[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the
Town of Shelter Island as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 1-30-1962; amended in its entirety 2-5-2021 by L.L. No. 2-2021]
The Town Board of the Town of Shelter Island does hereby find
that there exists a threat to public safety any time that snow, freezing
rain, sleet, or ice is permitted to accumulate on Town highways and
roadways. The parking or abandonment of vehicles along the highways
and roadways during snow and other winter-weather-related events prohibits
and/or restricts the Town's ability to remediate the hazardous
conditions on the highways and impedes the ability of fire, police,
and ambulance vehicles and personnel to provide necessary services
to Town residents. For the above reasons, the Town Board of the T§ 1.own
of Shelter Island finds it necessary to enact legislation prohibiting
parking and standing of vehicles on Town highways and roadways in
anticipation of and during major snow or winter weather events and
such other restrictions related to highway safety during snow and
other related winter weather events, including travel ban for nonemergency
vehicles and/or temporary closure of highways/roads. Pursuant to and
consistent with Executive Law § 24, a snow or winter storm
emergency declaration and local emergency proclamations shall be made
by the Supervisor or his/her designee. Such declaration may be made
when weather conditions are forecasted or exist such that the accumulation
of snow, freezing rain, sleet, or ice on any roadway will imperil
the public safety, render vehicle travel potentially hazardous and
necessitate snow removal operation or such other remediation efforts
to address a winter storm by the Town.
For the purpose of this article, the following
terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Shall have the meanings as defined in the Vehicle and Traffic
Law of the State of New York.
A.
The Town Supervisor or his or her designee shall declare a snow emergency
or winter storm emergency in a signed written notice to the Town Clerk
or Deputy Town Clerk. Said notice shall become effective immediately
after signing and shall indicate the date and exact time of the declaration.
The Chief of Police and Superintendent of Highways shall be notified
immediately following a snow or winter storm emergency declaration.
In addition to and during the declaration of a snow or winter storm
emergency, the Supervisor or his/her designee may promulgate local
emergency orders to protect life and property or bring emergency situations
under control.
B.
The Supervisor or his/her designee shall notify at least one local
media immediately following a snow or winter storm emergency declaration
and local emergency orders, and the Supervisor or his/her designee
may cause same to be posted on the Town's official website and/or
social media platforms.
C.
The snow or winter storm emergency declaration and local emergency
orders shall be in effect until such time as a snow or winter storm
emergency and/or local emergency order termination has been received
by the Town Clerk or Deputy Town Clerk.
No parking is permitted on either side of any roadway during
a snow or winter storm emergency declaration.
The declaration of a snow or winter storm emergency or local
emergency orders may designate and declare certain highways and roads
closed such that vehicular travel is prohibited during the snow or
winter storm emergency or for such other period of time recited in
the declaration of snow or winter storm emergency or local emergency
orders. The only vehicles allowed on the highways and roads declared
closed are emergency vehicles (police and designated police tow vehicles,
fire, ambulance), Highway Department vehicles and other essential
public service vehicles.
Any vehicle parked or abandoned on any public
highway within the Town of Shelter Island, except highways in the
Incorporated Village of Dering Harbor, during and after a snowstorm,
which interferes with snow removal operations or which constitutes
an obstruction to traffic, may be removed by the Superintendent of
Highways of the Town of Shelter Island.
After such removal, the Superintendent of Highways
may store such vehicle in a suitable place at the expense of the owner
of such vehicle. Such owner or person in charge of the vehicle may
redeem the vehicle upon payment to the Superintendent of Highways
of the amount of all expenses actually and necessarily incurred in
effecting such removal, such charges not to exceed $15, together with
any charges not to exceed $2 per day or fraction thereof.
The Superintendent of Highways shall, without
delay, report the removal and the disposition of such vehicle to the
Town Clerk, who shall ascertain the owner or person in charge of such
vehicle and notify him of the removal and disposition of such vehicle
and the amount which will be required to redeem same.
A.
The termination of a snow or winter storm emergency and/or rescission
of local emergency orders shall be declared by the Supervisor or his/her
designee. Such termination or rescission shall be made at the discretion
of the Supervisor when snow removal operations or such other required
remediation efforts have been completed to the satisfaction of the
Supervisor.
B.
The Supervisor or his/her designee shall declare a snow or winter
storm emergency termination or rescission of local emergency orders
in a signed written notice to the Town Clerk or Deputy Town Clerk.
Said notice shall become effective immediately upon receipt and shall
include the date and exact time of the snow emergency termination
or rescission of local emergency orders. The Chief of Police and Superintendent
of Highways shall be notified immediately following a snow or winter
storm emergency termination or rescission of local emergency orders.
C.
The rescission of a snow or winter storm emergency shall be published
on the Town's website.
D.
The snow or winter storm emergency termination or rescission of local
emergency orders related thereto shall nullify any provisions or conditions
resulting from a snow or winter storm emergency declaration or local
emergency order, as the case may be, as provided for in this article.
B.
Any vehicle parked on any highway within the Town of Shelter Island during a snow or winter storm emergency as set forth in § 124-4 shall be deemed to affect the ability of the Town to remediate hazardous roadway conditions or create a hazardous condition and/or impede or potentially impede the ability of fire, police, highway and ambulance vehicles and personnel to provide necessary services to Town residents on that portion of the public highway on which said vehicle is parked such that said vehicle may be removed by the Shelter Island Town Police or other personnel so authorized by the Town Board, and all procedures set forth in §§ 124-6, 124-7 and 124-8, including payment of all fees related to storage and removal, shall apply to vehicles removed from the highway pursuant to this provision.
C.
Any vehicle traveling on any highway or road within the Town of Shelter Island that has been declared temporarily closed pursuant to a declaration of a snow or winter storm emergency and/or local emergency order related to such snow or winter event as set forth in § 124-5 shall be deemed to affect the ability of the Town to remediate hazardous roadway conditions or create a hazardous condition and/or impede or potentially impede the ability of fire, police, highway and ambulance vehicles and personnel to provide necessary services to Town residents on that highway or road or portion thereof on which said vehicle traveled such that said vehicle may be removed by the Shelter Island Town Police or other personnel so authorized by the Town Board, and all procedures set forth in §§ 124-6, 124-7 and 124-8, including payment of all fees related to storage and removal, shall apply to vehicles removed from the highway pursuant to this provision.
