[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Board of the Township of Cannon as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted by Ord. No. 2010-3]
The following words and terms in this article are defined as follows:
BICYCLE
A device propelled exclusively by human power upon which a person may ride, having either two, three, or four wheels arranged in a tandem or tricycle fashion.
MOTOR VEHICLE
A vehicle which is self-propelled, including, but not limited to, motorized scooters, all-terrain vehicles, automobiles, trucks, tractors, mopeds, snowmobiles, golf carts and Segway® personal transporters.
MOTORCYCLE
A motor vehicle having a saddle or seat for use of a rider and designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground, but excluding a tractor.
NONMOTORIZED PATHWAY
Any public way, operated and maintained by the Township or the road authority having jurisdiction, for bicycle and pedestrian use.
PERSON
Any person, or any firm, corporation (profit or nonprofit), or any association (incorporated or unincorporated), or any other type of business entity.
SIGN
Has the same meaning as provided in Chapter 450, Zoning.
SNOWMOBILE
A motor-driven vehicle, designed for travel primarily on snow or ice, of a type which utilizes sled-type runners or skis, or a revolving belt tread, or any combination of these or similar means of contact with the surface upon which it is operated.
VEHICLE
A device in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices moved exclusively by human power.
No person shall operate an automobile, truck, tractor, moped, snowmobile, motorcycle or any other type of motor vehicle or golf cart upon any nonmotorized pathway within the Township, except directly to enter or depart from adjacent property; provided, however, this section shall not prohibit the use of sidewalks and pedestrian pathways by persons using motorized wheelchairs or similar devices used to facilitate access and travel by handicapped persons.
No person shall operate a bicycle on a nonmotorized pathway at a speed greater than what is reasonable and prudent under the conditions then existing. Any person operating a bicycle on a nonmotorized pathway shall yield the right-of-way to motor vehicles that are crossing the nonmotorized pathway, and also shall yield the right-of-way to pedestrians who are using or are on the nonmotorized pathway.
The Township Board may adopt policies for regulating the use of nonmotorized pathways, consistent with the terms of this article. Such policies may include provisions regulating the occurrence and scope of gatherings and events on, near or associated with a nonmotorized pathway, including but not limited to a Township Events Policy.
A. 
No person shall willfully or maliciously, or wantonly and without cause, destroy, injure, mutilate, deface, paint on, write on, alter, remove or otherwise damage or carry away a nonmotorized pathway, or any part thereof, or any sign, or part thereof, relating thereto.
B. 
At the Township's option, the Township may either repair the damage caused by a person who violates Subsection A, and such person shall be responsible for reimbursing the Township for such repair work, or, alternatively, the Township may require the person who caused the damage to repair the nonmotorized pathway to its prior state within 30 days of the date of the damage. All such repair work shall be performed in accordance with the standards of § 394-13C of this article.
A. 
Parking. No person shall stop, stand or park or cause to be stopped, standing or parked, any vehicle, trailer, mobile home, motor home, camper or boat upon a nonmotorized pathway so as to obstruct the free passage of pedestrians, vehicles or other persons or conveyances.
B. 
Debris. No person shall deposit or burn, or cause to be deposited or burned, any leaves, branches, grass, brush or other yard debris upon a nonmotorized pathway, or deposit, or cause to be deposited, any earth, stone, sand, gravel, trash, rubbish, cans, bottles, broken glass, nails, garbage cans or any other objects or debris upon a nonmotorized pathway or within the designated easement for the nonmotorized pathway.
C. 
Deposit of ice and snow. No person, in removing snow, ice or slush from private property, or from public property under his or her control, such as a driveway, vehicle parking area or approach area, shall dump or deposit, or cause to be dumped or deposited, such snow, ice or slush, either temporarily or permanently, on any nonmotorized pathway without the prior written permission of an authorized Cannon Township official.
