WOODCLIFF LAKE—Before the first major snowstorm of winter arrives, borough officials introduced an ordinance to limit the amount that they will reimburse residents should their mailbox be damaged by a borough snow plow operator and also put a 2-week deadline on mailbox damage complaints.
A final public hearing at council is set for Dec. 6.
“Unfortunately every year once snow plowing begins we get maybe six, sometimes more complaints,” Borough Administrator Tom Padilla said Nov. 8, noting alleged damage done by borough snow plows (and borough private contractors) and snow plowed up against streetside mailboxes.
Padilla said the council was “trying to put a cap on it” as members previously paid to replace mailboxes costing $600 and up.
“Here’s the actual thing: people would say that the snow plow would hit it and we had no record and then no offense, they call one of you, present company excluded and they’re like you gotta take care of this so I’m not going to sit there and argue with everyone,” Padilla added.
He said residents report mailbox damage as late as four months after a snowstorm, and so [now] they have to report it to us within a couple weeks.” He said the DPW superintendent would investigate the damage to determine if it was caused by a local snow plow.
“While there is no legal requirement, it is the policy of the Borough of Woodcliff Lake to reimburse residents up to $150 for eligible mailbox damage caused by direct plow contact or thrown snow coming off the plow on the part of the Borough’s Department of Public Works or Borough private contractors,” reads the introduced ordinance.
The ordinance notes residents requesting reimbursement for a damaged mailbox above $150 may file a tort claim under Title 59 of state law.
The ordinance notes homeowners should know “that most mailboxes are located within the public right-of-way and, therefore, while fulfilling the primary objective [snow removal], mailboxes may be unintentionally and unavoidably damaged.”
It also notes property owners are responsible for damage to landscaping or hardscape, or nursery plants that “encroach on the Borough right-of-way” but notes that if snow plow damage occurs to a lawn, it “will be repaired by top dressing and seeding the following spring.”
Following alleged damage to a mailbox caused by snow removal activities, homeowners must file a written report within 14 days to the borough. The damage report will be investigated by the DPW director, or designee, to determine whether the claim qualifies for reimbursement.
The ordinance adds, “The damage must have been caused by direct contact with or thrown snow from Borough Department of Public Works or Borough private contractor plows or snow removal equipment.”