It is hereby made the joint and several duty of all owners of land adjoining any street in the city of Philomath to construct, repair and maintain in good condition the sidewalks in front of, along or abutting upon land owned by said owners. Sidewalks shall be required on all property abutting a street when (1) a building permit is issued; or (2) within three years of the date when the city council orders sidewalks to be installed on the property to connect to sidewalks that have been extended to one or more property lines with adjoining lots, whichever occurs first.
(Ord. 702 § 1, 2002; Ord. 787 § 1, 2014)
Any person who may desire or be required to construct or lay down any sidewalk in the city of Philomath, before commencing to do grading for said sidewalk or to construct said sidewalk, shall make application to the city for a permit therefor and in making said application shall specify the property in front of which such sidewalk is to be made, the name of the person for whom the same is to be made, by whom the same is to be done, and within what time the same is to be completed. The fee for such permit shall be set by resolution of the city council. Such permit shall be null and void after the time specified on the permit, which shall not exceed six months from the date of issue.
(Ord. 702 § 2, 2002; Ord. 766 § 1, 2010)
All sidewalks hereafter constructed or reconstructed within the corporate limits of the city of Philomath shall be constructed of concrete and shall be five feet in width, except as follows: all business and commercial zones shall have 10-foot-wide walks, except that the common city council may grant a temporary variance of a lesser width. All sidewalks shall be constructed so that their edges shall be parallel to the line of the street upon which they are laid. The location shall be as determined by the public works director, and construction of all sidewalks shall conform to the minimum ADA specifications as well as existing city of Philomath standards, specifications, and drawings.
(Ord. 702 § 3, 2002; Ord. 707 § 1, 2002; Ord. 766 § 2, 2010)
The city manager or the city manager's designee shall cause notice of the order to construct, alter, or repair to be served on the owner of each of the lots, or parts of lots, or parcels of land abutting or adjoining the sidewalk to be constructed, altered, or repaired as set out in PMC § 12.20.060.
(Ord. 702 § 5, 2002; Ord. 766 § 4, 2010)
Any notice required by the provisions of this chapter shall be served in the following manner:
A. 
The city manager or the city manager's designee may serve the owner by (1) personal service, or (2) certified mail with return receipt requested and regular mail and will be directed to the owner at the address on the county assessor's most recent property assessment roll.
B. 
If notice by personal service, regular or certified mail fails, the notice will be sufficient by posting a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place on each of the lots, parts of lots, or parcels of land abutting or adjoining the sidewalk to be constructed, altered, or repaired.
C. 
If the property has been posted, according to the provisions set out in this section, an owner may not object that actual notice was not received.
(Ord. 702 § 6, 2002; Ord. 766 § 5, 2010)
The notice to construct, alter, or repair is effective at the time stated on the notice.
(Ord. 702 § 7, 2002; Ord. 766 § 6, 2010)
The notice shall state:
A. 
The work required to be performed;
B. 
That the city has determined that the work is necessary for the public health, safety, and welfare;
C. 
That the work must be completed in accordance with city standards within the time specified on the notice;
D. 
That if the owner fails to complete the work within the required time, the city may perform the work at the owner's expense;
E. 
That if the owner fails to complete the work within the required time, the costs of the work performed by the city shall become a lien against the property;
F. 
That the owner may appeal the order by filing an appeal within 15 days of the service of the notice; and
G. 
That if the owner does not appeal the order, the order is final.
(Ord. 702 § 8, 2002; Ord. 766 § 7, 2010)
A. 
If the owner fails to complete the work within the time prescribed by the final order, the city manager or city manager's designee shall inform the council of the owner's noncompliance at the next regularly scheduled council meeting.
B. 
The city manager or city manager's designee shall also compile an estimate of costs, including but not limited to, legal, engineering, and administrative costs.
C. 
The city manager or city manager's designee shall present the estimate to the council at the council meeting.
D. 
By resolution, the council may, in its discretion, order the city manager or the city manager's designee to complete the work required and to advance the funds necessary for such construction, alteration or repair of the sidewalk from the general fund.
(Ord. 702 § 9, 2002)
A. 
When the work is completed by the city, pursuant to PMC § 12.20.090, the owner shall be mailed by certified mail, return receipt requested, a copy of the estimate of costs.
