FAIR HAVEN – Borough officials are working to implement a new policy that will provide a more structured method into addressing claims made by residents regarding damage to their private property due to borough activity.
“Coming off last year where we had all that snow in February and March, we had numerous curbs, mailboxes and other structures in the right of way that were damaged,” Mayor Benjamin Lucarelli said at the Borough Council’s Nov. 30 meeting.
According to Borough Administrator Theresa Casagrande, some calls from residents regarding compensation, caused the Borough Council to look at the issue to see what could be done.
“Every winter we have a few residents contact us regarding minor damage from snow plows,” she said. “Considering the submissions vary, the governing body determined that it would be best to have a clear and consistent policy and procedure for these types of claims.”
Lucarelli notes that on occasion, borough officials and vehicles have been known to cause damage to private property as a result of activities such as street cleaning and snow plowing.
With no formal policy currently existing to address claims made for the damage, Lucarelli said he hopes the new policy will provide the borough and its residents with set guidelines as to how to go about being reimbursed and what that compensation would be.
“So what we’re working on this year, what we are proposing, is a policy, that if your mailbox is taken out, or a structure is taken out that is in the right of way, by a borough vehicle, and you have somebody that is going to fix it up, to a certain amount, the municipality will reimburse you, providing that you can give good evidence that it was a [borough vehicle] that took it out and not just something random,” he said.
According to Casagrande, a claim must be filed with her office within 10 days of the incident.
“Once the claim is acknowledged, the resident will have 90 days to submit a receipt for the repair or replacement,” she said. “The amount of the borough’s reimbursement will not exceed $150.”
Items to be considered for compensation include replacement or repair of mailboxes, replacement or repairs of sprinkler heads and other miscellaneous items.
“These types of incidents are infrequent, so most residents will never even know about the policy,” Casagrande said. “For those residents who do, I think that it will streamline the process.”