No civil action will be maintained against the Town and/or the Highway
Superintendent of the Town for damages or injuries to persons or property
sustained by reason of any defect in the sidewalks of the Town or in consequence
of the existence of snow or ice upon any of its sidewalks, unless such sidewalks
have been constructed or are maintained by the Highway Superintendent of the
Town pursuant to statute, nor shall any action be maintained for damages or
injuries to persons or property sustained by reason of such defect or in consequence
of such existence of snow or ice unless written notice thereof, specifying
the particular place, was actually given to the Town Clerk or to the Highway
Superintendent of the Town and there was a failure or neglect to cause such
defect to be remedied, such snow or ice to be removed or to make the place
otherwise reasonably safe within a reasonable time after the receipt of such
notice.
The Highway Superintendent of the Town shall transmit, in writing, to
the Town Clerk within 10 days after receipt thereof, all written notices received
by him pursuant to this article, and he shall take any and all corrective
action with respect thereto as soon as practicable.
The Town Clerk shall keep an index record in a separate book of all
written notices which the Town Clerk shall receive of the existence of a defective,
unsafe, dangerous or obstructed condition in or upon, or of an accumulation
of snow and ice upon any Town highway, bridge, culvert or sidewalk or any
other property owned by the Town or by any improvement district, which record
shall state the date of the receipt of the notice, the nature and location
of the condition stated to exist and the name and address of the person from
whom the notice is received. All such written notices shall be indexed according
to the location of the alleged defective, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed
condition, or the location of accumulated snow or ice. The record of such
notice shall be preserved for a period of five years from the date it is received.
The Town Clerk, upon receipt of such written notice, shall immediately and
in writing notify the Highway Superintendent of the Town of the receipt of
such notice.