A.
The Village of Carthage assumes responsibility for
Village sewer mains and lateral sewer lines from Village sidewalks
to the Village main, or from the point of connection only when a lateral
is serving more than one building.
B.
If, at the determination of the Superintendent of
Public Works, a lateral receiving discharge from more than one building
is found to have been improperly installed by the Village, the Village
will replace or repair the sewer line at no cost to the owner of the
properties on which the lines are located. In this instance, the Superintendent
of Public Works must prepare and make available to his liaison Village
Trustee the reason for his determination and a plan for correction
prior to beginning work.
C.
Except as noted above, lateral sewers on private property
are owned by the property owner, and the maintenance of such lateral
sewers is the responsibility of the property owner. Upon the discovery
of sewer tile on private property which is broken or damaged through
no fault of the Village of Carthage, the Village will perform routine
repairs consisting of "rodding" or blowing out a line. Major repairs
or replacements must be made by the property owner, or by a private
contractor at the expense of the property owner. All work so performed
must be inspected and approved by the Superintendent of Public Works.
D.
Except as noted above, the Village of Carthage does
not work on private property.
A.
The Village of Carthage shares the responsibility
with the Village of West Carthage for the water main from Belfort
to the filtration plant and from the filtration plant to the Village
of Carthage. Additional language covering responsibility of joint-owned
water lines are covered in the Second Amendment to the intermunicipal
agreement signed February 27, 1996.
B.
The Village of Carthage is responsible for all water
mains throughout the Village boundaries, including water mains on
private property that serve more than one property.
C.
The installation, maintenance and repair of water
lines on private property beyond the curb stop shall be the responsibility
of the owner of the property.
D.
If, in an emergency situation, the Water Department
employee determines that it is in the best interest of the Village
to assist with a break due to the severity of the problem, or whereby
the break may result in other related problems, the employee must
have approval from the Water Treatment Plant Operator to continue.
In this situation the property owner must be made aware, in writing,
that a bill for services may be presented.
A.
The Village of Carthage is responsible only for the
Village of Carthage installed water mains outside of the Village.
Where property owners have joined to install their own main, the installation,
maintenance and repair of that line is the responsibility of the joint
owners. The installation, maintenance and repair of water lines shall
also be the responsibility of the property owner. All taps on water
lines and services must be witnessed by the Village of Carthage and
done to Village specifications. Valves have to be installed at all
taps. The Village reserves the right to terminate services outside
the Village.
B.
If, in an emergency situation, the Water Department
employee determines that it is in the best interest of the Village
to assist with a break due to the severity of the problem, or whereby
the break may result in other related problems, the employee must
have the approval from the Water Treatment Plant Operator to continue.
In this situation the property owner must be made aware, in writing,
that a bill for services may be presented.
C.
The Village of Carthage will continue to supply water
to properties outside the Village which are already connected to the
Village water system. The practice, however, of connecting new properties
outside the Village to the Village water system must have approval
from the Village Board as well as the approval of the Joint Water
Board.
D.
Except as noted above, the Village will neither work
on lines outside of the Village or on private property.
E.
Where a contract exists and there is a conflict between
the contract and this policy, the wording of the contract shall supersede.
A.
Except as stipulated differently by contract, the
Village of Carthage will provide, at no charge, a water meter to all
users of Village of Carthage water. The water user must install the
meter at his or her expense and in a location specified by the Water
Department employee. All installed meters shall be properly sealed.
B.
Owners of properties with water meters provided by
the Village of Carthage are responsible for the protection of the
meter and are cautioned in particular to take care that the meter
does not freeze up. When a meter is broken or becomes unusable for
lack of proper protection, the meter shall be replaced at the expense
of the property owner. A meter must be read and inspected by the meter
reader at least once yearly where estimated readings have been used.
Access to the meter is the responsibility of the property owner.
C.
The Village water meter readers will enter no residence
to read a meter when no one is at home, nor is it their responsibility
to read a meter that is not easily accessible. In such circumstances,
the meter reader will leave at the residence a card enabling the occupant
to supply the desired information and requesting that the card be
returned to the Village Clerk's office, or the occupant may telephone
the Village Clerk's office and request that the water meter reader
return at an appointed time. When the occupant fails to take either
such action, the consumption of water will be estimated and the water
bill prepared accordingly.
D.
Where a contract exists and there is a conflict between
the contract and this policy, the wording of the contract shall supersede.
A.
Service for water may be discontinued for any of the
following reasons:
(1)
For neglecting to make payments or for nonpayment
for water service or any other charges accruing under this application.
(2)
For refusal of reasonable access to property
for the purpose of installing, reading, inspecting, testing, caring
for or removal of a meter(s).
(3)
For excessive waste of water through improper
or imperfect pipes, fixtures, or otherwise.
(4)
For tampering with any service pipe, meter,
curb stop, or any other appliance of the Village.
(5)
For use of water for any property other than
the principal property serviced by the service line.
