[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Westtown as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 6-3-1974 by Ord. No. 74-2]
In accordance with the provisions of § 1156
of Article XI of the Second Class Township Code,[1] as amended, no railroad or street railway shall hereafter
be constructed upon any Township road, nor shall any railroad or street
railway crossings, nor any gas line, water pipe, electric conduits,
or other piping, be laid upon or in, nor shall any telephone, telegraph,
or electric light or power poles, or any coal tipples or any other
obstructions be erected upon or in, any portion of a Township road
except under such conditions, restrictions and regulations relating
to the installation and maintenance thereof as may be prescribed by
permits granted by the Township for such purpose.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 1156 of
Article XI of the Second Class Township Code was repealed 11-9-1995
by P.L. 350, No. 60, § 1. See now 53 P.S. § 67322.
The application for a permit shall be upon a
form prescribed by the Township and submitted to the Township in triplicate.
The application shall be accompanied by a fee in accordance with the
Schedule of Fees set forth by the Department of Transportation for
highway occupancy permits and restoration charges. In addition, the
applicant shall submit three copies of a sketch showing such dimensions
as the location of the intended facility, width of the traveled roadway,
right-of-way lines and a dimension to the nearest intersecting street.
A permit shall be issued to the applicant after
all the aforementioned requirements have been met.
Upon completion of the work, the applicant shall
give written notice thereof to the Township.
Upon completion of the work authorized by the
permit, the Township shall inspect the work and, when necessary, enforce
compliance with the conditions, restrictions and regulations prescribed
by the permit. Where any settlement or defect in the work occurs,
if the applicant shall fail to rectify such settlement or other defect,
within 60 days after written notice from the Township to do so, the
Township may do the work and shall impose upon the applicant the cost
thereof, together with an additional 20% of such cost.
Any person who violates or permits a violation
of this article shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought
before a District Justice under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal
Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable
by a fine of not more than $1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default
of payment thereof, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment
for a term not exceeding 90 days. Each day or portion thereof that
such violation continues or is permitted to continue shall constitute
a separate offense, and each section of this article that is violated
shall also constitute a separate offense.
[Adopted 12-3-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-6;
amended in its entirety 3-2-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-1]
A.
The owner of each property within the Township abutting
upon a sidewalk open to the public for pedestrian traverse or located,
in the whole or in part, within the right-of-way of a public or private
street on which the property abuts shall keep said sidewalk, together
with any portion of the property paved and used as a sidewalk or public
walk, immediately in front of the property, and in case of corner
lots with public walks on both sides of the lot, in good order and
repair and, at all times, clear of all obstruction to safe and convenient
passage, including the accumulation of snow or ice.
B.
Snow or ice shall be removed within 24 hours of cessation
of the snowfall.
A.
Conformance. Every owner of property shall, on notice from the Township
Office within the time period noted in such notice, cause the construction
or reconstruction sidewalk in front of and/or alongside of such property
to conform to all applicable requirements of this article.
B.
Repair required. Every owner of property shall, on notice from the
Township Office within the time period noted in such notice, repair
the sidewalk in front of and/or alongside of such property in the
manner stipulated in such notice.
C.
Deterioration. Deterioration shall include cracking, gouging, scaling,
vehicular, fire damage/and or surface disintegration. Surface disintegration
is a deterioration of the concrete resulting in an irregular surface
with depressions greater than 1/2 inch in depth.
D.
Repairs allowed. Minor cracks, holes or deteriorated sections of
sidewalk may be repaired with concrete non-shrink sealant materials
installed in strict accordance with the manufacturer specifications
when less than 25% of an individual section of sidewalk has deteriorated.
E.
Replacement or repair required. All concrete work involving sidewalks and to be installed or repaired shall meet the requirements of Westtown Subdivision of Land Ordinance § 149-916 repeated as follows:
All materials entering into the construction of sidewalks and
the method of construction shall be in accordance with PennDOT Specifications
Publication 408, except that the compacted thickness of the aggregate
bed shall be four inches. Sidewalks across driveways and driveway
aprons shall be constructed with six inches of concrete reinforced
with six by six welded wire fabric placed two inches from the finished
surface. Sidewalks shall have a minimum width of four feet and be
located four feet behind the curb line unless approved otherwise.
(As amended 7-22-2002 by Ordinance No. 2002-5).
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F.
When one or more of the following conditions exist, the section of
sidewalk shall be reconstructed or repaired as applicable and as determined
and approved by the Township Code Enforcement Officer in accordance
with the provisions of this article.
(1)
More than 25% of sidewalk is deteriorated.
(2)
A section of sidewalk is out of vertical alignment with an adjacent
section by 1/4 inch or more.
(3)
A section of sidewalk having a crack width of 1/2 inch at any one
point greater than one foot in length shall be replaced or filled
with non-shrink concrete sealant materials installed in strict accordance
with the manufacturer's specifications.
(4)
A sidewalk with a reverse grade or which is settled so as to cause
the ponding of water and/or formation of ice shall be replaced.
(5)
No surface gutters shall be permitted on newly constructed sidewalks.
All sidewalks shall be not less than four inches in thickness and
the surface shall have a one-fourth-inch pitch per linear foot ascending
from the outside face of the curb.
(6)
In replacing sidewalks, the replaced sections shall conform in size
to that which is being replaced. All new concrete shall conform to
ASTM Designation F1637-95 (Standard Practice for Safe Walking Surfaces).
(7)
A sidewalk which is more than one inch out of horizontal and/or vertical
alignment from the required topographical alignment or grade shall
be replaced.
(8)
Deteriorated sidewalks which constitute a hazard to pedestrian travel
shall be barricaded to prevent pedestrian travel upon notice and shall
be repaired within 10 days from receipt of notice from Westtown Township.
If the owner of any property neglects at any
time to perform the duties herein described, the Township Board of
Supervisors or its designee may serve written notice upon him/her
requiring him/her to perform the necessary maintenance or repair.
The notice shall specify the time by which said maintenance or repair
shall be commenced and the time by which it shall be completed. The
notice provided for in this section may be served on the property
owner by leaving the same at his place of residence or, if such place
of residence is unknown to the Township, by posting the same on the
abutting property.
If such property owner fails to comply with
the requirements of the notice described in the preceding section
within the time period specified therein, the Township Board of Supervisors
or its designee may make the necessary repairs, perform the necessary
maintenance, or remove any obstruction, and the cost of the same,
together with a penalty to defray administrative expenses in the amount
of 10% of the said cost, shall be paid by the property owner and may
be assessed and collected by the Township as and in the manner of
a municipal lien or by any other appropriate legal action.