Borough of Bath, PA Article I Construction and Repair of Sidewalks and Curbs

[Adopted 3-5-1962 by Ord. No. 216 (Ch. 154, Art. IIA, of the 2005 Code of Ordinances)]

§ 568-1 Construction upon notice; time limit.

Every owner of property in the Borough of Bath shall, on 30 days' notice from the Borough Council, construct or reconstruct a sidewalk and/or curb, which shall conform to all applicable requirements of this article and said notice, in front of or alongside of such property.

§ 568-2 Repair upon notice; time limit.

Every owner of property in the Borough of Bath shall, on 15 days' notice from the Borough Council, repair the sidewalk and/or curb, in the manner stipulated in such notice, in front of or alongside such property.

§ 568-3 Form of notices.

The notices referred to in §§ 568-1 and 568-2 may be written or printed or partly written and partly printed.

§ 568-4 Specifications for work.

All sidewalks and/or curbs shall be constructed, reconstructed and repaired of concrete only, according to specifications determined from time to time by the Borough Engineer. All sidewalks shall be five feet wide.

§ 568-5 Line and grade; work to be done by property owner.

All sidewalks and/or curbs shall be constructed, reconstructed and repaired and the grading therefor done upon the line and grade obtained by the property owner from the Borough Engineer, and not otherwise. Upon notice, as provided in § 568-1 or 568-2, as the case may be, such work of construction, reconstruction or repair shall be done by the owner or owners of such property.

§ 568-6 Determination of disrepair; inspection of work.

It shall be the duty and responsibility of the Borough Engineer to determine, in the case of any individual property, whether or not the sidewalk and/or curb shall be reconstructed or repaired, and, if so, the specific part or parts thereof to be reconstructed or repaired. The Engineer may, at any time, during the course of work of constructing, reconstructing or repairing any sidewalk and/or curb, visit the site of such work to ascertain whether such work is being done according to requirements; and he or one of his assistants shall visit any such site for such purpose whenever requested by the property owner. Within two days after the completion of the work of construction, reconstruction or repair of any sidewalk and/or curb, it shall be the duty of the owner of the property where such work was done to notify the Borough Engineer of that fact, so that he may inspect such sidewalk and/or curb to determine whether the grade thereof has been observed and followed.

§ 568-7 Initiation of work by property owner.

Any property owner, upon his own initiative, and without notice from any Borough authority, may construct, reconstruct or repair a sidewalk and/or curb in front of or along his property, provided that such owner shall first make application to the Borough Engineer and shall conform to the requirements of this article as to line and grade and as to material used, and that he shall also notify the Borough Engineer, as required by § 568-6, within two days after completion of the work.

§ 568-8 Performance of work by Borough upon default of property owner.

On the neglect or refusal of the owner or owners of the lot or lots, as aforesaid, to grade, pave, repave or repair any sidewalk, or to set, place, construct or repair any curb at the edge thereof, after notice so to do, as aforesaid, the Borough, through its proper officials, shall cause the same to be done, and shall collect from such owner or owners of the lot or lots the cost thereof and 10% additional, together with all charges and expenses, and shall file a municipal lien therefor against such lot or lots.

§ 568-9 Noncompliance; violations and penalties.

[Amended 9-11-1989 by Ord. No. 421; 11-5-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-678]

Sidewalks and curbs not laid in conformity with the provisions of this article and the established grade of the street on which they are constructed, are hereby declared to be nuisances, and must be taken up and relaid, according to the provisions of this article, within 30 days after notice to the owner or owners so to do by the Borough; and upon failure of said owner or owners thereof to re-grade, recurb and repave said sidewalk and/or curb, within the time stipulated, they shall be liable to a fine of not less than $25, and not more than $600, to be collected for the use of said Borough, as fines of like amount are now by law recoverable; the same to be paid into the Borough treasury; and said Borough shall cause said sidewalk and/or curb to be regraded, recurbed, and repaved in the manner herein and hereby required, and the said Borough shall collect the cost thereof, together with all charges and expenses, from the owner or owners of the lot or lots as aforesaid, according to law and this article. In addition, court costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred by the Borough in enforcement proceedings shall be assessed against violator and awarded to the Borough.

§ 568-10 Maintenance of nonconforming sidewalks and curbs.

No sidewalk and/or curb heretofore laid with material or materials not hereinbefore prescribed shall be permitted to be repaired, but whenever any such sidewalk and/or curb becomes, in the opinion of the council of said Borough in bad condition, notice shall be served upon the owner or owners of the lot or lots fronting thereon to repave the sidewalk or re-set the curb with the material, as herein provided, and upon his, her or their failure so to do, after 30 days' notice, said Borough shall cause the same to be done and the cost thereof, with penalty and expenses, shall be collected by the said Borough from the owner or owners, as aforesaid.