[Adopted as Sec. 4.03 of the prior Code; amended in its entirety 1-10-2019 by Ord. No. 19-02]
If any tree falls from adjacent land into any road right-of-way, the owner or occupant of the land shall immediately remove the tree from the road right-of-way. If the property owner following notice from the Town does not remove the tree, the Town may remove any fallen tree or trees therein and charge the cost thereof to the property owner pursuant to § 66.0627, Wis. Stats. When it is necessary for trees in a road right-of-way to be removed, the adjacent property owner shall have a right of first refusal to have the wood. After receiving notice that a tree is to be removed, the adjacent property owner shall have 14 days to remove the tree.
It shall be unlawful for any person to build a fence or any item, or to throw, deposit or place any weeds, sod, brush, cans, glass, gravel, stones, boulders, machinery, garbage, other waste or rubbish or any item beyond the property lot stakes.
Rural mailboxes are prohibited on the right-of-way of all roads within the Town of Rome except as hereinafter provided:
A. 
Mailboxes are approved only if they are of a construction or design approved by the United States Postal Service or previously approved by the Postmaster.
B. 
Newspaper tubes are permitted only if provided by the newspaper.
C. 
A nameplate bearing the name and address number of the mailbox owner shall be permitted on each box.
D. 
The support for the mailbox and newspaper tube shall adhere to the standards governing construction of mailbox supports as established by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and shall not constitute a hazard to the public use of the right-of-way.
E. 
Mailbox and newspaper tubes must be located on the side of the road required by the United States Postal Service. The door of the mailbox or protruding end of the newspaper tube should be even with the gravel on the ditch side or at least two feet from the paved edge of the roadway.
F. 
No other object of any kind shall be attached to the mailbox, newspaper tube or their supports. No other objects, including, but not limited to, landscaping boulders or fences may be placed on the right-of-way.
G. 
This section is not intended to and shall not be construed to create any affirmative duty on the part of the Town of Rome to locate and remove obstructing mailboxes.
H. 
The Town of Rome is not liable for damage to mailboxes caused by snowplowing. The Director of Public Works or designee, in their sole discretion, may repair or replace a mailbox damaged as a result of a direct hit by a Town vehicle or equipment. The Director of Public Works may authorize the Town Highway Department to repair such damage or replace the mailbox with a unit as close to the original mailbox as possible. The owner of the mailbox must first apply for such relief. The Town shall not repair or replace a mailbox damaged by snow that has been plowed or pushed.
[Amended 4-16-2020 by Ord. No. 20-03; 4-16-2020 by Ord. No. 20-05]
Pursuant to provisions of § 360-124, allowing off-premises placement of signs, certain temporary signs will be allowed in the road right-of-way with the following provisions:
A. 
Shall be placed no closer than 10 feet from the edge of the road surface and no closer than 30 feet from each side of a driveway to maintain a clear, obstruction free vision area for pedestrians and traffic.
B. 
No larger than two feet by two feet, four square feet total.
C. 
No higher than four feet above existing established adjacent grade to the top of the sign.
D. 
No more than one off-premises temporary sign shall be allowed to be placed by an individual in any single parcel's right-of-way.
E. 
Each sign will contain the name and phone number of the person who owns the sign.
F. 
No sign may be located or placed in a way which interferes with traffic.
G. 
To ensure traffic and pedestrian safety, no sign may be located or placed on Town-owned property or adjacent road right-of-way without written approval of the Town Administrator, after receiving an application for proposed placement of a sign. An application for placement of a temporary sign on Town owned property or adjacent road right-of-way shall contain number of signs, proposed sign locations, and proposed duration of placement, to ensure adherence to Town ordinance requirements. Multiple signs containing the same message shall not be allowed to be located on Town-owned property or adjacent road right-of-way.
H. 
Regulations for time of placement and removal.
(1) 
No more than three off-premises directional signs for approved civic events may be erected for each event. Off-premises signs may not be placed for more than 14 days prior to and no more than 24 hours following such event. A civic event is any organized occasion relating to a community. Examples: business, associations, teams, etc. in which they may sponsor or organize an activity.
(2) 
No more than three off-premises directional signs may be erected for each event when a property owner is opening the property to the public. Off-premises signs may not be placed for more than two days prior to and no more than 24 hours following such events
(3) 
Signs may be placed during an election campaign period, from seven days prior to the primary election and 14 days prior to the general election and shall be removed within 24 hours after an election.
No person shall maintain, plant or permit to remain on any private or public premises situated at the intersection of two or more roads, in the Town any hedge, tree, shrub or other growth, which may obstruct the view of the operator of any motor vehicle or pedestrian approaching such intersection.
It is unlawful for any person to plant, cause to grow, allow to grow, or maintain any trees, bushes, shrubbery or vegetation of any kind, which is an obstruction to the clear and complete vision of any traffic sign in the Town. It shall be the duty of every owner of such tree, brush, shrubbery or vegetation to remove such obstruction.
