Page images
PDF
EPUB

Officers may be removed.

Proviso.

Common council au

thorized to raise money by tax.

that no ordinance or by-law shall be enacted or passed by the said common council, unless it shall have been introduced before the said common council at a previous stated meeting.

24. And be it enacted, That any officer, except the mayor, may be removed from office for cause, by resolution of the common council; provided, that no such removal shall take place until the party sought to be removed has had an opportunity to be heard in his defence, nor unless two-thirds of all the members of the common council elected vote therefor. Whenever any such removal shall take place, the cause therefor, together with the ayes and nays upon. the vote taken, shall be entered at large on the journal of the common council.

25. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the common council to raise money by tax every year, if needed, for building, erecting, and maintaining the public buildings, supporting the police force, lighting the streets, and all other powers authorized by this act; and that the ordinance directing the raising of said tax shall set forth the amount required for each object, and that the expenditures for such specification shall be confined to the objects therein specified, and be appropriated to no other; which tax shall not exceed, in any one year, in the aggregate, the sum of three thousand dollars, nor be at a higher rate than five mills on a dollar of the actual value of property assessed. All taxes for city purposes shall be assessed by the city assessor within the time directed by the general law of the state for assessing township, county, and state taxes, in the manner following: he shall assess a poll tax on every male resident of the city over the age of twenty-one years, who is not a pauper, not less than one dollar, or more than two dollars; he shall also assess all real estate and chattels situate in the city, both of residents and non-residents, by valuing the same at the true, full, and fair value thereof, designating the number of lots or parcels of land, and the value of personal chattels which they possess, to each person, and every person owning or having in charge any

lands or chattels in said city shall, on application of said assessor, disclose and specify the quantity and situation of such lands, and the amount, nature, and value of such chattels; and if any person refuse to answer or give such information when required, the said assessor shall value his real estate and chattels at double the amount which he may believe the same to be worth, and such person shall have no relief therefrom before the commissioners of appeal, except for so much as exceeds the double value of his estate. The residue of such city taxes, after deducting the amount raised by the poll tax, shall be assessed and raised by such per centum on the whole valuation of such real estate and chattels as shall be required to make such residue; all taxes so assessed for city purposes shall be collected by the city collector in the same manner as is by the general law of this state provided for collecting township, county, and state taxes, and shall be paid over by him to the city treasurer as soon as collected, and before the thirtieth day of December in each year.

in case of

ment of

26. And be it enacted, That the collector of the said city, Proceedings in case of the non-payment of taxes at the time appointed non-payby law for the payment thereof, shall make out a list of the taxes. names of the delinquents, with the sums due from them, respectively, thereto annexed, and deliver the same to the clerk of the common council of said city on the twentieth day of December in every year, except when the said day shall be Sunday, and then on the following day: and it shall be the duty of such clerk to lay the same before the common council, at a meeting thereof held next after the same shall be delivered to him, and thereupon the said common council may deliver the same to a justice of the peace residing in said city, who shall proceed and issue a tax warrant thereon, as provided by law in cases of taxes in townships, which shall be directed and delivered to the collector of arrears of taxes, who shall have power to collect the same in like manner, in all things, as the constables in townships are directed by law; provided, that such col- Proviso. lector shall, before he delivers such list to the said clerk,

Taxes and assessments

take and subscribe an oath or affirmation that the moneys in the said list mentioned have been duly demanded, or due notice thereof given at the usual place of residence of each delinquent who could be found or may then reside in the said city.

27. And be it enacted, That all taxes and assessments to be a lien. which shall be assessed or made upon any lands, tenements,

Proviso.

