A.
The Common Council may:
(1)
Lay out, open, pave, repave, grade, regrade, surface
treat or widen any public street and provide drainage and curbing
therefor.
(2)
Acquire land, lay out and develop public off-street
parking lots and facilities.
(3)
Construct, reconstruct and alter storm sewers and
drains.
[Amended by L.L. No. 3-1982, ref. date 11-2-1982]
(4)
Require the construction, alteration and repair of
sidewalks or may construct, alter or repair sidewalks.
(5)
Construct, alter, repair or discontinue bridges over
any water or watercourse.
(6)
Subject to such federal or state laws or regulations
as applicable, deepen, widen or improve any water course and may construct,
alter or repair walls along the banks thereof.
(7)
Require the trimming or removal of trees or may trim
or remove trees.
B.
The Common Council may direct that the whole of the
expense of any improvement or work be assessed upon the property deemed
benefited or that the whole or a part thereof be in charge to the
City at large and the remainder, if any, assessed upon the property
deemed benefited.
(1)
Whenever the Common Council shall make any local improvement
at the expense of the owners of the lands benefited thereby or partly
at the expense of such owners and partly at the expense of the City
at large, the Common Council, before making any such local improvements,
shall give notice to all persons interested by publishing a notice
in the official newspaper that a hearing will be held, not less than
ten days after the first publication of such notice, to consider the
same. After such hearing, the Common Council may make such improvements,
either by contractor or by City employees, and determine the portion
of the cost to be assessed upon the lands benefited thereby and the
portion, if any, to be borne by the City at large and also determine
what lands will be benefited by such local improvements and shall
prepare and file in the Office of the City Clerk a map, plan or list
of the proposed assessment area or properties showing the lands so
determined to be benefited.
(2)
When the cost of any such local improvement or other
service that may be assessed against benefited real property pursuant
to this Charter or any other local law has been determined, the Common
Council shall apportion and assess the part of the expense to be raised
by local assessments upon the lands in such assessment area, according
to frontage, area or such other basis as the Common Council may determine
to be just and equitable and file a copy thereof in the office of
the City Clerk. The Common Council shall cause a notice to be published
in the official newspaper to the effect that the special assessment
roll has been completed and that at a time and place to be specified
therein, the Common Council will meet and hear and consider any objections
which may be made to such roll. Such notice shall be published not
less than 10 or more than 20 days before the date to be specified
therein for the hearing. At the time and place so specified, the Common
Council shall meet and hear and consider any objections to the assessment
roll and may change or amend the same as they deem necessary and may
confirm and adopt the same as originally proposed or as amended or
changed, or they may annul the same and prepare a new roll. If a new
roll be prepared, upon completion and filing thereof, the Common Council
shall give notice to be published of a public hearing thereon, hold
such hearing and consider objections and reject, correct, amend and
affirm the new roll in the manner herein provided for the original
roll.
(3)
In any case in which an assessment is levied against
real property a lien shall attach as of the time when the assessment
is confirmed by the Common Council, which lien shall have the same
priority as a City tax; provided, however, that whenever such assessments
are paid in installments, each installment shall become a lien at
and only from the time the same becomes due and payable. Whenever
an assessment remains unpaid and is included in the annual tax levy,
the lien thereof shall be canceled as of the date upon which the annual
tax becomes a lien and the lien of the annual tax shall include the
amount of such assessment, with penalties.
A.
Whenever an expenditure is made or a contract awarded
for a purpose for which bonds cannot be issued and the amount is finally
fixed, determined and confirmed, such assessment may be paid without
penalty at any time within a period of 30 days, computed from the
date of confirmation.
(1)
If any assessment is not paid within the prescribed
thirty-day period, penalties shall be computed from the expiration
date of such period at a rate of 1 1/2% per month or portion
thereof until the assessment is paid or discharged.
(2)
At least 30 days before the end of the fiscal year
the Controller shall transmit to the Common Council a statement of
all delinquent special assessments, showing the amounts thereof with
penalties. The Common Council shall include the amounts shown on such
statement in the annual tax levy and such amounts shall be extended
on the annual tax roll against the real properties concerned in a
separate column. Such special assessments shall thereafter be deemed
for the purpose of collection to be a part of the annual City tax
and the assessment shall be deemed to have been canceled as of the
date of the tax levy.
B.
If any expenditure is made or a contract awarded for
a purpose for which bonds may be issued pursuant to the Local Finance
Law, the Common Council may provide for the payment of a special assessment
by any one of the following methods:
(2)
The Common Council may determine that such assessments may be paid in annual installments. In such case, it shall give a period of 30 days from the date of confirmation in which assessments may be paid in full without penalty. Upon the expiration of such period, obligations shall be issued pursuant to the Local Finance Law for the total unpaid assessments. The amount of the unpaid against each parcel of land shall be divided into such annual installments as shall be necessary to completely amortize the principal amount of such obligations as they shall mature. There shall be added to the amount of each installment a sum sufficient to meet a pro rata share of the annual interest payable on such obligations. Such installments shall be due at the same time as City taxes and the amount of such installment shall be extended in a separate column in the annual tax roll. The same penalties for nonpayment shall attach as in the case of nonpayment of City taxes and there shall be no re-levy of unpaid installments as provided in Subsection A of this section.
