Whenever Council may deem it appropriate to cause any street or alley in the Town, or portion thereof, to be graded, regraded, paved, repaved, surfaced or resurfaced, curbed or recurbed, Council shall order the work done in the following manner and upon the following terms:
(a) The contract for such grading, regrading, paving, repaving, surfacing, resurfacing, curbing or recurbing shall, after due advertisement in which Council shall reserve the right to reject any and all bids, be let, if let, to the lowest and best bidder. The total amount of grading, regrading, paving, repaving, surfacing, resurfacing, curbing or recurbing of any such street or alley shall be borne by the Town and/or the abutting property owner(s), at the option of Council, and the plan for payment is to be determined by Council, before beginning the work, in such proportions as Council, in its sole discretion, deems appropriate. If Council deems it appropriate to charge or assess any or all of the cost on the abutting property owner(s), each abutting property owner shall be responsible for paying a proportionate share of the cost based on such abutting property owner's respective frontage on the street or alley.
(b) If Council deems it appropriate to charge or assess the abutting property owner(s) for any or all of the cost of the grading, regrading, paving, repaving, surfacing, resurfacing, curbing or recurbing, then when the grading, regrading, paving, repaving, surfacing, resurfacing, curbing or recurbing of any street or alley or portion thereof shall have been let to contract and the work done as hereinbefore provided, it shall be the duty of the Town's Public Works Director to cause the frontages thereon to be measured, to calculate the assessment, if any, upon each and every land owner so abutting, and to certify the same to Council, showing the proper amount to be determined as provided in the foregoing plan. It shall be the duty of Council to examine and compare such assessments, amounts and names so certified to it. Thereupon Council shall give notice by publication for two successive weeks in some newspaper published in said Town that an assessment, under this Ordinance, is about to be made against abutting property for grading, regrading, paving, repaving, surfacing, resurfacing, curbing or recurbing done on said street or alley, describing the location of the same. Any owner or owners of abutting property shall have the right to appear before Council, within three weeks from the first publication thereof, and move Council to correct any apportionment or assessments improperly made; which corrections Council shall have the power to make. If found to be correct, or when rectified, Council shall cause the same to be entered, together with the description as to the location, frontage, depth and ownership of land, so far as the same may be ascertained, upon its record, and to enter in its record, that such owners and lots be assessed and chargeable with the amounts so ascertained to be borne by them respectively. When so approved, certified and entered of record, the same shall be and constitute an assessment against said owners and lots for such respective amounts. It shall be the duty of Council to immediately certify such assessment to Town Treasurer for collection as hereinbefore provided. A copy of such order shall be certified by the recorder to the Clerk of the County Court of Monongalia County, who shall be required to record and index the same in the proper deed book in the name of each person against whose property assessments appear therein. The amount so assessed against any land owners, as aforesaid, shall be paid in ten installments as follows; that is to say: One-tenth thereof, within sixty days from the date the same is certified to the Treasurer; one-tenth thereof, with interest from day of entry, on the first day of October next ensuing, and one-tenth thereof, with interest from the date of entry payable October first of each year, on the first day of October in each year thereafter until the whole thereof shall have been paid; provided, however, that any owner or owners so liable for any part of such grading, regrading, paving, repaving, surfacing, resurfacing, curbing or recurbing shall have the right at any time after certification as aforesaid to anticipate the payment of such installment, or any of them, and to discount the same for cash on the basis of two and one-half percent (2 1/2%). To each of such installments remaining unpaid in the Treasurer's hands at the time specified for such payment, a penalty of five percent (5%), together with six percent (6%) per annum interest until paid, shall be added; and payment thereof enforced in all respects as hereinbefore provided for the collection of any other taxes due the Town and such shall be a lien upon the property liable therefor, the same as for other taxes, and the lien may be enforced in the same manner as provided for the taxes.
(c) The liens hereinbefore provided for shall have priority over all other liens, except those for taxes due the State and County, and shall be on a parity with other taxes and assessments due the Town. Upon the payment of any assessment to the Treasurer, the Treasurer shall deliver to the parties paying the same a release of the lien therefor, which may be recorded in the County Clerk's office as other releases of liens.
(d) This Article shall be interpreted in accordance with the requirements of West Virginia Code, including, in particular, West Virginia Code §8-18-1, et seq. If any section, clause, paragraph, sentence or phrase of this Article shall, for any reason, be held to be in invalid or unconstitutional, such invalid or unconstitutional section, clause, paragraph, sentence or phrase is hereby declared to be severable; and any such invalid or unconstitutional section, clause, paragraph, sentence or phrase shall in no way affect the remainder of this Article; and it is hereby declared to be the intention of Council that the remainder of this Article would have been passed notwithstanding the invalidity or unconstitutionality of any section, clause, paragraph, sentence or phrase thereof.
(Passed 11-7-17.)
CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF STAR CITY