B.
This notice will give the property owner/designee
30 days to rectify the recorded problem(s). In the event that no corrective
action is taken by the property owner/designee within the thirty-day
period, then water will be shut off for nonpayment. A list containing
the names, date of shutoff and either amount due or reason for shutoff
will be provided to the Village Board.
[Amended 3-17-2008]
C.
Service will be renewed when the conditions under
which service was discontinued are corrected and upon payment of all
charges provided. In the case of an outside water user, service will
only be renewed upon payment in full of the past due amount and a
signed contract with the Village for future services.
D.
Subsection A(3) and (5) above may require a shorter time frame for discontinuing the water service. If the Water Department employee determines that a leak exists in a water line on private property, the severity of the leak shall govern the amount of time given before the service is discontinued. While the Village realizes that there may be some burden to the property owner for the repairs, flooding of neighboring cellars or other related problems could result, in addition to the loss of filtered water.
[Amended 10-17-2014 by L.L. No. 6-2014; 4-19-2021 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
A.
Village residents that request to have their swimming pool filled
from a fire hydrant must direct their request to the Village Clerk's
office. A minimum of three days' notice is required, unless the
Water Department schedule can accommodate the request sooner. The
Village Clerk's office will refer the request to the Water Department
for compliance. If in the judgment of the Water Superintendent it
is deemed unsafe to fill from a fire hydrant, then the property owner
will have to make other arrangements.
B.
Charges for such service will be based on the current rate for metered
water, to which a labor charge of $100 will be added.
C.
The property for which the request is being made must have a zero
balance account prior to having this service provided.
D.
There will be no swimming pools filled by the Village of Carthage
for properties outside the Village.
E.
Residents that fill their own swimming pools through their home meter
can receive a credit on their sewer portion of water/sewer bill for
the billing period in which the water was used, providing they complete
the pool filling credit request. The forms are available at the Village
Clerk's office. The amount of credit will be calculated based
on the size of the pool and height of water added to it. No credit
is given when topping off the pool requires less than two billing
units (1,500 gallons). Only one pool filling request will be granted
annually for any property.
F.
For the purposes of this policy, the term "swimming pool" shall mean
a swimming pool as defined in the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention
and Building Code as the same may be amended from time to time.
[Amended 3-17-2008]
A.
Village charges for water and sewer bills will be
computed and bills for same will be mailed quarterly. Charges will
conform to a prevailing schedule determined by resolution of the Village
Board. When, after a water/sewer bill remains unpaid after the due
date, a thirty-day notice will be sent to the owner. If payment is
not received within that thirty-day period stated, water will be shut
off for nonpayment. No further notice will be provided. Water and
sewer bills remaining unpaid as of March 31 will be added to the property
owner’s taxes due June 30.
B.
The owner of a property to which Village water is
supplied will be ultimately responsible for the payment of water and
sewer charges based on such service.
C.
When a property is leased or rented and there is an
agreement between the landlord and tenant that the tenant will pay
water and sewer charges, the landlord shall still be responsible for
the water and sewer charges. Said water and sewer bills will be sent
directly to the property owner, who, in turn, may present the bills
to the tenant for payment. Upon request, the Village may also send
a copy of the water bill to the tenant. In the event that a tenant
does not pay his water and sewer bills, the Village shall not be a
party to any action between the property owner and the tenant.
The Village of Carthage will plow municipal
parking lots. Except as hereinafter provided, the Village of Carthage
will remove snow only from crosswalks and from sidewalks adjacent
to Village-owned property. In compliance with the local law on sidewalk
shoveling, complaints about unshoveled walks will be directed to the
Police Department. Upon receiving such a complaint, police will investigate
and, if the sidewalk in question is found to be unshoveled, will notify
the resident whose sidewalk is unshoveled of his or her obligation,
under the local law, to keep the walk shoveled.[1] If police thereafter determine that the sidewalk in question
remains unshoveled, the Superintendent of Public Works will be notified
and will cause to have the sidewalk shoveled by Village employees.
The cost of such shoveling will be computed at $1 per foot of sidewalk
shoveled or a minimum bill of $25. The information, including the
cost, will be given to the Village Clerk who, in turn, will bill the
resident whose sidewalk was shoveled by the Village. Any such bills
remaining unpaid when Village property taxes are next levied will
become a lien on the property in question.
A.
As of the time of the adoption of this policy, it
is acknowledged that:
(1)
Many sidewalks in the Village of Carthage are
in need of repair or replacement;
(2)
Although neither the Village of Carthage Charter
nor the New York State General Village Law appears to contain a clear
definition of sidewalk "ownership," a sidewalk is implied to be the
joint responsibility of the Village and the property owner, and both
are implied to be subject to any liability arising from the condition
of a sidewalk;
(3)
Although both the Charter and the General Village
Law empower the Village Board to assess a property for as much as
1/2 the cost of sidewalk repair or replacement, such practice has
not been in effect in Carthage in the past.
