BOS:311

Sidewalk in front of business not shoveled

The constituent is requesting plowing. The constituent states the roads are clear enough to drive past but residents are unable to pull their cars out and it is a tiny one way street. |

RE: Cases 101006451440, 101006463419, 101006483803, 101006485903. 311 has repeatedly dismissed cases related to unremoved snow/ice on Judge St, presenting blatant safety hazards to pedestrians, residents (including hospital employees), and vehicle operators. We understand that snow removal from private ways is typically the responsibility of property owners. However, existing legal authority empowers the city to act when public safety is at stake. Under current conditions, emergency vehicles clearly would not have safe access to residences along Judge St. The Boston Fire Prevention Code (§§ 1.22, 11.07, 28.06) and Board of Health nuisance powers (MGL c. 111, §§ 122-23) provide authority to address this. The State Sanitary Code requires property owners to maintain land free from injury hazards and conditions affecting public safety (105 CMR 410.570(A)), and to ensure that means of egress remain safe and operable at all times, including snow and ice removal (105 CMR 410.260(D)(2)(a)). Property owners are clearing, at most, token paths from doorways that lead directly to uncleared shared driveways and owned street surfaces, rendering these egress paths functionally unsafe and impassable. These conditions also prevent residents from safely transporting waste bins for collection, causing refuse accumulation on passageways (105 CMR 410.570(D)), which the Code classifies as endangering health and safety (105 CMR 410.630(A)(10)). Boston ISD has explicit authority to enforce these regulations on private property pursuant to MGL c. 111, § 127A and a duty to identify and order correction of violations (105 CMR 410.002(C)). <truncated>