reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
MA Gen L ch 82 § 25 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 25 - Sewers and Pipes

Section 25. In a town which accepts the provisions of this section or has accepted corresponding provisions of earlier laws, the selectmen, road commissioners or sewer commissioners may, when a town way is laid out, relocated or altered, enter and lay sewers and water pipes therein before possession is taken for the purpose of constructing such way, in like manner as if it had been actually constructed. Such entry shall not be deemed an entry for the purpose of constructing the way, and until such way has been constructed, sewer assessments shall be levied only upon the estates of persons connecting their drains with such sewers. If such laying out, relocation or alteration becomes void under the provisions of section three of chapter seventy-nine, all sewers or water pipes so laid therein shall be deemed to have been legally laid and placed therein; and damages may be recovered therefor under chapter seventy-nine; and the right to recover the same shall accrue when such laying out, alteration or widening becomes void. This section shall not apply to cities.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 28 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 28 - Completion of Way by County Commissioners

Section 28. If a town in which a town way or private way has been laid out, relocated, altered or approved in pursuance of the two preceding sections does not make and complete the same in the manner prescribed by the county commissioners, and to their satisfaction, within six months after it has been laid out, relocated, altered or approved, or within the time directed by them, they shall, forthwith, cause such way to be completed, and the expenses, interest and charges thereof shall be determined and paid in the manner provided in sections fourteen and fifteen.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 29 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 29 - Private Ways; Laying Out, Relocation or Alteration by Commissioners

Section 29. If the laying out, relocation or alteration of a private way is desired in a town for the use of one or more persons who are not inhabitants thereof, or if the laying out, relocation or alteration of a private way lying partly in one town and partly in another is desired, the county commissioners may cause such way to be laid out, relocated or altered, in the manner provided in section twenty-six.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 30 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 30 - Discontinuance by Commissioners

Section 30. Upon the application in writing of a person aggrieved by the refusal of a town to discontinue a town way or private way, the county commissioners may order such way to be discontinued. If a town way has been laid out, relocated or altered by the county commissioners, it shall not within two years thereafter be discontinued, relocated or altered by the town; and if such way has been discontinued by the county commissioners, the town shall not within two years thereafter lay out the same again.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 31 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 31 - Costs for Hearing Petitions; Recognizance

Section 31. If an application is made to the county commissioners under sections twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-nine or thirty, they may cause a recognizance to be given to the county such as is required in applications for highways; and like proceedings may be had on such recognizance. They shall also cause notice to be given, before they proceed to view or to hear the parties, as in the case of highways.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 32 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 32 - Report of Laid Out, Relocated or Altered Roads; Recordation

Section 32. When a town way or private way is laid out, relocated or altered by the selectmen or road commissioners or by the county commissioners, they shall in their report or return thereof specify the manner in which such way is laid out, relocated or altered and shall transmit to the town clerk a description of the location and bounds thereof, which shall within ten days be recorded by him in a book kept for that purpose; and no town shall contest the legality of a way laid out by it and accepted and recorded as provided in this chapter. Sections twenty-six to thirty-two, inclusive, shall apply to cities.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 32a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 32a - Abandonment of Municipal Ways

Section 32A. The board or officers of a city or town having charge of a public way may, after holding a public hearing, notice of which shall be sent by registered mail, return receipt requested, to all property owners abutting an affected road and notice of which shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the city or town once in each of two successive weeks, the first publication to be not less than fourteen days before the day of the hearing and by posting in a conspicuous place in the office of the city or town clerk for a period of not less than fourteen days before the day of the hearing, upon finding that a city or town way or public way has become abandoned and unused for ordinary travel and that the common convenience and necessity no longer requires said town way or public way to be maintained in a condition reasonably safe and convenient for travel, shall declare that the city or town shall no longer be bound to keep such way or public way in repair and upon filing of such declaration with the city or town clerk such declaration shall take effect, provided that sufficient notice to warn the public that the way is no longer maintained is posted at both ends of such way or public way, or portions thereof. Upon petition in writing of the board or officers of a city or town in which a county highway is located, the county commissioners, whenever common convenience and necessity no longer require such way to be maintained in a condition reasonably safe and convenient for public travel, after giving notice in the manner prescribed in section 3, and after viewing the premises and hearing the interested parties in the manner prescribed in section 4, may adjudicate that the town shall no longer be bound to keep the way in repair, and thereupon the adjudication shall take effect; provided, that sufficient notice to warn the public that the way is no longer maintained is posted at both ends of the way, or portions thereof.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 32b (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 32b - Taking Slope Easement to Protect Ways

