[Adopted 6-7-1954 by Ord. No. 156]
All petitions for laying out, altering, widening, relocating
or discontinuing any street or public way shall be presented to the
City Council, and the City Council shall refer the same to the Planning
Board. The Planning Board will then make such investigations, maps
and reports, and recommendations in connection therewith, to the City
Council as it deems desirable.
Upon the filing by such Planning Board of its report and recommendations
for the laying out, altering, widening, relocating or discontinuing
of any street or way, the City Council shall then order a public hearing
before it of notice of its intention to act upon such proposed laying
out, altering, widening, relocation or discontinuing of such street
or way. Said order of notice shall state the time and place appointed
for hearing of persons interested therein and shall be published at
least once in some newspaper published in the City of Gardner seven
days at least prior to the time of such hearing. A copy of said order
of notice shall be mailed to the owners of land which will be taken
or damaged by such proposed order, or such notice may be delivered
to such owner in person, or to his authorized agent, at least seven
days prior to the time of said hearing.
At the time and place appointed for said hearing, the City Council
shall meet and hear all persons interested and who desire to be heard.
If the City Council shall adjudge that public convenience and necessity
require such street to be laid out, altered, widened, relocated or
discontinued, it shall, as soon as may be, proceed to do so and shall
determine the damages, if any, sustained by any person in his property
by said laying out, altering, widening, relocating or discontinuing
of such street or way and the time allowed the owners of land through
which said street passes to take off fences, structures, or other
property which may obstruct the building of such street or way.
No street or way constructed on private land shall hereafter
be laid out or accepted as a public street of the City of Gardner
unless previously constructed and completed in accordance with the
specifications hereinafter set forth:
A.
Every such street shall be constructed not less than 50 feet in width,
if such width can be secured without material and disproportionate
injury to adjoining estates, and that part of the street or way between
the regularly established curblines or sidewalk lines and especially
improved and intended to be used for vehicular traffic shall have
a width of not less than 28 feet.
B.
The entire area of every street shall be first cleared of all stumps,
roots, brush and perishable materials and all trees not intended for
preservation. All loam and loamy material and clay shall be removed
from the limits of the street, inclusive of sidewalks, to such depths
as may be approved by the Director of Public Works or his designee.
The entire area of the street shall be graded to a subgrade of not
less than 16 inches for the roadway and eight inches for the sidewalk
below finish grade.
[Amended 11-18-2013 by Ord. No. 1563]
C.
The subgrade shall be brought to a true grade and cross section;
upon this, good, binding gravel shall be placed and brought to finished
grade and cross section and the whole road thoroughly rolled. The
travelled way of the street shall be paved with Type 1 bituminous
concrete to a minimum depth of 2 1/2 inches, applied in two courses.
[Amended 4-22-1969 by Ord. No. 417]
D.
Embankments shall be of clean sand, gravel, broken stone, cinders
or other suitable material; no perishable material shall be used for
the making of street embankments. All slopes shall be no steeper than
two feet horizontally to one foot vertically, with the top of slope
extending at least one foot outside the street line in filled sections.
Such slopes may be substituted by suitable retaining walls, if approved
by the Planning Board.
E.
Such surface water drainage systems as the Planning Board may determine
shall be installed with an outlet into an existing or proposed drainage
system of the City. If no City system is available, a suitable outlet
shall be provided, permanently secured to the City by a proper legal
instrument. All watercourses crossed by streets shall be provided
with permanent culverts of adequate size as determined by the City
Engineer and so constructed that the entire width of the street shall
be available at the top of the fill. No drains or catch basins shall
be backfilled or covered until inspected.
F.
Guardrails shall be constructed at such places and of such materials
as the Director of Public Works or his designee may determine.
[Amended 11-18-2013 by Ord. No. 1563]
G.
Gravel sidewalks at least five feet in width shall be constructed
on each side of the street, if the Planning Board requires the same.
H.
