[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Chatham: Art I, 12-13-1973 by L.L. No. 3-1973; Art II, 9-8-1977 by L.L. No.
2-1977. Section 90-5 added and § 90-7
amended at time of adoption of Code; see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art I. Other amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-13-1973 by L.L. No. 3-1973]
A.
The Board of Trustees is hereby authorized and empowered to construct
and repair crosswalks upon the streets within the village.
B.
It is also authorized and empowered to construct and repair sidewalks,
curbs and gutters upon such a street, wholly at the expense of the
village or of the owner or occupants of the adjoining land or partly
at the expense of each, and may prescribe the manner of doing such
work and the kind of materials to be used therein. If a sidewalk,
curb or gutter is so required to be constructed or repaired wholly
at the expense of the owners or occupants of the adjoining lands,
a notice specifying the place and manner and the time, not less than
10 days in the case of a new walk or not less than 24 hours in the
case of repairs, within which the sidewalk, curb or gutter is required
to be constructed or repaired shall be served upon such owners or
occupants. If an owner or occupant shall not construct or repair the
sidewalk, curb or gutter as required by the notice, the Board of Trustees
may cause the same to be so constructed or repaired and assess the
expense thereof upon the adjoining land. If a sidewalk, curb or gutter
is to be constructed or repaired at the joint expense of the village
and the owner or occupant, the Board of Trustees may cause the same
to be constructed or repaired and assess upon the adjoining land the
proportion of the expense chargeable against the same. All grading
done on sidewalks, curbs or gutters laid or repaired by the owners
of adjoining land shall be in accordance with the specifications and
under the direction and supervision of the Board of Trustees. Assessments
shall be made and collected and taxes levied as provided by statute.
The Board of Trustees may issue bonds of the village to defray the
expense of any such work or improvement.
The notice herein referred to shall be sufficient if given to
the person, or one of them, whose name appears as owner of the adjacent
property on the last completed assessment roll of the village. Said
notice may be given either personally or by certified or registered
mail, return receipt requested. If notice by mail is undeliverable,
then said notice shall be sufficient if published one time in the
official publication of the village; in the event of publication,
notice shall be complete two days thereafter.
[Adopted 9-8-1977 by L.L. No. 2-1977]
No civil action shall be maintained against the village of Chatham
or against any improvement district in the village for damages or
injuries to persons or property (including those arising from the
operation of snowmobiles) sustained by reason of any highway, bridge,
culvert, highway marking, sign or device or any other property owned,
operated or maintained by the village or any property owned, operated
or maintained by any improvement district therein being defective,
out of repair, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed unless written notice
of such defective, unsafe, dangerous or obstructed condition of such
highway, bridge, culvert, highway marking, sign or device or any other
property owned, operated or maintained by the village or any property
owned, operated or maintained by any improvement district was actually
given to the Village Clerk and there was thereafter a failure or neglect
within a reasonable time to repair or remove the defect, danger or
obstruction complained of; and no such action shall be maintained
for damages or injuries to persons or property sustained solely in
consequence of the existence of snow or ice upon any highway, bridge,
culvert or any other property owned by the village unless written
notice thereof, specifying the particular place, was actually given
to the Village Clerk and there was a failure or neglect to cause 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.
No civil action will be maintained against the village for damages
or injuries to persons or property sustained by reason of any defect
in the sidewalks of the village 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 village 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 Village Clerk 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.
[Added 5-11-1989 by L.L. No. 2-1989; amended 1-22-2004 by L.L. No.
1-2004; 7-11-2022 by L.L. No. 5-2022]
A.
It is the obligation of the owner of every parcel of real estate
adjoining a public sidewalk in the Village of Chatham, whether the
parcel of real estate is occupied by a structure or not, to keep such
sidewalk free from snow and ice for the full paved width of such sidewalk
for the full length of such sidewalk abutting such owner's property.
B.
Snow and ice shall be removed within 24 hours after the end of a
snowfall or after the snow has been deposited on such sidewalk.
C.
Severe icing. In the case that snow and ice on any sidewalk shall be frozen so hard that it cannot be removed without injury to the sidewalk, the owner of the real property shall spread, or cause to be spread, sand, salt, sawdust, or other suitable material on the sidewalk within the time period specified under Subsection B above. As soon as is practical thereafter, the sidewalk shall be completely cleared of such snow and ice.
E.
Service of the notice to comply in accordance with this article may
be made by personal service to the owner or may be made by leaving
a copy of the same at the premises. Service of a copy of a notice
to comply may be made by the Code Enforcement Officer, a police officer,
or any officer of the Village of Chatham.
F.
If the owner has failed to remove the snow and/or ice from the sidewalks
or to cover ice with salt, sand or like material within 24 hours of
the service of the notice to comply, the Village may have the snow
and ice removed or the sidewalk sanded and salted. The failure of
an owner of any real property to remove snow and/or ice from paved
sidewalks or the failure to cover ice thereon with salt, sand, or
like material in accordance with this article within 24 hours after
such owner shall have been served with a copy of a notice to comply,
shall be a violation.
G.
Violation of this section shall be punishable by a fine as follows:
(1)
For a first violation in any calendar year: $100.
(2)
For a second violation in the same calendar year as the first violation:
$200.
(3)
For a third violation in the same calendar year as the first violation:
$300.
(4)
Each subsequent violation in the same calendar year as the first
violation shall result in a fine of $300.
H.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall mail notice of fines for violation
under this section to the owner at the owner's address on file
for the billing of real property taxes. If such a fine is not paid
within 30 days of its mailing, the same shall become a lien upon the
real estate adjoining the public sidewalk and shall be re-levied on
the next Village real property tax bill.
The Village Clerk shall keep an indexed record of all written
notices he shall receive of the existence of a defective, unsafe,
dangerous or obstructed condition in or upon, or of an accumulation
of ice and snow upon, any village street, highway, bridge, culvert,
sidewalk, crosswalk or any other property owned by the village or
by any improvement district therein, which record shall state the
date of receipt of the notice, the nature and location of the conditions
stated to exist and the name and address of the person from whom the
notice is received. He shall at the Board meeting next following receipt
of such written notice by him or within 10 days, whichever is sooner,
cause said written notice to be brought to the attention of the Board
of Trustees. The record of each notice shall be preserved for a period
of five years after the date it is received.
[Amended 5-11-1989 by L.L. No. 2-1989]
Nothing contained in this Article shall be held to repeal or
modify or waive any existing law, requirement or statute of limitation,
but, on the contrary, the requirements of this Article shall be held
to be additional requirements to the right to maintain such action;
nor shall anything contained in this Article be held to impose upon
the village, its officers and employees and/or any of its improvement
districts any greater duty or obligation than to keep its streets,
sidewalks and public places in a reasonably safe condition for public
use and travel.