No person shall fish or otherwise attempt to catch fish or other aquatic animals while on a nonmotorized pathway, or the appurtenances of a nonmotorized pathway. Appurtenances of a nonmotorized pathway shall include, but are not limited to, any bridges or other structures which touch, adjoin or abut a nonmotorized pathway or within the designated easement for the nonmotorized pathway.
A. 
Any person who owns or exercises any control over an animal shall, if the animal deposits any fecal matter on any nonmotorized pathway or within the designated easement for the non-motorized pathway, immediately and completely remove such matter. This section shall not prohibit the presence of animals on nonmotorized pathways, except as otherwise prohibited in § 394-4 of this article.
B. 
Pets must be leashed and under the control of the owner at all times so as not to interfere with other pathway users.
No person shall plant any trees, shrubs or other vegetation within the designated easement for the nonmotorized pathway. No person shall allow trees, shrubs or other vegetation to grow to a size that obscures view or obstructs passage along a nonmotorized pathway. Cannon Township reserves the right to maintain trees and shrubs within the designated easement of the nonmotorized pathway.
No person shall leave any garden hose, lawn sprinkler or other irrigation device or similar implement unattended when such hose, sprinkler, device or implement is in contact with or runs across or over the surface of a non-motorized pathway.
A. 
If any construction project on lands adjoining a nonmotorized pathway results in damage to the nonmotorized pathway, then all such damage shall be fully repaired and the nonmotorized pathway shall be restored to its former condition within 10 days after the damage occurs, unless otherwise authorized by Cannon Township; provided, however, that if weather conditions prevent full restoration of the nonmotorized pathway within such ten-day period, then the nonmotorized pathway shall be temporarily patched and restored so as to permit reasonable use by bicycles, skaters and pedestrians, and full repair and restoration shall then be completed as soon as weather permits.
B. 
An occupancy permit shall not be granted under Chapter 450, Zoning, or the Building Code for any building or structure unless and until any nonmotorized pathway damaged in connection with the construction of such building or structure has been fully repaired and restored to its former condition; provided, however, that if weather conditions then prevent full repair and restoration of the nonmotorized pathway, an occupancy permit may be granted if:
(1) 
The nonmotorized pathway has been temporarily patched and restored so as to permit reasonable use by bicycles and pedestrians; and
(2) 
The Township is provided with adequate financial security in the form of a cash deposit, letter of credit or performance bond to guarantee full repair or restoration of the nonmotorized pathway as soon as weather permits.
C. 
Repair of all damage, as required by this section, shall be performed in compliance with § 394-13C of this article.
A. 
All persons shall complete a nonmotorized pathway opening permit if it is necessary to make a cut or opening in a nonmotorized pathway. Such cut or opening shall not be made until a nonmotorized pathway opening permit has been completed and returned to the Township, with payment of any required fee.
B. 
If an emergency requires an immediate utility cut or opening to be made, the Township shall be notified, the permit completed and the applicable fee paid on the next business day during which the Township office is open.
C. 
When the work within a cut or opening is completed, the cut or opening shall be promptly compacted and restored as required in accordance with the trail standards set by the Township Engineer.
A. 
No person shall suspend any sign, banner, printed leaflet or similar object above a nonmotorized pathway or within the designated easement for the nonmotorized pathway, nor shall any person tape or affix any sign, banner, printed leaflet or similar object to a nonmotorized pathway or within the designated easement for the nonmotorized pathway without the prior written approval of the Township Zoning Administrator or other Township official authorized by ordinance or Township policy to grant such approval.
B. 
The provisions of this section shall not prohibit the Township from installing and maintaining signs and markers pertaining to the nonmotorized pathway or painting words or markings on the pathway if necessary for the proper use of the pathway or for public safety purposes.
This article shall not apply to work being done by an authorized Township official or employee on a nonmotorized pathway, and this article shall not be construed to prohibit the Township, or any officer, employee or agent thereof, from exercising all reasonable and necessary governmental powers with respect to the use, maintenance and repair of nonmotorized pathways.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original Sec. 15, Violations and penalties; enforcement, which immediately followed this section, was repealed at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II). See now Ch. 70, Violations and Penalties.