Lamp, po lice, and

watch dis

tricts, to be

or real estate in said city, shall be and remain a lien thereon until paid: and if such tax or assessment shall not be paid within the time limited for that purpose, it shall be lawful for the common council to cause such lands, tenements, or real estate to be sold at public auction, for the shortest term for which any person will agree to take the same, and pay such tax or assessment, with interest and all costs and expenses, and to execute and deliver to the purchaser, under the common seal of the city, a declaration of such sale, to be signed by the mayor and city clerk, by virtue whereof such purchaser shall be entitled to hold and use said lands, tenements, and real estate until his term shall be ended; such sales shall be advertised for at least thirty days, in a newspaper printed in said city, which advertisements shall describe said lands, tenements, or real estate, and specify the amount of the assessment or tax; provided, that such lands, tenements, or real estate may be redeemed by any person interested therein, at any time within two years after the sale, by paying to the city treasurer, for the use of the purchaser, the purchase money, with any other sum paid for tax or assessment chargeable thereon, which the purchaser may have paid, and which he is hereby authorized to do, with interest; and the certificate of the city treasurer, stating the payment and showing what property such payment is intended to redeem, shall be evidence of such redemption.

28. And be it enacted, That the common council shall establish certain limits in said city, to be called lamp, police, established. and watch districts; taxes for lighting streets and supporting a night-watch and police shall be assessed only on

property within such districts, and shall be assessed separately from all other taxes.

paving, &c.,

ed.

29. And be it enacted, That all expense for opening, alter- Expenses for ing, grading, paving streets and sewerage shall be assessed to be assessupon and paid by the lands and real estate benefited thereby, in proportion to the benefit received; all such proposed improvements shall be advertised by the common council in a public newspaper printed in said city, at least four weeks before the adoption thereof; parties interested may be heard before the common council or their committee; the expenses of such improvements shall be ascertained and assessed by three impartial commissioners, to be appointed by the common council, from the residents of the city, who shall report, in writing, what real estate ought to be assessed therefor, and what part of the expense shall be assessed to each parcel or lot of land, which report shall be filed in the office of the city clerk, and shall constitute a lien upon the property assessed for the amount of such

assessment.

30. And be it enacted, That the grade of no street which has been built on shall be altered, unless by the consent of the owners of three-fourths of the lots fronting on the part proposed to be altered, nor without paying to the owners of such buildings the damages sustained by the alteration of such grade.

Grade of

streets not to

be altered

without consent of owners of lots.

council may take lands

31. And be it enacted, That the common council shall Common have power to take any lands that they may judge neces- on payment sary for the opening, widening, or alteration of any street of damages. upon paying to the owner the fair value of the lands taken and of the improvements thereon, and the damage done to any distinct lot, or parcel, or tenement, by taking part of it for such purpose.

for opening

32. And be it enacted, That when application shall be Applications made for opening, altering, or widening any street, the streets. common council shall appoint a time when persons interested may be heard; if the common council determine to open, alter, or widen such street, they shall appoint three proper persons, residents of the city, commissioners, who

Payment of assessment.

shall determine what lands and real estate will be benefited by said improvement, and shall estimate the costs of such improvement, and cause a survey and map thereof, and of the land benefited thereby to be made, and shall assess the costs upon said lands to be so benefited, in proportion to the benefit received thereby; they shall also estimate and report the value of lands taken for such improvement, and the erections thereon, and the damages done by taking the same, and shall report the names and interests of the owners thereof, as far as can be, and shall file their report and map with the city clerk in ninety days after their appointment, and unless in thirty days after the filing of such report, one-half of the owners of said lands shall file with the city clerk a remonstrance, signed by them or their agents, lawfully authorized, said common council shall proceed to make said improvement; but if such remonstrance shall be filed, the common council shall proceed no further in such improvement under that application; all expenses incurred by the common council in such proceeding shall be repaid to the city by the petitioners for such improvement; all necessary regulations, in reference to the proceedings upon such petitions and security for the expenses thereof, may be made by the common council; if no such remonstrance be filed, the report of said commissioners shall be final and conclusive, and the expenses of such improvements, including interest and costs of the proceedings, shall be assessed upon the property reported as benefited thereby, and in the proportion set forth in such report.

33. And be it enacted, That upon completing the report of the commissioners aforesaid, the city treasurer shall tender and pay to the owner of said land, if resident in the city, the amount of such assessment due to him, but if such owner is absent or cannot be found, or is a lunatic, idiot, infant, or in any other way legally incapacitated to receive the same, or will not accept thereof and sign a proper receipt therefor when tendered, the treasurer shall make affidavit of such facts, and file the same with the clerk, whereupon the common council shall direct the amount of

« PreviousContinue »