Section 32B. Wherever in this chapter or in any city charter a board of officers is authorized to take land by eminent domain under chapter seventy-nine, in connection with the laying out, widening, altering or relocating of a public way, such board of officers shall be authorized to take an easement in land adjoining the location of the public way consisting of a right to have the land of the location protected by having the surface of such adjoining land slope from the boundary of the location.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 32c (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 32c - Easements for Erection of Snow Fences

Section 32C. A city or town may purchase, receive, or take by eminent domain easements or other rights or interests in land adjacent to a public way for the purpose of erecting and maintaining snow fences, so-called, thereon; provided, however, that such snow fences shall not be erected prior to November first of each year and shall be removed by May first of the next ensuing year.  A taking of any interest in land by eminent domain under this section shall be deemed a taking for highway purposes under section five B of chapter seventy-nine.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 33 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 33 - Footways

Section 33. Cities and towns may lay out footways for the use of the public in the manner provided for the laying out of town ways.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 34 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 34 - Reserved Spaces Along Ways; Rights of Pedestrians Injured by Streetcars

Section 34. If the city council of a city, or a town, accepts this section or has accepted the corresponding provisions of earlier laws, the board or officers authorized to lay out highways or town ways may reserve spaces between the side lines thereof for the use of horseback riders, for bicycle paths or for street railways, except such as may be operated by steam, for drains, sewers and electric wires, for trees and grass, and for planting. A pedestrian who is injured by a street railway car within or upon any of the spaces so reserved for street railways shall have the rights of a traveler on the highway.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 35 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 35 - Bicycle Paths

Section 35. The board or officers authorized to lay out highways or town ways may lay out, construct and maintain bicycle paths under the provisions of law relative to the laying out, construction and maintenance of public ways.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 35a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 35a - Laws Relative to Public Ways; Definition

Section 35A. The board or officers authorized to lay out highways or town ways may lay out, construct and maintain rail trails under the laws relative to the laying out, construction and maintenance of public ways. For purposes of this section, a rail trail shall mean property converted from the former use as a railroad right-of-way to a use as a publicly-owned, improved and maintained corridor for bicycle, pedestrian and other non-motorized public transportation, recreation and associated purposes. Rail trails may be laid out on property a city or town has acquired by fee, easement, lease, license or otherwise and may be subject to a reversion allowing the railroad company or authority to reclaim the property for rail purposes upon written notice. The owner of such reversion shall be exempt from liability for any claims associated with use of any such rail trail including claims for damages that may arise under section 15 of chapter 84 and section 38 of chapter 161A.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 36 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 36 - Penalty for Misuse of Bicycle Paths

Section 36. Whoever trespasses upon bicycle paths named in the two preceding sections by driving thereon with a horse or other animal, except to cross the same, shall be punished by a fine of not more than twenty dollars; but the aldermen or selectmen may prescribe limits within which this section shall not apply.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 37 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 37 - Building Lines

Section 37. If a city by its city council or a town accepts this section or has accepted corresponding provisions of earlier laws, a building line not more than forty feet distant from the exterior line of a highway or town way may be established in the manner provided for laying out ways, and thereafter no structures shall be erected or maintained between such building line and such way, except steps, windows, porticos, other usual projections appurtenant to the front wall of a building, embankments, walls, fences and gates, to the extent prescribed in the vote establishing such building line, and except that any structure existing at the time of the establishment of the building line may be permitted to remain and to be maintained to such extent and under such conditions as may be prescribed in the vote establishing such building line. Whoever sustains damage thereby may recover the same under chapter seventy-nine. A building line established under this section may be discontinued in the manner provided for the discontinuance of a highway or town way. Whoever sustains damages by the discontinuance of a building line may recover the same under chapter seventy-nine.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 38 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 38 - Acquisition of Land for Road Materials

Section 38. The county commissioners, aldermen or selectmen or road commissioners may purchase or select and lay out land within their respective counties, cities or towns, not appropriated to public uses or owned by any other town, from which may be taken materials necessary for the construction, repair or improvement of public ways; and may lay out such ways as they consider necessary for convenient access thereto. All proceedings relative to such land and ways shall be the same as are provided in the laying out of other ways, and if it is necessary to acquire land for the purposes of this section, the same may be taken by eminent domain under chapter seventy-nine.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 39 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 39 - Commencement of Proceedings

Section 39. Petitions to the county commissioners relative to highways and town ways may be filed with and the recognizance taken by the clerk of said commissioners, and such filing shall be the commencement of proceedings.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 40 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 40 - Definitions Applicable to Secs. 40a to 40e

