Cities and their governing bodies may exercise a broad set of powers over streets, public works, nuisances, fire limits, markets, inspections, and local improvements. A qualifying domestic gas, water, or sewer company may also build facilities and lay pipes in city rights-of-way if the governing body consents and city rules are followed.
9-276 - Additional powers of cities 9-276 . Additional powers of cities A. In addition to the powers already vested in cities by their respective charters and by general law, cities and their governing bodies may: 1. Lay out and establish, regulate the use, open, vacate, alter, widen, extend, grade, pave, plant trees or otherwise improve streets, alleys, avenues, sidewalks, parks, public grounds and off-street parking sites and acquire any property necessary or convenient for that purpose by the exercise of the right of eminent domain. 2. Prevent and remove encroachments or obstructions, provide for lighting and cleaning, and regulate the openings for the laying of gas and water pipes and mains on streets, alleys, avenues, sidewalks, parks and public grounds. 3. Build and repair sewers, tunnels and drains. 4. Erect lights, gas or otherwise. 5. Regulate the erection of poles and wires, the laying of street railway tracks, and the operating of street railways in and upon its streets, alleys, public grounds and plazas. 6. Regulate the use of sidewalks and all structures thereunder, and require the owner or occupant of premises to keep the sidewalks in front of or along the premises free from obstruction. 7. Regulate and prevent the throwing of offensive material in and prevent injury to any street, way, alley or public grounds. 8. Construct and keep in repair bridges, viaducts, tunnels, culverts, drains, sewers and cesspools, and regulate their use. 9. Provide for the cleaning and purification of waters, watercourses and canals, and the draining or filling of ponds on private property when necessary to prevent or abate nuisances. 10. Establish markets and market houses, and regulate their use. 11. Regulate the sale of meats, poultry, fish, butter, cheese, lard, fruit, vegetables and other provisions, and provide for and regulate the inspection and the place and manner of selling them, and provide for the inspection of hay, grain, flour, meal and other provisions. 12. Regulate the construction, repair and use of vaults, cisterns, areas, hydrants, pumps, sewers and gutters. 13. Regulate partition fences and party walls and regulate the construction and location of buildings, walls and fences on the line of a street, way or alley. 14. Prescribe the thickness, strength and manner of constructing stone, brick and other buildings, and construction of fire escapes. 15. Fix and designate by ordinance fire limits within which no buildings having outside wooden walls shall be constructed or repaired so as to increase their value beyond a percentage to be fixed in the ordinance, and, by ordinance, prescribe special fire limits, within the general fire limits, requiring therein building material to be used and additional precautions to be observed in the construction of new buildings, and in the repairing and maintenance of buildings, as may from time to time be designated, for the prevention of fires and the spread thereof, and provide for the enforcement of the ordinance and for the appointment of a building inspector, his authority, his term of office and his compensation. 16. Define nuisances and abate them, and impose fines upon persons creating or continuing nuisances. 17. Appoint a board of health, and prescribe its powers and duties. 18. Prohibit an offensive or unwholesome business or establishment within two miles of the limits of the corporation. 19. Compel the owner of any unwholesome or nauseous house or place to clean, abate or remove it, and regulate the location thereof. 20. Extend by condemnation or otherwise any street, alley or highway over or across, or construct a sewer under or through, any railroad track, right-of-way or land of a railroad within its corporate limits, but where no just compensation is made to the railroad company, the city shall restore the railroad track, right-of-way or land to its former state, or in a manner so as not to impair its usefulness. 21. Establish and define sewer districts and construct sewers therein. 22. Establish and alter the grade of streets, alleys and sidewalks, and regulate the manner of using the streets and pavements in the city to protect them from injury by vehicles driven thereon. No street or sidewalk grade shall be altered after it has once been established and built unless compensation is made to abutting owners for damages done to their property by the change. 23. Make local improvements by special assessments, by special taxation or otherwise, as they shall by ordinance prescribe. 24. Adopt and enforce standards for shielding and filtration of commercial or public outdoor portable or permanent light fixtures in proximity to astronomical or meteorological laboratories. B. A domestic corporation or association organized for the purpose of manufacturing gas to supply cities, or their inhabitants, or to supply cities, or their inhabitants, with water, or for the purpose of furnishing cities and the inhabitants with a sewer system, may, by consent of the governing body, erect and establish gas factories, waterworks and sewer plants, and lay down pipes in the streets, alleys, plazas and ways of a city, subject to such rules and regulations as the city shall by ordinance impose.