Title 8, BOROUGHS AND INCORPORATED TOWNS

A borough shall declare its intention to acquire, enter upon, take, use and appropriate any private property or land for any of the purposes authorized by this chapter through a duly enacted ordinance.

Eminent domain proceedings must conform to the provisions of 26 Pa.C.S. (relating to eminent domain), including, but not limited to, payment of damages and costs.

The right to damages against a borough is given to an owner or tenant of land, property or material, abutting on or through which pass streets, injured by the vacating of the streets or the vacation of bridges and piers, abutments and approaches.

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise: "Improving a street." The term includes work upon a street or portion thereof done or proposed to be done in order to op…

No action may be taken under this chapter that would result in the change of location or grade or the vacation of a street or portion thereof that connects with a street of another municipality, without approval of the court of common pleas of the county in which the municipality…

The council, its agents and employees, may enter upon any land or property and maintain marks and monuments, so far as the council may deem necessary, in carrying out its powers and duties under this chapter.

No street may be dedicated, accepted, acquired, laid out, opened or vacated by a borough except under this chapter.

If, after the filing of a petition under this chapter, council fails to hold a required hearing, an aggrieved party may file a mandamus action in the court of common pleas requesting that a hearing be held.

Council may provide street lights and ornamental lighting and make regulations for the protection of lighting. Council may assess the costs for the erection of lighting in accordance with Chapter 21A (relating to assessments and charges for public improvements). Council may provi…

(a) Adoption of plan.--A borough that has not maintained an accurate plan of borough streets adopted in accordance with this part prior to July 16, 2012, may only adopt a plan of streets under the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, governing the adoption of an official ma…

(a) Authority of borough.--In accordance with the provisions of this chapter, boroughs may, with or without petition of abutting property owners, lay out, open, widen, straighten, alter, extend and improve, and may establish or reestablish the grades of, and keep in order and rep…

(a) Streets deemed to be laid out.--A street identified in a plan of streets, an official map adopted in accordance with the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code or a recorded subdivision or land development plan is deemed to be laid out for purposes of this part. (b) Future…

(a) Street unopened after ten years.--At any time after a street or portion of the street has remained laid out but not opened for a period of ten years or longer, an owner of 50% of the front feet of the land over which the street or portion of the street was laid out may petiti…

(a) Authority of council.--By ordinance, council has the authority to: (1) Open a street or portion of a street previously laid out or simultaneously to lay out and open a street or portion thereof. A street or portion of a street so opened is a public street of the borough. (2) …

(a) Petitioning council.--Any person or persons constituting a majority in number and interest of the owner of the real estate abutting upon an area not opened as a street or abutting upon an existing street or portion of a street may petition the council to: (1) Open or lay out …

(a) Authority of borough.--Upon the effective date of an ordinance enacted to open a street or portion of a street by authority of section 1731 (relating to authority to open and vacate streets and procedure) or 1732 (relating to petition for opening or vacating street and action…

(a) Accept an opened street.--A borough may, by ordinance, accept an opened street not previously dedicated to or laid out by the borough by following the procedure set forth in section 1731 (relating to authority to open and vacate streets and procedure) or 1732 (relating to pet…

(a) Requirements.--No person may construct, dedicate or open to travel a street or a drainage facility in connection with the street for public use or travel or for the common use of occupants of buildings abutting thereon in a borough without first submitting suitable plans to t…

Council may, by ordinance, provide for straightening or relocating any street previously opened which involves the opening of a portion of the straightened or relocated street over land not previously a portion of the street or the vacation of a portion of the previously opened s…

Boroughs may improve streets, portions of streets or a particular width or additional widths of streets, with or without the assistance or contribution of the Federal Government, the Commonwealth, the county or a corporation occupying the thoroughfare, and may assess and collect …

(a) General rule.-- (1) Any borough may enter into a written agreement with an adjoining municipality for improving streets, including streets that are boundaries between the borough and the municipality, and may provide in the contract for the division of the damages, costs and …

(a) General rule.--Any borough may, singly or jointly with another municipality, acquire, by purchase or by the right of eminent domain, a free and unobstructed view down and across lands located at or near the intersection of any two streets or highways or a street or highway an…

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise: "Sidewalk." The portion of a street located outside the cartway and may include paved footway, unpaved grasslot, curb an…

(a) General rule.-- (1) Any borough may, by ordinance, lay out and establish sidewalks, curbs, gutters and surface water drains along any street and, with the consent of the Secretary of Transportation, along any State highway. (2) The borough may also require owners of property …

Any borough may, by ordinance, lay out sidewalks, gutters and surface water drains upon land abutting the sides of State highways and upon land abutting the sides of public roads, where the roads are outside the borough limits, but the land upon which the sidewalks, gutters and s…

Any borough may establish a grade or grades for sidewalks, which may be separate and apart from the grade or grades established for the cartway or roadway. Cross References. Section 1803 is referred to in section 1805 of this title.

