Voting:Board of Selectmen Voted:That Title III of the Town Bylaws (“Public and Private Ways”) Article 3: Repairs to Private Ways be and hereby is amended to add, strike, and reformat the bylaw in the interests of clarifying the purpose and process of repairs, including betterments as follows:
Article 3: Repairs To Private Ways
Section 1. Classification
The Town Engineer and the Director of Public Works upon request of the Board of Selectmen acting in its capacity as the Board of Public Works shall recommend the classification of private ways in the Town according to the state of their construction and repair. The Board may then adopt such classifications with any modifications it may deem appropriate.
Section 2. Responsibility, Definition and Authorization
A. The private property owners abutting private ways are responsible for the maintenance of such ways, which must be maintained so that there are no defects to impede the safe passage of emergency vehicles. This bylaw provides a means by which the Town may assist in the maintenance of such ways, primarily by providing a mechanism for private way abutters to fund repairs known as a “betterment.”
B. The Board may vote to direct the Town Manager to make temporary repairs to private ways at the request of the Director of Public Works as provided below. Temporary repairs shall be limited to the filling of potholes and temporary patching.
C. The Board may authorize a temporary or extensive repairs to private ways by abutter petition for a betterment. Extensive repairs shall include, but not be limited to, skimcoating, armor coating, drainage work, and grading of dirt gravel roadways.providing.however, in the case of saidFor allextensive repairs grading, the petitioners agree to enter into a contract with a private contractor or the Town to repair and pave the roadway forthwith. Drainage shall not be included.
Section 3. Criteria
A. Abutter Criteria
The Board shall in making its determination as to the advisability of making temporary or extensive repairs by abutter petition, take into consideration the following factors:
1. The accessibility of the properties on the private ways to emergency vehicles such as police, fire and rescue.
2. The volume of traffic that utilizes the private way i.e. dead end as opposed to feeder or connecting streets.
3. The percentage of abutters on the particular private way petitioning the Board for the repairs.
4. The number of years that the way shall have been open to public use.
5. Such other considerations that the Board deems appropriate.
B. Town Criteria
The Board may authorize temporary repairs at the request of the Town whenever the Director of Public Works so advises the Board that repairs are required to abate an immediate hazard caused by a defect necessary for the safe passage of public safety vehicles.
Section 4. Petition
The Board of Selectmen shall consider any private way or portion thereof for temporary or extensive repairs after having been petitioned to do so by at least two-thirds of the total number of abutting property owners on the Private Way who directly abut the portion to be considered for temporary or extensive repairs. The Town shall only be considered a abutter for the purposes of this section, and assessment of costs in Section “6,” to the extent a private way is substantially used by Town staff or the public for the specific purpose of utilizing an abutting Town parcel.
The Board may after careful consideration, elect to do the entire portion which was petitioned for, or a lesser portion, provided at least two-thirds of the abutting property owners on the lesser portion to be done are in favor of such action. The Board shall upon receipt of a petition with at least two-thirds of the abutters' signatures affixed thereto shall hold a public hearing on the advisability of ordering the repairs and the kind and extent thereof. All abutters shall be given written notice of the hearing not less than seven (7) days prior thereto.
Section 5. Alternate Petition
Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 4 above, the Board may also consider a number of private ways for repair as a whole project when these private ways are ways where a majority of abutters are members of an association of abutters whose major purpose has been the maintenance and repair of those ways upon which these members' properties abut. The Board may only consider these private ways to be repaired as a whole project when having been petitioned by two-thirds of the total number of abutters who abut all of the ways represented by the association. The Board upon receipt of such a petition shall hold a public hearing on the advisability of ordering the repairs and the kind and extent thereof. All of the abutters on all of the ways represented shall be given written notice of the hearing not less than seven days prior thereto.
Section 6. Assessment of Costs
The costs of all labor and materials and processing shall be assessed equally to all abutters on the private way, or portion thereof (except with respect to Town property as set forth in Section 4), or if the Board votes to order any repairs pursuant to a petition filed under Section 5 all the abutters on all the private ways to be repaired without regard to linear frontage.
A one-third deposit of the total estimated cost of the completion of the repair project shall be required before any work can be commenced. All remaining costs shall be apportioned, assessed and collected on a per-property basis pursuant to the procedures provided in Chapter 80 of the General Laws, the Betterment Act, including the placing of liens on the affected property and the collection of apportioned costs by means of property tax collection.
Any and all such deposits shall be deducted from the equalized share of the property owners actually paying.
Section 7. Liability
There shall be a limitation of liability on the Town of Five Hundred ($500.00) Dollars for any damages arising from any negligent repair of the private way by abutter petition which shall include damage from surface water run-off. No repair shall be commenced until all the petitioners have signed an agreement with the Town holding the Town harmless from any additional damages arising from any negligent repair and providing evidence of insurance to the satisfaction of the Town. However, nothing in this paragraph shall excuse the Town from damages to property caused by the Town or agents thereof, during the repair process.
Temporary repairs made at the request of the Director of Public Works necessary to abate an immediate hazard caused by a defect shall not be considered as maintenance of the private way, nor shall the way be considered a public way. The Town shall not be liable for any damage incurred by the defect, subsequent repair or failure to make repairs to private ways.