# Sidewalk Repair in Tacoma, WA: Who Pays? | Who Pays the Repair?

> In Tacoma the abutting owner may not permit a defective sidewalk to remain, and sidewalk repair and maintenance responsibility rests on the owner.

**Who pays:** owner

Tacoma: the abutting owner may not permit a defective sidewalk (or snow/ice defect) to remain, repair and maintenance responsibility rests on the owner.

**Boundary:** Tacoma Municipal Code § 9.17.010 makes it unlawful for the abutting owner/occupant to permit hazardous right-of-way conditions to remain, expressly including defective sidewalk surfaces (broken cement, stub-toes, depressions) and defects from accumulated snow and ice. The City’s official page confirms responsibility for sidewalk repairs and maintenance rests on the private property owner.

**Property owner:** Do not permit defective sidewalk surfaces or snow/ice defects on the abutting sidewalk to remain (§ 9.17.010).

**City / agency:** The City can compel repair and assess the cost via RCW 35.69 (per the official page).

## Sources
- [Tacoma Municipal Code § 9.17.010 (owner may not permit defective sidewalk surfaces to remain)](https://ecode360.com/48390704) — "It shall be unlawful for the owner and/or any person, firm, or corporation occupying or having charge or control of any premises abutting upon any street, alley, or other public right-of-way within the City of Tacoma to cause or contribute to a physical condition of the public right-of-way by ... maintaining, or permitting to remain upon any part of the right-of-way ... any thing, structure, or condition dangerous or hazardous ... including ... Defective sidewalk surfaces, including, but not limited to, broken cement or stub-toes and depressions within or between sidewalk joints" (accessed 2026-09-09)
- [City of Tacoma: Sidewalks (repair/maintenance responsibility on the private property owner)](https://tacoma.gov/government/departments/public-works/engineering/sidewalks/) — "Washington State law, as well as the Tacoma Municipal Code, places the responsibility for sidewalk repairs and maintenance on the private property owner, in certain circumstances." (accessed 2026-09-09)

_Last verified 2026-09-09. Source: Who Pays the Repair? — https://whopaystherepair.com/rules/tacoma-wa-sidewalk-repair/ — every claim checked against a primary source before publication (see /methodology/)._