Any shrub, tree or other plant which obstructs the view at an intersection or the view of a traffic sign shall be deemed to be dangerous to public travel, and the Town shall notify the property owner in writing, describing the conditions, stating the steps necessary to correct the conditions, and establishing a reasonable time within which the corrective steps shall be taken. In the event that effective steps are not taken within the time specified it shall be lawful for the Town to abate these conditions to the extent necessary to assure compliance with the foregoing requirements, and the costs thereof shall be assessed to the owner.
[Amended 4-16-2020 by Ord. No. 20-05]
Any person installing a driveway shall, prior to any such installation, obtain an installation permit from the Director of Public Works. Application for a permit to construct a driveway shall be made in writing to the Director of Public Works and shall describe the property and the road or street where the driveway will be constructed. All driveways installed, altered, changed, replaced or extended after the effective date of this article shall meet the following requirements and must be approved as to location by the Director of Public Works.
A. 
The maximum number of driveway openings for vehicular ingress and egress permitted for lots with a width less than 100 feet shall be one and for lots with a width greater than 100 feet, two driveway openings may be permitted with approval of the Director of Public Works.
B. 
Vehicular entrances and exits to any business, industry or public lots shall be not less than 200 feet from any pedestrian entrance or exit to a church, park, playground, library, public emergency shelter, or other place of public assembly. Deviations from this standard are allowable in the Alpine Village Business Park (BP) District, or in speed zones 25 miles per hour or less, at the discretion of the Director of Public Works.
C. 
At the property line, driveways shall be a maximum of 30 feet wide and shall have a minimum of 10 feet surface-width and 14 feet of clear-width.
[Amended 11-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-19]
D. 
Openings for vehicular ingress and egress shall be a maximum of 40 feet wide and a minimum of 15 feet wide. The maximum curb and gutter opening for all residential districts shall be 25 feet.
E. 
The surface of the driveway connecting with the roadway shall slope down and away from the road shoulder a sufficient amount and distance to preclude ordinary surface water drainage from the driveway area flowing onto the roadbed. The driveway shall not obstruct or impair drainage in the roadside and ditch areas. The surface shall be no less than a road base grade of material. The use of ditches for a driveway is not permitted.
F. 
If a concrete driveway is installed in the right-of-way, a fiber expansion joint and/or a concrete score line must be installed at the property line. If the concrete driveway must be removed from within the right-of-way for roadway work, the property owner will be financially responsible for removal and replacement.
G. 
When the Town determines a culvert is necessary for proper water control, the Town will determine the size, material of the culvert and end walls.
H. 
The Director of Public Works may grant temporary access to the road rights-of-way. Such access permit shall be temporary, revocable and subject to any conditions required and shall be issued for a period not to exceed 12 months.
I. 
Any repairs or cleaning of the roads adjacent to the installation of driveways shall be at the owner's expense. The owner may contract for the service or the Town of Rome may repair at its discretion.
J. 
A plot plan showing the placement of the driveway access shall be required along with the permit.
K. 
Any private driveway leading to a building or structure located 200 feet or more from the public right-of-way shall be at least 10 feet in surface-width and provide 14 feet of clear-width; shall provide an unobstructed height throughout the entire length and width of the driveway of at least 14 feet, and shall provide a turnaround area located no more than 75 feet from the structure capable of turning around emergency vehicles. Driveway permits under this subsection shall require review and approval from the Fire Chief in order to verify that the installation standards will provide for the safe passage and turnaround of emergency vehicles accessing the structures served by the driveway. Greater dimensions may be required by the Director of Public Works, after consultation with the Fire Chief, if the proposed driveway would not be sufficient so as to accommodate fire-fighting apparatus or equipment that may be required to service the property.
[Amended 11-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-19]
A. 
Clear vision areas. All Town highway intersections in the Town of Rome shall be provided with a clear vision area, triangular in shape, bounded by the highway center lines and a line connecting the center-line points at a specified distance from their point of intersection.
B. 
Center line defined. "Center line" shall be defined as follows:
(1) 
Where there is an undivided pavement within a right-of-way, the center line shall be the center line of that pavement, irrespective of whether or not that coincides with the center line of the right-of-way.
(2) 
Where there is a divided pavement within a right-of-way, the center line shall be the center line of the median strip between the pavements, except as specified in Subsection B(3) below.
(3) 
Where there is a divided pavement within a right-of-way and the distance between the center lines of the pavements, measured along the center line of the intersecting Town highway, is 60 feet or greater, the center line of the pavements shall be used separately in the manner illustrated in Figure 1,[1] to designate the clear vision triangles.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Clear Sight Triangles diagram is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(4) 
Clear vision triangle sizing. The distance from the point of intersection of the center lines of two Town highways to the points on those center lines that are to be used to determine visual clearance triangle size shall be as follows:
(a) 
Town highways in speed zones 25 mph or less 45 feet.
(b) 
Town highways in speed zones greater than 25 mph but less than or equal to 45 mph 75 feet.
(c) 
Town highways in speed zones greater than 45 mph 100 feet.
[Amended 4-16-2020 by Ord. No. 20-05]
The Director of Public Works is authorized to conduct mowing and trimming operation within the right-of-way of a Town road as determined necessary for traffic safety purposes.