[Adopted 11-27-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-6]
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Township Sidewalk Maintenance Ordinance."
The purpose of this article is to provide standards for construction and maintenance of sidewalks adjacent to public roads, to require abutting landowners to clear public sidewalks of ice and snow within a reasonable time, and to require property owners to repair damage to public sidewalks caused by their actions or negligence.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
SIDEWALK
A pedestrian walkway within the right-of-way of a public street or highway. The term shall not include a recreational or bicycle trail or pathway installed by Cannon Township and having a width greater than five feet. The term shall also not include any pedestrian walkway adjacent to a private street or within a private right-of-way not available to the general public, and the maintenance and repair of such walkways shall be a private matter among those persons entitled to use them.
All sidewalks or portions thereof which are hereafter constructed, repaired or replaced shall comply with the following specifications:
A. 
All sidewalks shall be constructed to grade established by existing adjoining walks or, in the absence of the foregoing, by the Township Engineer, and shall be paved with a single course of concrete using limestone aggregate, which shall have a compressive strength of not less than 3,500 pounds per square inch within 28 days of paving.
B. 
All sidewalks shall be at least five feet in width.
C. 
Paving shall be constructed on at least a two-inch-thick sand base, and shall be at least four inches in depth, except across driveways, where it shall be at least six inches in depth. Paving joints shall be perpendicular to sidewalks at intervals consistent with adjoining or abutting sidewalks, and not greater than the sidewalk width. One-inch expansion joints shall be placed throughout the walk at least every 50 feet in between walks and other rigid structures. Handicap accessible curb cuts, ramps, and tactical section indicators shall be installed as required by law.
D. 
The surface shall be roughened with a mechanic's brush or other equipment to prevent unreasonably smooth and slippery surfaces.
The occupant and owner of every lot or premises adjoining any sidewalk shall be responsible to clear all ice and snow from that portion of the sidewalk adjoining their premises. It shall be a violation of this article to allow snow or ice to remain accumulated on the sidewalk for a consecutive period of greater than 24 hours.
Where sidewalk defects creating pedestrian hazards, including but not limited to a vertical discontinuity of two inches or more, are caused by conditions or activities upon an abutting property, the abutting property owner shall be responsible for repair and maintenance of the sidewalk or portion thereof in accordance with the standards of this article at their expense. A failure to so repair the sidewalk within 30 days after written notice from the Township, or such additional time as the Township may specify in case of seasonal weather, shall constitute a violation of this article. Defects considered to be caused by the abutting property owner include, but are not limited to:
A. 
Tree or root growth from the abutting owner's property;
B. 
Surface drainage; or
C. 
Construction traffic or other traffic crossing the sidewalk to perform work on or to be parked or used upon by the abutting property.
A. 
Under Section 18a of the Pavements, Sidewalks and Elevated Structures Act, Public Act 246 of 1931, as amended (MCL 41.288a), the Township Board may construct, repair or maintain, or may order the construction, repair and maintenance of sidewalks for the health, safety and general welfare of residents of the Township after notifying the abutting property owners of the time and place of a hearing on such order. Following the hearing, the Township may either construct, repair or maintain the sidewalk and assess the costs over a five-year period against the abutting property owners, or permit the abutting property owners, within a specified time, to have the sidewalks constructed, repaired or maintained according to Township specifications at their expense. The cost of replacement or repair of a sidewalk to be charged against a property owner shall be based upon the actual cost or its Engineer's estimates.
B. 
No work shall be commenced until approved by either the County Road Commission or State Department of Transportation having jurisdiction over the right-of-way within which the sidewalk is located.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
In case of violation of this chapter, in addition to all other penalties provided by this Code, the Township may, but shall in no event be required to, remove snow and ice from a sidewalk or repair a sidewalk damaged by the abutting owners as provided in § 394-21. In such case, as an additional penalty in the case of a civil infraction proceeding, or in a separate suit or other proceeding authorized by law, the Township shall be entitled to recover all of its expenses incurred for such maintenance and repairs.