Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
Panelists discuss issues related to private roadways during a recent MMA webinar. Panelists included, clockwise from top left, Tonya Capparello, public works director and town engineer in Wilbraham; Richard Benevento, chair of the Parking and Traffic Commission in Beverly and chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals in Middleton; Roby Whitehouse, assistant public works director in Yarmouth and president of the Massachusetts Highway Association; and Karis North, an attorney with Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane.
An MMA webinar on July 15 gave an overview of private roadways and related issues, providing information municipal officials need to navigate community conversations.
Karis North, an attorney with Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, provided legal context, covering state laws regarding betterments (Ch. 80, Sec. 1), street acceptance (Ch. 41, Sec. 811), temporary repairs on private ways (Ch. 40, Sec. 6N), and optional snow and ice removal (Ch. 40, Sec. 6C).
Richard Benevento, chair of the Parking and Traffic Commission in Beverly and chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals in Middleton, explained the distinction between private ways and private roads. Private ways may be open to the public for travel, but private roads are intended for the use of only specified individuals and may not be open to the public.
Tonya Capparello, public works director and town engineer in Wilbraham, discussed his town’s private way maintenance procedure. He shared resources including a petition for temporary repairs and his town’s private ways bylaw.
Roby Whitehouse, assistant public works director in Yarmouth and president of the Massachusetts Highway Association, moderated 25 minutes of questions and answers, which addressed inquiries regarding discontinuing private ways, municipal responsibilities for private roads, and how to determine if a road is public or private.
• Private Roads Private Ways: What Municipal Officials Need to Know (1.6M PDF)
• Private Roads: Questions and Some Answers – Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane (1.6M PDF)
• Private Way Maintenance DPW Procedure – Wilbraham (3M PDF)
• Grant of Right of Entry and Limit to the Town of Wilbraham’s Liability (20K PDF)
• Petition for Temporary Repairs to a Private Way – Wilbraham (22K PDF)
• Private Way Work Request Procedure – Wilbraham (129K PDF)
• Section 631 Private Ways Bylaw 2019 (19K PDF)