[Amended 9-22-1986 by L.L. No. 5-1986; 11-24-1986 by L.L. No. 7-1986; 9-14-1987 by L.L. No. 4-1987; 1-25-1988 by L.L. No. 2-1988; 10-10-1989 by L.L. No. 3-1989; 7-8-1991 by L.L. No. 3-1991; 10-28-1991 by L.L. No. 5-1991; 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 4-1992; 1-25-1993 by L.L. No. 1-1993; 6-13-1994 by L.L. No. 4-1994; 12-9-1996 by L.L. No. 3-1996; 10-12-1999 by L.L. No. 3-1999; 12-13-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999; 6-14-2010 by L.L. No. 7-2010; 10-11-2022 by L.L. No. 2-2022]
There shall be a Department of Public Works, which shall consist of the divisions of Engineering, Water, Sewer, Sanitation, and Streets and Bridges. The Department shall have responsibility for all improvement and maintenance projects related to City streets, rights-of-way, parks, rivers, waterworks, sewers, and City-owned real property.
A. 
The Department shall be headed by the Commissioner of Public Works. The Commissioner of Public Works, as the head of the divisions of Engineering, Water, Sewer, Sanitation, and Streets and Bridges, shall have administrative control over the Department and such other functions and duties as may be assigned by the City Manager.
B. 
In the absence or disability of the Commissioner of Public Works, the City Manager may designate the head of any division within the Department to act as Commissioner of Public Works. The acting Commissioner of Public Works shall assume all of the powers and duties of the Commissioner of Public Works in addition to the powers and duties required of the division head.
A. 
The Commissioner of Public Works shall develop, manage, and implement comprehensive public improvement and maintenance plans for the operation of all City utilities and infrastructure. The Commissioner of Public Works shall keep a running inventory of all utilities and infrastructure within the City.
B. 
The Commissioner of Public Works shall have authority to require a private property owner to lay and connect utility service line(s) from a private property line to a nearby utility main at a point that extends beyond the private property line and into a public street or right-of-way. The Commissioner of Public Works shall have authority to prohibit or prevent the use of any water or sewer facility not connected to a City system. If a private property owner fails to comply with any such requirement, the Commissioner of Public Works shall have authority to cause performance of the work and, with notice of hearing, assess and levy the associated expenses onto the property taxes of such property, which shall include a 15% administrative expense charge, all in accordance with § C9.04. The Commissioner of Public Works may designate the head or acting head of any division within the Department to carry out these duties.
A. 
The Engineering division shall perform all of the civil engineering and surveying of the City, prepare specifications for all public works and public buildings, and shall supervise such public works and the construction of such public buildings. The City Engineer shall supervise the operations of the Engineering division under the general supervision of the Commissioner of Public Works. Nothing herein shall restrict or limit the power of the Council to employ consulting engineers in special or difficult cases.
B. 
The Water division shall perform all of the duties as set forth in Article IX-A of the City Charter. The Water Superintendent shall supervise the operations of the Water division under the general supervision of the Commissioner of Public Works.
C. 
The Sewer division shall perform all of the duties as set forth in Chapter 248 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Newburgh.
D. 
The Sanitation division shall be responsible for the collection and disposal of garbage, trash, refuse and recyclables throughout the City, the sweeping of streets and the enforcement of all ordinances and regulations relating to the collection, carting and disposal of garbage, trash, refuse and recyclables.
E. 
The Streets and Bridges division shall be responsible for the maintenance and repair of all streets and other public property within the City.
F. 
The Superintendent of Public Works shall supervise the operations of the Sanitation division and the Streets and Bridges division under the general supervision of the Commissioner of Public Works.
G. 
Each division shall have all other duties as are currently assigned or may be in the future assigned to it by the City Manager or by the Commissioner of Public Works. The City Manager or the Commissioner of Public Works may name one person to serve as division head of multiple divisions. In the event of a conflict, the City Manager's directives shall prevail.
Where the owner of any premises shall fail or neglect to perform any work required by this Charter, by any ordinance of the City, the City Manager or the Commissioner of Public Works may cause such work to be performed. A bill for the expenses incurred by such work shall be mailed via certified mail to such owner at the address where the work is performed and the address of record with the Office of the Comptroller. If the property owner shall fail to pay the same within 20 days after the date of the notice, the City Manager or the Commissioner of Public Works shall file a certificate of the actual cost of the work plus a 15% administrative expense charge with the Office of the Comptroller. The Office of the Comptroller shall, in the preparation of the next assessment roll of general City taxes, assess said amount with any applicable statutory interest rate to date upon such property, but if no statutory interest rate applies then said interest rate shall be set at 8%, and the same shall be levied, corrected, enforced and collected in the same manner by the same proceedings, at the same time, under the same penalty and shall constitute the same lien upon the property assessed as the general City tax and shall be considered a part thereof. Said authority shall be in addition to all other powers of the City to seek a civil judgment, prosecute for a violation of law or ordinance or any other authority granted by charter, statute, law, ordinance or regulation of the City.
Whenever any street, park, square or other land shall have been dedicated to the public use, the Council shall accept such dedication by ordinance. Before any street, park or square shall be so accepted, the Council shall cause a survey, map or description thereof either to be made by the City Engineer or approved by him in writing and by him reported to the Council, stating the exact location, the course, distance, width and boundary of the street, park, square or land so accepted. Such description shall be entered at length in the minutes of the Council, and such map shall be filed in the office of the City Clerk, and copies thereof duly certified by the City Clerk shall be presumptive evidence in any suit or proceedings of the location of such street, park, square or land.
All streets, avenues, roads, alleys, lanes, concourses and public squares in public use within the City heretofore or hereafter laid out as streets or public highways under any law of this state or under any proceedings authorized by the statutes of this state; all streets, avenues, roads, alleys, lanes, concourses and public squares not laid out or opened under any statute of this state or by proceedings authorized by such statute but which have been worked or improved by the City and used as public streets or highways for 10 years or more; and all streets heretofore dedicated to the public use in pursuance of law or hereafter dedicated and accepted by the Council as provided in this Act, shall be deemed public streets of the City.
The Council may, by ordinance, cause all streets, public parks, squares or other public places in said City that have been used for 10 years or more and are not sufficiently described or have not been duly recorded in the public records to be ascertained, described and entered of record in its minutes, and a record thereof and of such as shall hereafter be laid out, or of such as have been dedicated and accepted by the Council, or a copy of such record certified by the City Clerk shall be evidence of the existence and location of such street, park, square and other public places as therein described.
The Council shall not change the grade of any street which has been legally established, except upon compensation for damages done, but nothing herein contained shall be construed to require compensation for damages to be ascertained or paid prior to the making of change in grade.
It shall be the duty of the owner of property abutting a street, highway, road, public lane, alley or space to maintain and repair the sidewalk adjoining said property and keep such sidewalk and gutter free of snow and ice, obstructions, and tripping hazards. Such owner shall be liable for any injury or damage by reason of commission, failure or negligence to make, maintain or repair such sidewalk, including the defense and indemnification of the City of Newburgh against such claim.