Removing rebar

The headline in June 5th's Lincoln News-Messenger (page A1) stated "Abandoned, exposed rebar creates safety concern in Lincoln." The column reviewed the situation, brought to the City's attention by local resident Christopher Lane, who noted that the exposed rebar creates a serious safety concern for pedestrians and children in the area. Lane made the issue public during his presentation to the Lincoln City Council in the 'Public Comment' section of the April 28 meeting. Reviewing the actions that followed demonstrates the range of issues in managing a rapidly growing, full-service city, and why some things take longer to implement than might be expected. It also demonstrates that when safety situations arise, thing can and do get done quickly. To begin, the rebar in question is on a private property parcel of land at the corner of Bella Breeze and Joiner Parkway. The building parcel has been inactive for more than a decade. On Sunday, April 26, the Public Works Department was notified by another Lincoln resident of the rebar situation. The following day, Public Works engaged the Community Development Department (CDD) to assess the project status. CDD directed Code Enforcement to issue a violation to the property owner and identified that security deposits had been provided to the City by two project stakeholders. On Tuesday, April 28, Mr. Lane addressed the City Council. On Thursday, April 30, Public Works staff installed approximately 500 rebar caps to immediately mitigate the safety risk. At this point, the city did not know that the parcel's owner(s) was an offshore company with no local listing. With the immediate safety issue addressed, the next few weeks were devoted to attempting to locate the property owner and come up with a permanent solution. On Thursday, May 28, the Fire Department assisted by lowering the rebar to eliminate vertically protruding hazards. On Monday, June 1, the City Engineer introduced a signage plan directing pedestrians to alternate routes for added safety, and on Friday, June 5, Public Works completed removal of the rebar from the site. The City is now attempting to have the property owner fully mitigate the remaining safety issues. City Manager Sean Scully said, "It is important for the community to understand that this is private property, so walking along the bank of the ditch is not advisable, and pedestrians should instead use the paved sidewalk across the Joiner Parkway when walking in this area."