for a long time - it makes sense when you're talking about dozens or hundreds of new homes to connect.
But recently, the owner of American Classic Homes says that law has been interpreted to mean all residential building, including homes on fill-in lots where the neighborhood never had a sidewalk.
He says fill-ins account for about 80% of the 600 homes a year he builds.
In the lawsuit, he says he had 20 projects denied in a three-month span because of the sidewalk requirement.
In order to get projects approved, he says he's had to pour several dozen of these, which winds up costing him thousands, and in-turn, costing the eventual homeowners.
The company wants to the city to reconsider this interpretation to save money for everyone involved until there's a "concrete" plan in place to add a full sidewalk in a neighborhood.
The City of Jacksonville's Public Affairs Office says no one can comment on the issue because of the pending litigation.