[Adopted as §§ 19-1 through 19-38 of
the 1965 Code]
When any change of grade or alteration is required
to be made in any public highway, street, sidewalk or bridge which
may cause damage to abutters or others or may render the City liable
to a suit or claim therefor, the Commissioner of Public Works, before
commencing such work, shall make a full and particular survey and
plan of such proposed repairs, alteration or work and ascertain the
level of such way or sidewalk with reference to permanent objects
in the vicinity and shall preserve such records, plans or other evidence
thereof that the same may be proved in case of any future suit or
claim against the City.
No street less than 50 feet wide shall be laid
out or accepted by the City unless a building line shall be established
therewith so as to provide a total space of such width free from any
building thereof, excepting from this section all streets laid out
as of December 15, 1953.
All petitions for laying out, widening, altering
or discontinuing any street shall first be presented to the Council
and be referred by it to its Committee on Public Works. Every such
petition shall be accompanied by an agreement referring thereto, signed
by all the parties who claim no damages or will release their damages
and by those who will accept specific damages of an amount therein
stated, and also by a statement containing the names of all parties
who decline to release or state their prospective damages.
Every petition filed under the provisions of § 157-6 shall also be accompanied by an accurate plan and profile showing the existing length, width, lines and grade, if any, of the street which the petitioners desire to have laid out, widened, altered or discontinued; the abutting lands, with the fences and buildings thereon and the length of the frontage of each estate; the lands to be taken and the names of the owners thereof. Each such petition shall also show, in red ink, the proposed lines and grade of such street and give sufficient references to stakes or other boundary marks on the premises to enable the Commissioner of Public Works to locate it with accuracy.
The Committee on Public Works, upon consideration
of any petition or order referred to it by order of the Council for
laying out, widening, altering or discontinuing any street, shall
report to the Council whether in its judgment the common convenience
and necessity require that such street should be laid out, widened,
altered or discontinued. If the Committee shall report that any street
ought to be laid out, widened, altered or discontinued, it shall cause
the measurements and boundaries of such street as proposed to be laid
out, widened, altered or discontinued to be marked out distinctly
on the premises by the Commissioner and to be described in its report
and shall specify the manner in which such laying out, widening, altering
or discontinuance should be completed. The Committee shall also report
the names of the owners of all lands included therein and those sustaining
damages by the laying out, widening, altering or discontinuance of
such street as proposed. The provisions of this section shall in no
way limit the power of the Council to act in the premises independently
of the Committee on Public Works.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
Before acting on any petition or order referred to in § 157-8. the Council shall hold a public hearing thereon, notice of which hearing shall be published in a newspaper in the City at least once not later than 15 days before such hearing, and also shall be delivered to each abutting owner at his or her usual place of abode or business not later than 15 days before such hearing, which notices shall state the time, place and purpose of the hearing. After the hearing, the Council may proceed to act upon the petition or order with reference thereto.
All money received from assessments for benefit
or advantage to real estate by reason of the laying out, widening,
discontinuance, change of grade or other alteration of streets is
hereby appropriated and shall be credited to the account of new street
construction.
No street shall be prepared or opened for public
travel over private lands by any person except in accordance with
a plan filed with and approved by the Commissioner of Public Works,
showing its proposed location, width and grades, or unless constructed
and maintained in such manner as to be reasonably safe for travel
at all times. The Commissioner may close the entrance thereto from
a public street until it is made reasonably safe for travel.
Any petition for laying out a street which shall
in its effect involve the acceptance by the City of a private street
constructed or projected over private lands shall be accompanied either
by a certificate from the Commissioner that such street has actually
been constructed in compliance with the following requirements and
specifications or by an agreement of the petitioners that they will
bear the expense of such construction and completion:
A.Â
Such street shall be constructed and completed in
accordance with a plan and profile thereof filed with and approved
by the Commissioner, showing its proposed location, width and grades
and the location and grades of all connecting streets, and drawn to
such scale as the Commissioner may require and to his or her satisfaction.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
B.Â
Such street shall be constructed in a manner reasonably
safe for travel and with a roadway of such width as the Commissioner
may require and of such cross section as he or she may prescribe.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
C.Â
The whole area of such street shall be cleared of
stumps, rocks, roots and other superfluous or objectionable material
and of all trees not intended for preservation, and trees intended
for preservation shall be properly protected by boxes or fences against
injury.