The borough may pay all or any part of the cost and expenses of grading and curbing any sidewalk. Cross References. Section 1804 is referred to in section 1805 of this title.

(a) General rule.--Upon the failure of any property owner to comply with any of the requirements in sections 1801 (relating to power to lay out, establish and compel the construction of sidewalks), 1802 (relating to sidewalks on land abutting State highways and along roads outsid…

(a) General rule.-- (1) In addition to the remedies now vested in boroughs to make repairs to sidewalks, any borough shall have power to make emergency repairs to any sidewalks within the borough if an inspection of the sidewalk discloses that, and a certificate made by the offic…

(a) Authority.--Any borough may locate and build, or acquire by purchase, condemnation or otherwise, any bridge or viaduct and the piers, approaches and abutments for the bridge or viaduct, to be used and thereafter improved and maintained as a street, over any river, creek, stre…

In any case where the borough does not agree with the owner or owners for damages done or likely to be done by the erection of a bridge or viaduct, the borough may take and appropriate the land and property necessary to erect the bridge or viaduct. The damages caused by the takin…

If a bridge or viaduct crosses the boundary line of a borough and another municipality, the borough may enter into an intergovernmental cooperation agreement in accordance with 53 Pa.C.S. Ch. 23 Subch. A (relating to intergovernmental cooperation) with the municipality for the co…

(a) General rule.-- (1) The borough may enter into a contract with the county commissioners, railroads, street railways and other companies or interested parties for the building and maintenance of bridges or viaducts and for the payment of any damages caused by the location or e…

If the comfort and safety of the residents of a borough and an adjoining municipality are enhanced by any overhead or underground passageway connecting with adjoining streets in either the borough or the municipality and extending to any plant or place of business where residents…

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise: "Combined sewer." A sewer used for the receiving and collecting of sewage and liquid waste from the inside of buildings …

(a) General rule.-- (1) Upon enactment of an ordinance, boroughs may lay out and construct sanitary sewers and branches of sanitary sewers in streets and on public or private property and may construct sewage treatment works on land owned or acquired for those purposes. Boroughs …

Assessments, whether based according to benefits conferred or by the front foot basis, and assessment awards, if any, shall be calculated pursuant to Chapter 21A (relating to assessments and charges for public improvements).

The borough may extend the necessary sewer mains, pipes and outlets beyond the limits of the borough to a point where the sewage is to be disposed or collected and received. The borough shall have power to enter upon and condemn land for the construction of all sewer mains, outle…

No ordinance for any construction of sewers or treatment works beyond the limits of the borough shall be enacted until notice of the ordinance has been given in all of the following manners: (1) By publication of the proposed ordinance once a week for four weeks in one newspaper …

It shall be unlawful for any person to erect any building or make any improvement within the right-of-way of any sanitary sewer after due notice of the laying out of the sanitary sewer, and, if any erection or improvement shall be made, no allowance shall be had for the building …

(a) General rule.--A proceeding to open a sanitary sewer shall be void if a borough: (1) lays out any sanitary sewer over or under private property which is located in whole or in part within the limits of the borough; and (2) does not proceed to open the sanitary sewer and to as…

(a) General rule.--Pursuant to 53 Pa.C.S. Ch. 23 Subch. A (relating to intergovernmental cooperation), boroughs may contract with other municipal corporations providing for the joint construction or maintenance of sanitary sewer systems and for the joint construction onto existin…

A borough may connect with an existing sanitary sewer, owned by an adjacent municipality, for sewerage purposes in the manner prescribed in sections 2024 (relating to applications to court), 2025 (relating to appointment of viewers) and 2026 (relating to report of viewers and app…

If a borough desires to connect with the existing sanitary sewer of an adjacent municipality and no agreement, either upon the basis of a rental payment for the use of an existing sanitary sewer or a division of the cost of the construction or maintenance of the sanitary sewer, h…

If the court determines that the connection can be made without impairing the usefulness of the existing sanitary sewer, it shall appoint three viewers who shall: (1) View the premises and investigate the facts of the case. (2) Assess the proportionate part of the expense of buil…

The viewers shall report to the court the result of their investigation. The report shall be confirmed within 30 days unless exceptions are filed. After confirmation of the report or the disposal of any exceptions, any party interested may appeal from the decision of the court of…