[Adopted 12-13-1973 by L.L. No. 3-1973]
The notice herein referred to shall be sufficient if given to the person, or one of them, whose name appears as owner of the adjacent property on the last completed assessment roll of the village. Said notice may be given either personally or by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested. If notice by mail is undeliverable, then said notice shall be sufficient if published one time in the official publication of the village; in the event of publication, notice shall be complete two days thereafter.
[Adopted 9-8-1977 by L.L. No. 2-1977]
No civil action shall be maintained against the village of Chatham or against any improvement district in the village for damages or injuries to persons or property (including those arising from the operation of snowmobiles) sustained by reason of any highway, bridge, culvert, highway marking, sign or device or any other property owned, operated or maintained by the village or any property owned, operated or maintained by any improvement district therein being defective, out of repair, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed unless written notice of such defective, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed condition of such highway, bridge, culvert, highway marking, sign or device or any other property owned, operated or maintained by the village or any property owned, operated or maintained by any improvement district was actually given to the Village Clerk and there was thereafter a failure or neglect within a reasonable time to repair or remove the defect, danger or obstruction complained of; and no such action shall be maintained for damages or injuries to persons or property sustained solely in consequence of the existence of snow or ice upon any highway, bridge, culvert or any other property owned by the village unless written notice thereof, specifying the particular place, was actually given to the Village Clerk 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.
No civil action will be maintained against the village for damages or injuries to persons or property sustained by reason of any defect in the sidewalks of the village or in consequence of the existence of snow or ice upon any of its sidewalks unless such sidewalks have been constructed or are maintained by the village pursuant to statute, nor shall any action be maintained for damages or injuries to persons 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 Village Clerk and there was a failure or neglect to cause such defect to be remedied, 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.
[Added 5-11-1989 by L.L. No. 2-1989; amended 1-22-2004 by L.L. No. 1-2004; 7-11-2022 by L.L. No. 5-2022]
A. It is the obligation of the owner of every parcel of real estate adjoining a public sidewalk in the Village of Chatham, whether the parcel of real estate is occupied by a structure or not, to keep such sidewalk free from snow and ice for the full paved width of such sidewalk for the full length of such sidewalk abutting such owner's property.
B. Snow and ice shall be removed within 24 hours after the end of a snowfall or after the snow has been deposited on such sidewalk.
C. Severe icing. In the case that snow and ice on any
sidewalk shall be frozen so hard that it cannot be removed without injury to the
sidewalk, the owner of the real property shall spread, or cause to be spread, sand, salt, sawdust, or other suitable material on the
sidewalk within the time period specified under Subsection
B above. As soon as is practical thereafter, the
sidewalk shall be completely cleared of such snow and ice.
D. An owner of real property who fails to comply with Subsection
A,
B, or
C of this section within the specified time frames shall be served with a notice to comply, which shall be issued by the Code Enforcement Officer.
E. Service of the notice to comply in accordance with this article may be made by personal service to the owner or may be made by leaving a copy of the same at the premises. Service of a copy of a notice to comply may be made by the Code Enforcement Officer, a police officer, or any officer of the Village of Chatham.
F. If the owner has failed to remove the snow and/or ice from the sidewalks or to cover ice with salt, sand or like material within 24 hours of the service of the notice to comply, the Village may have the snow and ice removed or the sidewalk sanded and salted. The failure of an owner of any real property to remove snow and/or ice from paved sidewalks or the failure to cover ice thereon with salt, sand, or like material in accordance with this article within 24 hours after such owner shall have been served with a copy of a notice to comply, shall be a violation.
G. Violation of this section shall be punishable by a fine as follows:
(1) For a first violation in any calendar year: $100.
(2) For a second violation in the same calendar year as the first violation: $200.
(3) For a third violation in the same calendar year as the first violation: $300.
(4) Each subsequent violation in the same calendar year as the first violation shall result in a fine of $300.
H. The Code Enforcement Officer shall mail notice of fines for violation under this section to the owner at the owner's address on file for the billing of real property taxes. If such a fine is not paid within 30 days of its mailing, the same shall become a lien upon the real estate adjoining the public sidewalk and shall be re-levied on the next Village real property tax bill.
The Village Clerk shall keep an indexed record of all written notices he 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 village street, highway, bridge, culvert, sidewalk, crosswalk or any other property owned by the village or by any improvement district therein, which record shall state the date of receipt of the notice, the nature and location of the conditions stated to exist and the name and address of the person from whom the notice is received. He shall at the Board meeting next following receipt of such written notice by him or within 10 days, whichever is sooner, cause said written notice to be brought to the attention of the Board of Trustees. The record of each notice shall be preserved for a period of five years after the date it is received.
[Amended 5-11-1989 by L.L. No. 2-1989]
Nothing contained in this Article shall be held to repeal or modify or waive any existing law, requirement or statute of limitation, but, on the contrary, the requirements of this Article shall be held to be additional requirements to the right to maintain such action; nor shall anything contained in this Article be held to impose upon the village, its officers and employees and/or any of its improvement districts any greater duty or obligation than to keep its streets, sidewalks and public places in a reasonably safe condition for public use and travel.