Seaman v. Borough of Washington

Citations

• 172 Pa. 467
• 33 A. 756
• 1896 Pa. LEXIS 800

Syllabus

<p>[Marked to be reported.]</p> <p>Statutes — Repeal—Repugnancy—Acts of May 24,1878, and May. 16,1891 —Change of grade in borough.</p> <p>The act of May 24, 1878, P, L. 129, entitled “ An act for appointing viewers to assess damages where streets and alleys are changed in grades •orlocationinthe several boroughs of this commonwealth,” is not repealed by the act of May 16, 1891, P. L. 75.</p> <p>The act of May 24,1878; provides a remedy for the individual citizen in the single case of changing or altering grades, whereas the act of May 16, .1891, provides comprehensively for proceedings intended to be instituted by municipalities chiefly, in all cases of laying out, opening, widening and extending streets, alleys and lanes, and for the building of bridges, piers, abutments, sewers and other works, and for ascertaining in one proceeding all the damages suffered by all abutting owners affected by the particular improvement, and assessing upon all properties benefited the amounts of the benefit as a fund out of which to pay the damages.</p> <p>If the citizen desires to proceed on his own account and for the ascertainment of his own damages alone, he will proceed under the act of May 24,1878, which is especially adapted to his case, whereas if he wishes to embrace in his proceeding all the cases affected by the particular improvement, he will proceed under the act of May 16, 1891, P. L. 75.</p> <p>The enactment of the act of June 24, 1895, P. L. 248, as a supplement to the act of May 24, 1878, giving viewers mileage at the rate of ten cents per mile in addition to the pay of one dollar and fifty cents per day provided by the act of May 24,1878, shows that the legislature did not regard the act of May 24, 1878, as repealed by the act of May 16, 1891.</p> <p>Road law — Boroughs—Streets—Change of grade — Failure to agree with owner as to damages.</p> <p>Under the act of May 24, 1878, P. L. 129, relating to change of grade of streets in boroughs if there is an actual failure