Permanent stone or concrete monuments shall be set in the ground
at all intersections of street lines and at all points where there
is a change of direction or curvature in the street lines. The Planning
Board reserves the right, however, to require additional monuments
on long tangents, or when otherwise reasonably necessary to facilitate
the location of any lot line or corner. The monuments shall be at
least four feet six inches in length, and at least six inches square
in section, with a drill hole in the center of the top. The tops of
the monuments shall be set approximately at finished grade.
I.
Such water and sewer mains, of materials, fittings and classes only
as the Director of Public Works or his designee shall specify and
approve in writing, shall be constructed and installed; the minimum
diameter of these mains shall be eight inches, and their installation
shall be subject to the inspection and approval of said Director of
Public Works or his designee. Water and sewer services, of such sizes
and materials as the Director of Public Works or his designee shall
specify, shall be installed for a minimum distance of five feet into
each building lot. The minimum depth of such services shall be five
feet.
[Amended 5-20-1963 by Ord. No. 278; 4-22-1969 by Ord. No. 417; 11-18-2013 by Ord. No. 1563]
J.
All corners of intersecting streets shall be rounded as approved
by the City Engineer.
K.
The work required under the provisions of Subsection C of this section as to gravel being placed on the proposed street and the road being rolled may be postponed temporarily in such instances as the Planning Board by proper vote and the Director of Public Works deem it desirable to do so for the purpose of allowing the installation of sewer and water pipes and such other service utilities as may be required; provided, however, that no such postponement of the requirements of said Subsection C shall be granted unless and until the petitioners who request the acceptance of the proposed street file with the City Treasurer a good and sufficient bond with sureties, or by posting cash, the amount of the same to be determined by the Director of Public Works, and said bond is to guarantee the completion, by the petitioners, of the work required under said Subsection C of this section and any other provisions as to monuments required in this article.
[Amended 11-18-2013 by Ord. No. 1563]
(1)
Upon the work required herein being completed by the petitioners
to the satisfaction of the Director of Public Works, said Director
shall order the City Treasurer to return the bond or cash to the petitioners.
(2)
After the installation on the proposed street by the Department of
Public Works of the required utilities, the Director of Public Works
shall notify in writing the petitioners who have posted the security
to prosecute the work required of them. Upon the failure of said petitioners
to complete said work within six months after receipt of said written
notice, said Director shall declare said security forfeited to the
City, and notice thereof shall thereupon be given to the persons who
posted said securities. The City of Gardner may thereafter use said
forfeited security to complete the work required on said street.
The several streets, highways, squares and parks in the City
shall retain the names by which they are now known, and all streets,
ways, squares and parks hereafter laid out shall be named by the City
Council. The City Council may, by a two-thirds vote of the whole Council,
change the name of any public street, way, park or square in the City,
provided that whenever the Council proposes to change any such name,
the Council shall, before final action thereon, appoint a time and
place for hearing all persons interested therein and give public notice
thereof seven days at least prior to the date set for such hearing.
Any subsection under § 567-8 of this article may be waived and shall not apply if the Planning Board recommends, in writing, to the City Council that said subsection be waived and if the City Council, after receiving said recommendation from the Planning Board and by an affirmative vote of 2/3 of its membership, declares that the laying out, altering, widening, or relocating of the particular street or way constructed on private land and proposed to be laid out or accepted as a public street is a matter benefiting the public as a whole rather than one concerning principally the abutters on said proposed street, and if said vote is approved by the Mayor, or has been passed over his veto or has otherwise become law under the provisions of the City Charter, upon the passage of such vote the provisions of such subsection of § 567-8 will thereby be waived. Thereafter, the proposed street may be accepted, laid out, altered, widened or relocated upon compliance with the remaining provisions of this article. This section shall apply to any amendments or additions hereafter made to § 567-8 of this article, unless it is specifically stated in said amendment or addition that this section shall not apply thereto.