D.Â
All clay, loam and loamy material shall be removed
from the limits of the roadway and sidewalks, if required by the Commissioner,
to such depth as he or she may approve and shall be deposited outside
the limits of such street.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
E.Â
All work in excavation and embankment shall be brought
accurately to such a subgrade as the Commissioner may require, and
all side slopes thereof within such street or on adjoining land shall
be at such ratio as he or she may furnish.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
F.Â
All corners of intersecting streets shall be rounded,
and granite bounds shall be set at all angles, curves and corners
of such street and those made with such connecting streets, according
to the direction and approval of the Commissioner.
No permit for the construction or alteration
of a building shall be granted on any street over private land until
such street is laid out and the lines and grade thereof are established
or until such street is accepted by order and decree of the Council.
No sidewalk shall be laid out or established
and no other work of any kind in any street shall be begun, the cost
of which may be charged wholly or partly to abutting owners, unless
such owners shall have been given an opportunity to be heard thereon.
The several streets in the City shall continue
to be called and known by the names heretofore established, and all
streets hereafter laid out and accepted shall be named by the Council.
The Council may change the name of any street.
No name shall be given to any street which has
already been given to any other street.
The Commissioner of Public Works shall erect
and maintain in conspicuous places on each street in the City one
or more signs, on posts or otherwise, which shall bear the name given
to the street by the Council.
A.Â
The Commissioner of Public Works shall cause numbers
of regular series to be affixed to or inscribed on all dwelling houses
and other buildings erected or fronting on any public or private way
in the City and shall have the power to determine the form, size and
material of such numbers.
B.Â
No person shall neglect or refuse to affix to any
building owned by him or her the street number designated for such
building, nor shall any person affix to or suffer to remain on any
building owned by him, for more than three days, a street number other
than the one designated for such building by the Commissioner of Public
Works.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
Whenever the Commissioner of Public Works is
about to construct or repair any way, the surface of which is paved
with block, macadam or otherwise or is rolled, he or she shall, before
beginning work, give reasonable notice of such intention to the head
of each City department, to corporations that may be affected thereby
and to all abutting owners having connections by drains or otherwise
with structures in such way. If any of such departments, corporations
or owners have any work to be done in the public way so designated,
such department, corporation or owner shall consult and arrange with
the Commissioner that such work may be done before the surface of
such way is again prepared for public travel, and after being given
such notice and opportunity, shall not break up such way within the
area of such previous disturbance during three years thereafter, except
in case of absolute necessity. No street shall be excavated for any
purpose between the 15th day of November and the first day of April
except in the case of necessity.
When any highway, bridge or street shall from
any cause be unsafe or inconvenient, the Commissioner of Public Works
shall forthwith put a suitable fence across such highway, street or
bridge and exclude all travelers from passing over the same or shall
cause the parts which are unsafe and inconvenient to be enclosed by
a sufficient fence or guard so long as they remain unsafe or inconvenient
and shall maintain thereon one or more lighted lanterns every night,
from twilight in the evening through the whole night, so long as the
fence or guard shall be required.
No person shall, without authority, enter or
remain upon any portion of a public street which has lawfully been
enclosed, barricaded or roped off.
No person shall alter or cause to be altered
the height or width of any sidewalk in the City without written permission
from the Commissioner of Public Works.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
No person shall suffer or permit any water or
other liquid substance to run or be discharged from any building or
real estate owned by him or her or under his or her control into or
across any street or sidewalk.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
No person shall allow any sink water or other
impure water or any wastewater to run from any building or lot occupied
by him or her or under his or her legal control into any street without
permission from the Commissioner.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
No person shall permit water from the eaves
or leader pipes of any building occupied or cared for by him or her
to be discharged upon the sidewalk of any public street or make or
permit any drain sluice gully or conduit upon his or her land or building
to discharge water upon such sidewalk.
No person shall wash with water from a hose
or pipe of any kind any windows or parts of a store or other building
whereby any sidewalk may become wet except before 7:30 a.m. or after
9:30 p.m.
