[Adopted 2-4-1975 by L.L. No. 1-1975]
[Amended 8-5-1996 by L.L. No. 3-1996; 11-9-2017 by L.L. No.
10-2017]
No civil action shall be maintained against the Town of Malta
and/or Town Superintendent of Highways for damages or injuries to
person or property sustained by reason of any highway, bridge or culvert
being defective, out of repair, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed unless
written notice of such defective, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed
condition of such highway, bridge or culvert was actually given to
the Town Clerk or Town Superintendent of Highways and there was a
failure or neglect within a reasonable time after the giving of such
notice to repair or remove the defect, danger or obstruction complained
of; but no such action shall be maintained for damages or injuries
to person or property sustained solely in consequence of the existence
of snow or ice upon any highway, bridge or culvert, unless written
notice thereof, specifying the particular place, was actually given
to the Town Clerk or Town Superintendent of Highways and there was
a failure or neglect to cause such snow or ice to be removed or to
make the place otherwise reasonably safe within a reasonable time
after the receipt of such notice.
[Amended 11-9-2017 by L.L. No. 10-2017]
No civil action will be maintained against the Town and/or the
Town Superintendent of Highways or other Departments and employees
of the Town for damages or injuries to person or property sustained
by reason of any defect in the sidewalks or shared-use paths of the
Town or in consequence of the existence of snow or ice upon any of
its sidewalks or shared-use paths, unless such sidewalks or shared-use
paths have been constructed or are maintained by the Town pursuant
to statute, nor shall any action be maintained for damages or injuries
to person or property sustained by reason of such defect or in consequence
of such existence of snow or ice unless written notice thereof, specifying
the particular place, was actually given to the Town Clerk of the
Town and there was a failure or neglect to cause such defect to be
remedied or such snow or ice to be removed or to make the place otherwise
reasonably safe within a reasonable time after the receipt of such
notice. Nothing in this section imposes any obligation on the Town
to perform winter maintenance to shared-use paths.
[Amended 5-1-1995 by L.L. No. 2-1995; 8-5-1996 by L.L. No. 3-1996]
The Town Superintendent of Highways shall transmit
in writing to the Town Clerk within five days after the receipt thereof
all written notices received by him pursuant to this article and Subdivision
2 of § 65-a of the Town Law. The Town Clerk shall cause
all written notices received by him or her pursuant to this article
and Subdivision 2 of § 65-a of the Town Law to be presented
to the Town Board within five days of the receipt thereof or at the
next succeeding Town Board meeting, whichever shall be sooner.
[Amended 5-1-1995 by L.L. No. 2-1995; 11-9-2017 by L.L. No.
10-2017]
The Town Clerk of the Town shall keep an index record, in a
separate book, of all written notices which the Town Clerk shall receive
of the existence of a defective, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed condition
in or upon or of an accumulation of ice and snow upon any Town highway,
bridge, culvert, sidewalk, shared-use path or any other property owned
by the Town or by any improvement district, which record shall state
the date of the receipt of the notice, the nature and location of
the condition stated to exist and the name and address of the person
from whom the notice is received. The record of such notice shall
be preserved for a period of five years from the date it is received.
The Town Clerk, upon receipt of such written notice, shall immediately
and in writing notify the Town Superintendent of Highways or other
appropriate Town Department of the receipt of such notice. All such
written notices shall be indexed according to the location of the
alleged defective, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed condition or the
location of the accumulated snow or ice.
Nothing contained in this article shall be held
to repeal or modify or waive any existing requirement or statute of
limitations which is applicable to these causes of action but, on
the contrary, shall be held to be additional requirements to the rights
to maintain such action, nor shall anything herein contained be held
to modify any existing rule of law relative to the question of contributory
negligence, nor to impose upon the Town, its officers and employees
and/or any of its improvement districts any greater duty or obligation
than that it shall keep its streets, sidewalks and public places in
a reasonably safe condition for public use and travel.