B. 
When the work is completed, the city manager or the city manager's designee shall prepare for council an accounting of the actual costs, including but not limited to legal, engineering, construction, administrative costs, and any fees imposed by the council.
C. 
If the cost for the work is to be allocated between two or more properties, the accounting shall include an allocation of cost to each property and describe the method of allocation.
D. 
After reviewing the accounting, the council, by resolution, may approve the accounting of the individual costs or the allocation of costs to each property owner. The council will also establish an interest rate for the balance due to the city from the owner or owners and the council shall order that the total interest due as a result of the work shall not exceed the cost of the original work, including but not limited to, legal, engineering, construction, and administrative costs.
E. 
Upon approval of the accounting costs and allocations, council shall order the finance director to record a lien against the property in the amount approved by the resolution above.
F. 
Upon approval of the accounting and costs above, council shall order the finance director to serve the affected property owner a notice of intent to lien the property. The notice shall include (1) the amount of the lien, (2) how the amount of the lien was determined (total cost or allocation of total cost), (3) the interest rate, (4) the cap on interest, (5) a statement that the owner may appeal the cost determination by filing an appeal within 15 days of service of the notice, and (6) a lien will be filed against the property with the county recorder 16 days after the date of the notice if no appeal has been filed.
(Ord. 702 § 10, 2002)
A. 
Upon passage of resolution to lien properties, the finance director will record the lien in the city lien docket.
B. 
If no appeal is filed regarding the cost determination, then the finance director will record a lien with the county recorder 16 days after the owner is served with notice of intent to file a lien.
C. 
The city shall have a lien upon the described property for the total amount of cost from the time of entry until the city releases the lien.
D. 
The lien shall have priority over all other liens and encumbrances of any character and may be enforced in any manner permitted by law.
E. 
Any lien imposed under this section is hereby declared to be an incurred charge imposed on property by reason of owner's failure to meet routine obligations of ownership necessary to protect the public's health, safety, and welfare. The homeowner shall bear the cost to file the lien.
F. 
The city may enforce this lien in any manner authorized by ordinance or state law.
(Ord. 702 § 11, 2002; Ord. 766 § 8, 2010)
An owner may appeal the city manager's order to construct, alter or repair the sidewalk, and/or the city manager's determination of cost to the city council. If the owner does not file an appeal within 15 days from the service of notice, the owner waives the right to appeal and the order of determination of costs is final.
(Ord. 702 § 12, 2002)
A. 
An appeal shall be filed in writing with the city council within 15 days of service of notice of the order or the cost determination. The appeal shall be considered at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the council.
B. 
Any appeal must be addressed to the city council. Appeals must clearly state whether they are an appeal of an order to construct, alter or repair or an appeal of a cost determination. Appeals must clearly and briefly set out the specifics of the appeal and the issues for the city council to consider.
C. 
If the appeal is from an order to construct, alter or repair the sidewalk, the issue on appeal will be whether the work ordered is necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of the public. If the council determines that the work order is necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of the public, the council shall issue an order requiring that the work be completed within the original time allocated or 14 days from the council's determination, whichever is longer. If the council determines the work order is not necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of the public, the council shall order the city manager or the city manager's designee to cancel the order to construct, alter, or repair the sidewalk. The city council's order is final.
D. 
If the appeal is from a cost determination, the issue before the council shall be limited to the accuracy of the costs assessed. The council shall issue an order affirming or modifying the cost determination requiring payment. The council's order is final. Council will then order the finance director to place a lien in the lien docket and to record a lien with the county recorder. The homeowner shall bear the cost to file the lien.
E. 
An appeal to the council from a cost determination shall not have the effect of tolling the period of time in which the owner must complete such construction, alteration, or repair of the sidewalk.
(Ord. 702 § 13, 2002; Ord. 766 § 9, 2010)
It is not only the duty of all owners of land within the city of Philomath to keep and repair all sidewalks existing in front of, along or abutting upon their respective lots, parcels of land, or parts thereof; but such owners are hereby declared to be liable for all damage whatsoever, resulting or arising from their fault or negligence in failing to keep any such sidewalk in repair.
(Ord. 702 § 14, 2002)