B.
In recognition of the foregoing, the following two-phase
policy on sidewalks is hereby enunciated:
(1)
Phase 1: The Department of Public Works is instructed
to make a survey of all Village sidewalks to determine which sidewalks
need repair or replacement, to estimate the costs therefor, and to
establish priorities under which sidewalks in the worst condition
would receive earliest attention. Depending on the number of sidewalks
proposed for repair or replacement, and the total estimated cost,
the Village Board shall adopt a long-range plan for such projects,
preferably not to exceed five years, and annually shall budget general
fund appropriations for carrying out such plan.
(2)
Phase 2: Once a sidewalk has been restored to
satisfactory condition, the upkeep and maintenance of that sidewalk,
including any future repairs or replacement, shall be the joint responsibility
of the Village and the owner of the lot or parcel of land fronting
upon or adjoining such sidewalk. The property owner's share of that
responsibility, in the event of future repairs or replacement, will
be in the form of an assessment representing 1/2 of the cost of the
repairs or replacement, payable within 30 days of the property owner
having received notification of such assessment. Any such assessment
remaining unpaid at the end of the official year in which it was imposed
shall be added to the Village tax on that property for the following
year.
C.
Business District sidewalks. The Village reserves
the right, as empowered by the Village Charter and in compliance with
provisions of Village Law, to assess 1/2 the cost of sidewalk repair
or replacement to property owners within the Business District, due
to the excessive cost of such replacement.
A.
Leaves raked to the curbside throughout the Village
will be collected by the Department of Public Works in a period of
time every fall designated by the Superintendent of Public Works.
B.
Dead branches, leaves and other rakings, and the like,
but not to include garbage or rubbish, will be collected by the Department
of Public Works in a period of time every spring to be designated
by the Superintendent of Public Works.
C.
A target date of November 1 is established for the
cutoff date but will be set at the Board's discretion.
During hours employees of the Department of
Public Works (including the Water Department) are not normally at
work, the Police Department and/or Fire Department may be notified
of any emergency and will relay such information to an appropriate
employee of the Department of Public Works, who shall deal with the
situation. A list of persons to be called will be provided to both
Departments by the Superintendent of Public Works.
The Village of Carthage Department of Public
Works will clean ditches in the Village once a year. In between each
annual cleaning by the Village, owners of property on which ditches
are located will be responsible for maintaining those ditches in satisfactory
condition. The local law of 1959 prohibiting dumping in ditches will
be strictly enforced.[1]
When the Village Board contracts with a person
or persons to cut down a tree on Village property, the contract must
take into consideration the useful value of the wood from the tree
and the disposal of the residue.
A.
Upon the request of the owner of a property from which
a tree has been cut down by the Village, or when permission to do
so has been granted by the property owner, the Village of Carthage
will supply a replacement tree. Replacement trees will be planted
only between the sidewalk and the curb. The Village, either through
an independent contractor or Village forces, will plant such replacement
trees, provide initial required fertilization and mulching, guying
and staking and return the disturbed property to its original condition.
The Village will only supply trees of moderate size and which develop
relatively shallow and nonintrusive root systems. A list of available
tree types will be provided to the property owner to decide which
variety is best suited to his/her individual property. The Village
shall reserve the right to deny a replacement tree if it is felt that
planting such tree at a particular location is not in keeping with
the overall health, safety and welfare of all residents.
B.
The property owner will be provided with a manual
for providing necessary care for the replacement trees and is responsible
for providing this level of care. Should replanted trees die within
one year, as long as adequate care was provided, the Village will
replace the tree.
C.
The Village will replace trees yearly with the actual
number dependent upon the amount budgeted in that given year. The
Village will maintain a list of property owners interested in this
program and prioritize this list according to the timing of the individual
request. The Village Board may wish to prioritize a specific street
for multiple replantings in a given year should a need arise.
[Added 9-20-2004]
A.
The Village of Carthage assumes responsibility for
pumping cellars only when it is determined by the DPW that the water
in the basement was the result of a water main break, another resident's
lateral line breaking, a backed up storm drain, or a sewer main break.
B.
Upon the discovery of a flooded basement, through
no fault of the Village of Carthage, that was caused by a plugged
floor drain, broken internal lines, or a faulty sump pump, it will
be the responsibility of the homeowner to have the cellar pumped.
C.
If the Fire Department is dispatched it will make
the decision, based on Department policy, to pump the cellar, or contact
the DPW if the cause of flooding follows the DPW pumping policy. The
flooded cellar will be deemed the homeowner's responsibility if the
cause of flooding does not apply to either policy.
D.
When cellars take in water due to severe flooding,
heavy rains, or ice jam, the DPW and the Fire Department will work
as a joint effort to assist Carthage residents with the pumping of
their cellars once the flooding has subsided and has started to recede.
E.
Except as noted above, the Village of Carthage does
not work on private property.