No person shall distribute, drop, place or suffer
to remain in or upon any street any vegetable or animal matter, ashes,
waste, dirt, stones, rubbish or garbage of any kind whatsoever except
under the direction or regulations of the Commissioner of Public Works
and in compliance with any regulations or requirements of the Board
of Health.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
No person shall cast, place or deposit on any
part of any street or sidewalk any part of any fruit or vegetable
or other substance which is likely to cause any person to slip or
fall if he or she should step on it.
No person shall throw, scatter, drop or place,
or shall cause to be thrown, scattered, dropped or placed, in or upon
any street or other public place within the City, any glass, tacks,
nails, pieces of metal or any other substance likely to damage any
wheeled vehicle having tires of rubber.
[Amended 3-5-2002 by Ord. No. 30-02]
No person shall place or move any building in
or through any street except in accordance with a building permit
from the Building Department, nor while doing such work under such
permit, remove any shade tree in a street or any branch thereof except
in accordance with authority granted by the department head or board
having jurisdiction or control over the trees in question nor in doing
such moving or placing, interfere with the fire alarm telegraph or
police signal systems except in accordance with permission from the
officer in charge thereof, nor interfere with any streetlighting fixture,
post or support except with permission of the Commissioner.
No person shall, without a license from the
Commissioner, erect or maintain any bulletin board in any street,
or put, place, post, affix, paint, print, write or carve any placard,
handbill, poster, notice, advertisement or advertising design in any
street or upon any building, tree, tree guard, box, fence, stone,
sidewalk, curbstone, police or post or other object, or cause it to
be done by any other person.
A.Â
No person shall maintain an entrance to his or her
real estate by steps descending immediately from or near the line
of a street unless the same is properly guarded.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
B.Â
No person shall permit a cellar door or doorway from
any street into any cellar or basement to remain open when not in
immediate use, nor while in such use after the beginning of twilight,
unless a good and sufficient light is kept constantly at the entrance
of such door or doorway.
[Amended 4-5-1966; 6-19-2012 by Ord. No. 018-2011; 3-18-2014 by Ord. No.
024-2013]
A.Â
OWNER
(1)Â
(a)Â
(b)Â
(c)Â
(d)Â
(e)Â
(2)Â
PERSON
SIDEWALK
Definitions.
Every person who alone or severally with others:
Has legal title to any building or parcel of land, vacant or
otherwise; or
Has care, charge or control of any building or parcel of land,
vacant or otherwise, in any capacity, including but not limited to
as agent, personal representative, trustee or guardian of the estate
of the holder of legal title; or
Is a mortgagee in possession or otherwise in control of any
property; or
Is an agent, trustee or other person appointed by the courts
and vested with possession or control of any property; or
Is an officer or trustee of the association of unit owners of
a condominium.
Each person within this definition as owner is bound to comply
with the provisions of this section as if he or she were the owner
in fee.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
Every individual, partnership, corporation, trust or other
entity.
Any paved area adjacent to a public or private way which
is devoted to pedestrian travel and shall include any accessory ramping
and curb cuts connecting the sidewalk to the traveled portion of an
adjacent street.
B.Â
Duty imposed.
(1)Â
The owner of any real estate abutting any sidewalk within the City
shall remove or cause to be removed any snow and/or ice which has
accumulated thereon, and if the ice cannot be removed completely,
any remaining ice shall be made level and shall be covered with sand,
salt or other suitable substance to prevent slipping. This section
shall be enforced by either the Chief of Police or the Commissioner
of Public Works.
(2)Â
The owner must clear and sand the sidewalk so as to create a walking
path of at least 36 inches or the width of the sidewalk, whichever
is smaller, within the first 24 hours after the storm has abated.
C.Â
Placing snow on public ways. No person, other than a municipal employee
performing work for the City in the normal course of his or her municipal
employment, shall place or cause to be placed any snow or ice on or
into the public way.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
D.Â
Sanctions.
(1)Â
The fine for breach of the duty imposed by this section or for placing
snow or ice on or into the public way is $200. Each day on which the
owner fails to remove snow and ice as required herein shall be considered
as a separate violation.
