Radio City.

W.D. Matthews.

U-Haul.

They’re not big on shoveling the sidewalks in front of their respective Center Street businesses. In fact, Radio City and W.D. Matthews don’t appear to have shoveled one flake in December at all, and U-Haul has shoveled about half its sidewalk, but has left snow piled up on the portion of sidewalk that links to the Veterans Bridge crosswalk.

It’s dangerous and it’s curious.

Dangerous because the piles of snow on the sidewalks force pedestrians out onto Center Street, which is not the safest place to walk.

Curious because if someone were to get hurt slipping on the snow, or run over while walking in the margin of the street, the businesses could be held responsible.

Shoveling snow is a chore. There’s no doubt about it. But whatever effort it takes to remove the snow is far better than the alternative – making Center Street a pedestrian way.

On Friday morning, with 3 inches of fresh snow on the ground, I dropped off my daughter’s car at Center Street Auto for repairs. Knowing it’s just about three miles from there to the Sun Journal office, I decided to walk the distance to get a little exercise.

Center Street is lined with just one sidewalk, on the Fordland side, so I crossed the street and started toward Lewiston. At first, the sidewalk was nicely plowed, right up until Radio City. I swung into the parking lot and figured I would walk out a driveway on the far side. There isn’t one, so I walked back to the entrance and, after inhaling deeply, stepped into the slush on Center Street and walked as quickly as I could until the sidewalk opened up again. It was harrowing. At one point, my left leg was up on the snowbank and leaned in as far as I could as a tractor-trailer zipped past.

The sidewalks in front of the next two shopping plazas were not shoveled, but their parking lots were, so I was able to bypass the sidewalks and go in one driveway and out another.

At W.D. Matthews, the sidewalk was blocked by snow and I was simply not willing to step out onto Center Street again.

That building has parking areas on each side of it, so I figured there must be entrances on each side. I went into the building’s lobby and explained to the receptionist that I wanted to walk through the building because they hadn’t shoveled the sidewalk. She looked puzzled, but called an escort to bring me through the building.

Dale Bryant, a customer service rep, was good enough to do that, but since the sidewalk wasn’t plowed in front of W.D. Matthews beyond the driveway, I still had to walk in the street to get to the next business – a car dealer where the sidewalks were immaculately plowed.

The sidewalks were then clear right up to the U-Haul on the corner of Veterans Bridge. There, while most of the path was clear, all the snow on the path beyond the driveway blocked my passage, so out in the street I went again.

The prospect of clear sidewalks down the remainder of Center Street was so dim I decided to turn left and walk across the Veterans Bridge.

It was the most pleasant part of the morning’s walk. By a far margin.

I understand we don’t live in a walking society anymore, but not everyone has a car. My footprints were not the only ones marked in the Center Street slush. I could see at least two other people had walked that path before me earlier in the morning, and I expect more followed me later in the day.

The city of Auburn doesn’t have an ordinance that requires snow be removed from any public way. That’s astonishing, given that we live in a state where we expect snow to be on the ground for at least four months of the year.

Leaving snow on the sidewalk is just another way to say “don’t walk here.” For a business, that just doesn’t even make sense. Does it?

At the end of the Veterans Bridge, I turned right up Main Street, bracing myself for another series of blocked sidewalks. I was pleasantly surprised. Shocked, actually.

Lewiston’s Department of Public Services plows the sidewalks on Main Street. It wasn’t perfect, but it was definitely passable. I couldn’t say the same for the side streets, where shoveling was dismal to nonexistent, but then it isn’t as dangerous to walk on these lesser-traveled avenues.

My walk took me left onto Holland Street, where no sidewalks were plowed, and right onto Oak. Sidewalks bordering the tiny Union Super Market were well cleared, and there were some efforts made to shovel here and there farther along the way, but I and a couple of other people found ourselves walking in the street.

Finally, I took a left on Bates Street and walked past the bus terminal, where the sidewalks were absolutely clear in the bus loading area, but after the last bus parked there, I was back in the street – me and, I counted, five other folks.

The sidewalks were clear again after crossing Ash Street, and I made my way into the Sun Journal office.

I live just about 18 miles from the Sun Journal office and ordinarily commute by car or bike, so sidewalks are not part of my regular landscape. Now, frankly, I’m glad of it.

People who don’t have vehicles, or can’t afford bus or cab fare, are forced to walk – even in winter. That there isn’t more effort made to accommodate these pedestrians is just plain embarrassing for the cities, businesses and all property owners.

There is a city ordinance in Lewiston that requires private property owners to shovel their sidewalks, but police rarely enforce the ordinance. Auburn doesn’t have one at all, so there’s nothing to enforce.

I called Dale Bryant later in the day and asked why W.D. Matthews doesn’t shovel the sidewalks. He said they don’t because the city usually does. Didn’t anyone in that office notice that the city isn’t doing that anymore? Couldn’t someone see the snow piling up outside the window?

Is there no concern that someone may slip and fall in front of that building and file a lawsuit? And win?

Auburn plows city-owned properties, the sidewalks in neighborhoods where children walk to school, and the brick sidewalks around Court Street. Nothing more.

If Auburn doesn’t want to take on the expensive task of plowing all sidewalks, it needs an ordinance requiring others to do so.

And, then, both Auburn and Lewiston must enforce their ordinances to get the snow cleared as a simple matter of public safety.

If they don’t think this is true, perhaps the cities’ respective administrators, police chiefs and public works directors ought to take a walk down Center Street, maybe along Minot Avenue, then maybe Sabattus Street and back along East Avenue.

It’ll be an eye-opener. I guarantee.

I recommend they wear orange safety vests.