[Adopted 11-7-2005 by Ord. No. 27-2005]
The owner of any premises in the Borough of
Tuckerton abutting a sidewalk or curb constructed after January 1,
2000, shall, at his or her own cost and expense, keep and maintain
such sidewalk or curb in good condition and state of repair and shall
not permit the same to fall into a state of disrepair or to become
unfit or unsafe to walk upon. In the event that such sidewalk or curb
or any part thereof becomes unsafe or hazardous to the public or unfit
to walk upon, the abutting owner, at his or her own cost and expense,
shall, with all expeditious speed, reconstruct or repair, as the facts
may require, such sidewalk or curb or that part thereof which requires
reconstruction or repair.
Where in the opinion of the Borough Engineer,
Code Enforcement Officer or the Public Works Director/Superintendent
a sidewalk or curb is in an unsafe or hazardous condition, he or she
shall inform the Borough Council, which shall, by resolution, authorize
a notice, in writing, to be served upon the owner or occupant of said
lands, requiring the necessary specified work to said curb or sidewalk
to be done by said owner or occupant within the period not less than
60 days from the date of service of said notice. Whenever any lands
are unoccupied, and the owner cannot be found within the Borough,
said notice may be mailed, postage prepaid, to his or her post office
address as it is ascertained from the latest tax rolls of the Borough.
In a case where an owner is a nonresident of the municipality or his
or her post office address cannot be ascertained, then a notice may
be inserted for four weeks, once a week, in the official newspaper
of the Borough.
In the case where the owner or occupant of such
lands shall not comply with the requirements of such notice, it shall
be lawful for the Public Works Director/Superintendent, upon filing
due proof of service or publication of the aforesaid notice, to cause
the required work to be done and paid for out of the Borough funds
available for that purpose. The cost of such work shall be certified
by the Public Works Director/Superintendent to the Borough Engineer,
who shall verify the same and turn it over to the Tax Assessor. Upon
filing these said certificates, the amount of the cost of such work
shall be and become a lien upon said abutting lands in front of which
such work was done.
All new sidewalks and curbs constructed by an
abutting owner shall be constructed in accordance with the line and
grade established by the Borough Engineer. All old and existing sidewalks
reconstructed or repaired by an abutting owner shall be reconstructed
or repaired in accordance with the existing line and grade unless
such line or grade is changed by the Borough Engineer. It shall be
the duty of the abutting owner in all instances to make inquiry to
the Borough Engineer respecting such line and grade.
All sidewalks and curbs constructed, reconstructed
or repaired shall be in accordance with specifications of the Borough.
The Borough Council may each year include in
its annual budget an appropriation for curb and/or sidewalk repairs
in addition to any existing maintenance fund, out of which appropriation
all costs of construction and/or repair of curbs and sidewalks during
the year may be charged when it becomes necessary for the Public Works
Department to make such repairs and/or construction pursuant hereto.
All moneys recovered or paid to the Borough under the provisions of
this article, other than penalties as hereinafter set forth, shall
be credited to the account out of which such work was paid.
Whenever any curb or sidewalk is required to
be repaired, reset or relaid in the Borough, application for a permit
shall be made by the owner of the abutting lands or his or her contractor
to the Construction Official, specifying grade, dimensions, mixed
materials and the method of construction or repair to be used. The
Construction Official shall examine said specifications and, upon
approval of the Borough Engineer, in compliance with all the provisions
of this article, shall grant a permit to the applicant. An administrative
fee for the aforesaid permit shall be $2 per linear foot of sidewalk
and $5 per linear foot of curb being repaired. In addition, the applicant
shall pay a fee to the Borough to cover the cost of the Borough Engineer's
inspection of the curb and/or sidewalks, which fee shall be as follows:
Curb and Sidewalks
(linear feet)
|
Fee
|
---|
Up to 50
|
$150
|
Each additional 50 or portion thereof
|
An additional $50
|
The owners of premises abutting a street right-of-way
in the Borough shall not allow or cause the construction or placement
of any permanent structure or planting of any plant life and allowing
such plant life to grow higher than 2 1/2 feet in the street
right-of-way in front of such property without the approval of the
Borough Council.
No owner, tenant or occupant of any premises
abutting on any street shall throw, place or deposit snow or ice into
or on any street, it being the intent and purpose of this provision
to prohibit all persons from throwing, casting, placing or depositing
snow and ice which accumulates within the private property belonging
to that person on the sidewalks or streets of the Borough.
[Amended 3-15-2010 by Ord. No. 4-2010]
The owner, tenant or occupant of any premises
abutting a sidewalk shall remove all snow or ice from the sidewalk
abutting said property in a manner so as not to allow snow or ice
to remain on the sidewalk for more than 24 hours after the end of
the storm.
The owner and tenants of lands lying within
the limits of the Borough shall keep all brush, hedges and other plant
life growing within 10 feet of any roadway and also within 25 feet
of the intersection of two roadways cut to a height of not more than
2 1/2 feet. Where it shall be necessary and expedient for the
preservation of public safety, the owner or tenant of said property
shall be required by the Code Enforcement Officer of the Borough to
cut said brush, hedges and other plant life in accordance with the
terms of this article within 10 days after notice to cut the same
is served by the Code Enforcement Officer of the Borough. Said notice
shall be served by regular and certified mail at the last known address
of the owner or tenant of the subject property. In the event that
no address is known, service shall be made by posting said notice
on the subject property. In the event that the owner or tenant shall
fail or neglect to cut the brush, hedges and plant life within 10
days after receipt of said notice in accordance with the provision
of this article, the brush, hedges and plant life may be removed by
the Borough under the direction of the Code Enforcement Officer of
the Borough.
In all cases where the brush, hedges and other plant life are cut from any lands pursuant to the provisions of §
229-29, by or under the direction of the Code Enforcement Officer of the Borough, the Code Enforcement Officer shall certify the costs thereafter to the governing body, who shall examine the certificate and, if found correct, shall cause the costs thereon to be charged against said lands. In the event that such cost is determined by the governing body to be excessive, the reasonable cost thereof, in the determination of the governing body, shall be charged against said lands, and the amount so charged shall forthwith become a lien upon said lands and shall be added to and become part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon such lands. Said lien shall bear the same interest rate as taxes and shall be collected and enforced by the officers of the municipality in the same manner as taxes.
This article shall be enforced by the Police
Department and Code Enforcement Officer of the Borough of Tuckerton.
A. The failure of any applicant, owner or his or her
contractor, servant or agent to construct or repair such curbs and/or
sidewalks in accordance with the specifications filed by him or her
for the purpose of securing that permit under the terms of this article
shall be and constitute a violation hereof.
B. Any person violating the terms of this article or
refusing or neglecting to comply with any of the provisions hereof
shall, upon conviction therefor, be subject to a fine of not more
than $1,000, imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more
than 90 days and/or a period of community service of not more than
90 days in the discretion of the court before which such conviction
is had.
C. Each day's persistence in the things or acts prohibited
by this article shall be and constitute a separate and distinct offense
subject to any and all penalties prescribed in this article.