(2)Â
This section imposes duties on the owners of properties abutting
sidewalks. Upon the neglect or violation any of duty imposed by it,
that duty may be performed by the Commissioner of Public Works or
his or her designee at the expense of the person charged with the
duty. The City may recover its expenses, not exceeding the penalty,
in a legal action of contract.
[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 100-2014]
(3)Â
All invoices for the payment of municipal charges and bills, fines
or violations are due under any provision of this section or arising
in connection with enforcing this section within 30 days after they
are mailed unless a different due date is otherwise provided by law
or ordinance. Any invoice remaining unpaid after its due date will
accrue interest from the due date at the rate of interest charged
on tax bills under the provisions of MGL c. 59, § 57, as
the same may from time to time be amended.
(4)Â
The fees and charges assessed under this section, together with interest
thereon and costs relative thereto, shall be a lien upon the real
estate as described in MGL c. 40, § 58. The lien shall take
effect upon the recording of a list of unpaid municipal charges and
fees by parcel of land and by the name of the person assessed for
the charge or fee in the registry of deeds and, if a charge or fee
which is secured by a municipal charges lien remains unpaid when the
assessors are preparing a real estate tax list and warrant to be committed
under MGL c. 59, § 53, the enforcing authority in charge
of collecting the charge or fee, or the collector of taxes, shall
certify the charge or fee to the assessors, who shall forthwith add
the charge or fee to the tax on the property to which it relates and
commit it with their warrant to the collector of taxes as part of
such tax.
(5)Â
If the property to which such charge or fee relates is tax exempt,
the charge or fee shall be committed as the tax. A lien under this
section may be discharged by filing a certificate from the Tax Collector
that all municipal charges or fees constituting the lien, together
with any interest and costs thereon, have been paid or legally abated.
All costs of recording or discharging a lien under this section shall
be borne by the owner of the property.
(6)Â
This section may also be enforced by civil process or by noncriminal
disposition as provided in MGL c. 40, § 21D. The Commissioner
of Public Works or his designee or any Fitchburg police officer may
issue tickets to enforce this section. If enforced civilly, each day
on which a violation exists shall be deemed to be a separate offense
and the violator shall be subject to the following fines:
(7)Â
In addition to the penalties set forth above, the enforcing authority
may seek an injunction from an appropriate court to restrain any violation
of this section.
No person shall erect or cause to be erected
any building or fence adjoining any street or public ground without
first ascertaining the boundary line of the same by application to
the Commissioner of Public Works. No fence or other structure shall
be erected in or upon any street.
No person shall erect or remove any post in
any public street except by permission from the Commissioner of Public
Works. The Council may at any time order the removal of any post.
No person shall wholly or partly fill up any
gutter in any street in the City or cause the same to be done without
written permission from the Commissioner of Public Works.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 157-37,
Obstruction of traffic, was repealed 4-15-1997 by Ord. No. 81-97.
No person shall, within the limits of any street,
play any game of ball or football, throw any snowball, stone or any
hard substance, fly any kite or engage in any other amusement, game
or exercise interfering with the safe and convenient use of such street
by any person traveling or passing along the same.
No person shall fire or discharge any gun, pistol
or firearm in or across any street, provided that this section shall
not apply to the use of such weapons at any military exercise or review
under the authority of a commissioned officer of the militia or in
the lawful defense of the person, family or property of any citizen.
This section shall not apply to nor affect any duly authorized and
licensed rifle ranges where target practice or tournaments are held.
No person shall, while on foot in any street,
carry or display any show card, placard or sign except in accordance
with a permit from the Commissioner of Public Works.
A.Â
No funeral, procession or parade containing 200 or
more persons or 50 or more vehicles, except the forces of the United
States Army or Navy, the military forces of the commonwealth and the
forces of the Police and Fire Departments, shall occupy, march or
proceed along any way except in accordance with a permit issued by
the Chief of Police and such other regulations as are set forth herein
which may apply.
B.Â
Except as allowed by law of the commonwealth, no person
shall form or conduct or take part in any parade in any street, or
form or conduct, for the purpose of display or demonstration, any
procession or assembly of people without first obtaining a permit
therefor from the Chief of Police.
