New Brunswick, NJ Property Maintenance: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (2026)

Chapter 12.16 puts snow and ice on the sidewalk on whoever holds the premises. Section 12.16.010 requires the owner, occupant or tenant of premises abutting or bordering upon any street in the city to remove all snow and ice from the abutting sidewalks of such streets. The clock is twelve (12) daylight hours after the snow falls or the ice forms. Where ice is frozen so hard that removal is impracticable, the sidewalk must instead be thoroughly covered with sand or ashes within the same twelve (12) daylight hours. The duty reaches three roles at once: owner, occupant and tenant.

If the sidewalk is not cleared, Section 12.16.020 lets the city do the work at the expense of the owner, occupant or tenant. The officer in charge of removal certifies the cost to the governing body, which examines the certification and, if it is correct, charges the cost against the real estate. The charge becomes a lien on the property and part of the taxes next to be levied and assessed, enforced and collected with interest in the same manner as other taxes. That remedy is in addition to all other penalties provided by law.

Section 12.16.030 covers the summons. Unless the summons says otherwise or the court orders otherwise, no court appearance is required for anyone wishing to plead guilty to a violation of the chapter. The defendant can pay the fine of $100.00 and $15.00 in court costs by mail, as long as the payment is received by the court before the date fixed on the summons or assigned by the court.

Sidewalk upkeep as a whole sits with the owner under Section 12.04.010, which makes it the duty of any owner of lands in the city to keep sidewalks and curbs maintained and properly repaired. Section 12.04.020 makes the owner or owners of the premises abutting or adjoining a defective sidewalk solely responsible for any injury it causes.