Section 40. The following words, as used in this section and sections 40A to 40E, inclusive, shall have the following meanings:—  ''Company'', natural gas pipeline company, petroleum or petroleum products pipeline company, public utility company, cable television company, and municipal utility company or department that supply gas, electricity, telephone, communication or cable television services or private water companies within the city or town where such excavation is to be made.  ''Description of excavation location'', such description shall include the name of the city or town, street, way, or route number where appropriate, the name of the streets at the nearest intersection to the excavation, the number of the buildings closest to the excavation or any other description, including landmarks, utility pole numbers or other information which will accurately define the location of the excavation.  ''Emergency'', a condition in which the safety of the public is in imminent danger, such as a threat to life or health or where immediate correction is required to maintain or restore essential public utility service.  ''Excavation'', an operation for the purpose of movement or removal of earth, rock or the materials in the ground including, but not limited to, digging, blasting, augering, backfilling, test boring, drilling, pile driving, grading, plowing in, hammering, pulling in, jacking in, trenching, tunneling and demolition of structures.  ''Excavator'', any entity including, but not limited to, a person, partnership, joint venture, trust, corporation, association, public utility, company or state or local government body which performs excavation operations.  ''Premark'', to delineate the general scope of the excavation or boring on the paved surface of the ground using white paint, or stakes or other suitable white markings on nonpaved surfaces. No premarking shall be acceptable if such marks can reasonably interfere with traffic or pedestrian control or are misleading to the general public. Premarking shall not be required of any continuous excavation that is over 500 feet in length.  ''Safety zone'', a zone designated on the surface by the use of standard color-coded markings which contains the width of the facilities plus not more than 18 inches on each side.  ''Standard color-coded markings'', red - electric power lines, cables, conduit or light cables; yellow - gas, oil, street petroleum, or other gaseous materials; orange - communications cables or conduit, alarm or signal lines; blue - water, irrigation and slurry lines; green - sewer and drain lines; white - premark of proposed excavation.  ''System'', the underground plant damage prevention system as defined in section 76D of chapter 164.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 40a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 40a - Excavations; Notice

Section 40A. No excavator installing a new facility or an addition to an existing facility or the relay or repair of an existing facility shall, except in an emergency, make an excavation, in any public or private way, any company right-of-way or easement or any public or privately owned land or way, unless at least 72 hours, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays but not more than 30 days before the proposed excavation is to be made, such excavator has premarked not more than 500 feet of the proposed excavation and given an initial notice to the system. Such initial notice shall set forth a description of the excavation location in the manner as herein defined. In addition, such initial notice shall indicate whether any such excavation will involve blasting and, if so, the date and the location at which such blasting is to occur.  The notice requirements shall be waived in an emergency as defined herein; provided, however, that before such excavation begins or during a life-threatening emergency, notification shall be given to the system and the initial point of boring or excavation shall be premarked. The excavator shall ensure that the underground facilities of the utilities in the area of such excavation shall not be damaged or jeopardized.  In no event shall any excavation by blasting take place unless notice thereof, either in the initial notice or a subsequent notice accurately specifying the date and location of such blasting shall have been given and received at least 72 hours in advance, except in the case of an unanticipated obstruction requiring blasting when such notice shall be not less than four hours prior to such blasting. If any such notice cannot be given as aforesaid because of an emergency requiring blasting, it shall be given as soon as may be practicable but before any explosives are discharged.
MA Gen L ch 82 § 40b (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIV - Public Ways and Works|Chapter 82 - The Laying Out, Alteration, Relocation and Discontinuance of Public Ways, and Specific Repairs Thereon|Section 40b - Designation of Location of Underground Facilities

Section 40B. Within 72 hours, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, from the time the initial notice is received by the system or at such time as the company and the excavator agree, such company shall respond to the initial notice or subsequent notice by designating the location of the underground facilities within 15 feet in any direction of the premarking so that the existing facilities are to be found within a safety zone. Such safety zone shall be so designated by the use of standard color-coded markings. The providing of such designation by the company shall constitute prima facie evidence of an exercise of reasonable precaution by the company as required by this section; provided, however, that in the event that the excavator has given notice as aforesaid at a location at which because of the length of excavation the company cannot reasonably designate the entire location of its facilities within such 72 hour period, then such excavator shall identify for the company that portion of the excavation which is to be first made and the company shall designate the location of its facilities in such portion within 72 hours and shall designate the location of its facilities in the remaining portion of the location within a reasonable time thereafter. When an emergency notification has been given to the system, the company shall make every attempt to designate its facilities as promptly as possible.