[Adopted 9-9-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-04]
The Borough of Jim Thorpe may require owners of property abutting
on any street, including state highways, to construct, pave, repave
and keep in good repair the sidewalk, curb, and gutter along such
property, at such grades and under such regulations as may be prescribed
by ordinance.
No public sidewalks, curbs or gutters shall be repaired or installed
by any person without first having a written permit from the Borough.
Application for a sidewalk, curb or gutter repair or installation
permit shall be made on forms furnished by the Borough.
A. Fees for a sidewalk, curb, or gutter installation permit, payable
in advance, are as follows: a deposit in the amount set by resolution
of the Borough Council to cover the engineering fee for the grade
and alignment should be made at the time of application. In the event
the engineering fee is less than such application fee, a refund shall
be made by the Borough to the applicant in the amount by which the
application fee received exceeds the actual engineering costs. In
the event the engineering fee for the grade and alignment standards
is in excess of the application fee received, the applicant will be
required to pay to the Borough within 20 days of receipt of written
notice from the Borough the amount by which the actual engineering
fee exceeds the application fee received. Failure to pay such additional
amount may result in revocation of any permit issued with respect
to such application.
B. A permit shall cover only contiguous construction and the work to
be done as one continuous operation.
A. A permit shall expire for work not started within 30 days or completed
within 60 days after issuance of a permit, and a new permit shall
be required before beginning or completing the work.
B. Before commencing construction, the person or homeowner who has obtained
the permit to have work done on the sidewalk and/or curb must give
at least 48 hours' notice to the Borough Manager. This will enable
the Borough Manager to contact the Borough Engineer for any inspections
that may be required under the terms of this article.
A. All 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 Council or the Borough Engineer and not otherwise
so that curbing, if any, is installed on the property line and drainage,
if any, is installed on the Borough right-of-way.
B. The curb center line shall be determined by the Borough Council or
the Borough Engineer. Curbing shall have a minimum eight-inch reveal.
If curbing is higher than existing sidewalks, then sidewalks may need
to be replaced to prevent ponding of water on the sidewalk.
C. The Borough Council or the Borough Engineer shall determine if stormwater
is an issue. If so, the Borough Engineer shall determine and/or approve
the pipe and basin size according to flow calculations and ensure
the stormwater has a place to drain to. If stormwater pipes or basins
are installed, curbing shall be replaced or installed to PADOT Pub.
408, Section 630, specifications.
Where sidewalks or curbs are to be constructed, paved, repaved,
or repaired over coal cellars or other excavations, such sidewalks
shall be supported by iron or steel beams, girders, stone, or concrete
arches. Any support of wood or perishable material shall be prohibited.
Every owner of property in the Borough of Jim Thorpe shall,
on 30 days' notice from Borough Council, construct or reconstruct
a sidewalk and/or curb in front of, alongside or to the rear of such
property, which shall conform to all applicable requirements of this
article.
Every owner of property in the Borough of Jim Thorpe shall,
on 30 days' notice from the Borough Council, repair the sidewalk/curb
in front of, alongside or to the rear of such property in a manner
stipulated in such notice.
A. All curbing and sidewalk shall be constructed, reconstructed, and
repaired of concrete only. The materials for curbs shall be in accordance
with the specifications set forth in PADOT Pub. 408, Section 630,
Subsections 630.1 through 630.3. The material for sidewalks shall
be in accordance with applicable specifications in PADOT 408.
B. If any ADA curbs are required at intersections, with any street resurfacing
projects, ADA ramps are to be installed, including replacement of
existing ADA ramps if sidewalks are present.
Sidewalks, curbs or gutters shall be constructed in accordance
with details and specifications as established by the Borough Engineer;
or, in the alternative, at the applicant's preference, by design submitted
to the Borough Engineer for review and approval. The Borough Engineer
must review and approve prior to a permit being issued.
The Borough Engineer may authorize variances from standard sidewalk,
curb, or gutter provisions where no curb exists or when unusual topographical
conditions, nature of existing construction, or similar factors would
make adherence to standard provisions unreasonable.
Borough Council may, upon written request of the owner of property
in front of, alongside, or to the rear of such property, authorize
the construction of a depressed curb to accommodate vehicular drive-over
for a distance not to exceed 35 feet in length of one depressed curb
section, and provided that a regular curb of standard height with
a minimum length of five feet shall be constructed between such sections
of depressed curb, if any.
It shall be the duty and the responsibility of Borough Council
or the Borough Engineer to determine, in the case of any individual
property, whether the sidewalk and/or curbing shall be constructed,
reconstructed, or repaired, and, if so, the specific part or parts
thereof to be reconstructed or repaired. The Borough Engineer or agent
of Borough Council may at any time during the course of the work of
constructing, reconstructing, or repairing any sidewalk and/or curb,
visit the site of such work to ascertain whether the work is being
done according to the requirements of this article. Within two days
after completion of the work of construction, reconstruction, or repair
of any sidewalk and/or curbs, it shall be the duty of the owner of
the property or his agent, where such work was done, to notify the
Borough Secretary of that fact so that the Borough may make an inspection
of such sidewalk and/or curb to determine whether the grade thereof
has been observed and followed.
A. All owners or agents of owners with property abutting and fronting
upon any plaza, street, or alley within the corporate limits of the
Borough are required to keep the public sidewalks, curbs or gutters
immediately abutting their property in good order and repair. Each
such owner shall be liable to the Borough for all losses to the Borough
or recoveries from the Borough for damages to person or property of
others caused by his failure or that of his agents to repair and keep
in good order and reasonably safe condition, all such sidewalks abutting
and fronting his property upon any plaza, street, or alley, curbs,
or gutters within the corporate limits of the Borough.
B. A permit shall be required to make repairs pursuant to this section.
However, there will be no charge for such a permit unless it is proposed
to make a change in the grade, location or dimensions of the sidewalk,
curb, or gutter.
Curbs not laid in accordance with this article and the above-referred-to
grade are hereby declared to be nuisances and must be taken up and
relaid or replaced according to the provisions hereof within 20 days
after notice to said respective owner to do so by a properly authorized
or appointed official of the Borough.
Notice to construct, pave, repave and repair sidewalks, curbs
or gutters shall be given by registered or certified mail to abutting
property owners, hand delivery, or posting on the front door, and
such owners shall have 30 days to comply with said notice in conformity
with any construction specifications prescribed by ordinance.
Upon the failure of any property owner to construct, pave, repave
or maintain any sidewalk, curb, or gutter in compliance with notice
to do so, the Borough of Jim Thorpe may do the same or cause the same
to be done, and may levy the cost of its work on such owner as a property
lien to be collected in the manner provided by law.
Where in the opinion of the office in charge of sidewalk repairs
a dangerous condition exists that can be repaired by an expenditure
of $100, the Borough of Jim Thorpe shall send such property owner
notice by registered or certified mail or hand delivery stating emergency
repairs are required. Upon failure of such owner to comply with the
notice within 48 hours after receiving it, the Borough of Jim Thorpe
may make emergency repairs and levy costs of its work on such owner
as a property lien to be collected in the manner provided by law.
Any property owner not required by notice to construct, pave,
repave or keep in repair sidewalks, curbs or gutters may construct,
pave, repave or repair the sidewalk, curb and gutter abutting his
property, provided such owner shall make application to the Borough
of Jim Thorpe before commencing work and shall conform to the provisions
of this article and other regulations as to specifications for the
construction and repair work.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than $600 plus costs of prosecution and, in default
of payment of said fine and costs, shall be subject to a term of imprisonment
not to exceed 30 days.