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Sec. 1041a. Providing for local assessments to pay for
certain public improvements in cities and towns.

No city or town shall impose any tax or assessment upon
abutting land owners for street or other public improvements,
except for making and improving walkways upon then existing
streets, and improving and paving then existing alleys, and for
either the construction, or for the use of the sewers; and the
same, when imposed, shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefits

resulting therefrom to such abutting land owners. But such
improvement may be ordered by the council, and the cost
thereof apportioned in pursuance of an agreement between the
city or town and the abutting land owners, and, in the absence
of such agreement, improvements, the cost of which are to be
defrayed in whole or in part by such local tax or assessment,
may be ordered on a petition from not less than three-fourths
of the land owners to be affected thereby, or by a two-thirds
vote of all the members elected to the council; but, when no
petition is so filed, notice shall first be given as hereinafter
provided to the abutting land owners notifying them when and
where they may appear before the council or some committee
thereof, to whom the matter may be referred, to be heard in
favor of or against such improvement. When the council consists
of two branches, any committee acting under this or subsequent
provisions of this section shall be composed of not less
than three members from the larger and two members from the
smaller branch. The cost of such improvement, when the same
shall have been ascertained, shall be assessed or apportioned by
the council, or by some committee thereof, or in any city having
by the last United States census a population of more than forty-six
thousand inhabitants, by some officer authorized by
its council to make such assessment or such apportionment between
the city or town and the abutting land owners where less
than the whole is assessed: provided, that except when it is
otherwise agreed the portion assessed against the abutting land
owners shall not exceed one-third of the total cost. The amount
assessed against each land owner, or for which he is liable by
agreement, shall be reported as soon as practicable to the collector
of taxes, who shall enter the same as provided for other
taxes. When the assessment or apportionment is not fixed by
agreement, notice thereof, and of the amount so assessed or apportioned,
shall be given each of the then abutting owners, and
he shall be cited thereby to appear before the council, or the committee
thereof, or before the officer having the matter in charge,
not less than ten days thereafter, at a time and place to be designated
therein, to show cause, if any he can, against such
assessment or apportionment. The notices required by this section
may be given by personal service on all persons entitled to
such notice, except that notice to an infant or insane person may
be served on his guardian or committee, and notice to a non-resident
may be mailed to him at his place of residence, or served
on any agent of his having the property in charge, or on the
tenant of the freehold, or, in any case where the owner is a nonresident
or where the owner's residence is not known, such notice
may be given by publication in some newspaper published in the
city or town once a week for two successive weeks, the last publication
to be made at least ten days before the day on which the
parties are cited to appear. Any land owner wishing to make objections
to an assessment or apportionment may appear in person
or by counsel, and state his objection. If his objections are
overruled, he shall, within thirty days thereafter, but not afterwards,
have an appeal as of right to the corporation or hustings
court of the city, or, in case of a town, to the circuit court of
the county in which such town is situated. When an appeal is
taken the clerk of the council, or of the committee, or of the officer
having the matter in charge, shall immediately deliver to
the clerk of the court which has cognizance of the appeal the
original notice relating to said assessment, with the judgment of
the council, committee or officer endorsed thereon, and the clerk
shall docket the same. Every such appeal shall be tried by the
court or the judge thereof, in a summary way, without pleadings
in writing and without a jury, in term time or in vacation, after
reasonable notice to the adverse party, and the hearing shall be
de novo.

The amount finally assessed against or apportioned to each
land owner, or fixed by agreement with him, as hereinbefore
provided, shall be a lien on his abutting land, from the time when
the work of improvement shall have been completed, subject,
however, to his right of appeal and objection as aforesaid, and
may be enforced by suit in equity; and, provided that as against
a purchaser for value and without notice, such assessment or
tax shall not be a lien except and until it shall have been reported
to the collector of taxes as above provided.