I Wanna Know

NEWS AND OPINION

PW exposes the tricks, scams and truth about the powers that be.

By Sara Kelly

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Oct. 17, 2001

Q: What do those plaques in sidewalks and streets that read "SPACE WITHIN THESE LINES NOT DEDICATED" mean?

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A: After receiving this question from two different readers on the very same day, PW placed an urgent call to Streets Department spokeswoman Cynthia Hite, who copiously researched the practice, tracing it all the way back to jolly, old England. "Dedicated" space, Hite explains, refers to public property used, say, for streets and sidewalks. There are two ways to open a new street. The first and most common method is by affidavit. British common law, she says, allowed a practice known as "adverse possession." This means that if you care for a piece of land for a certain amount of time and no one tries to boot you off the land, you get to claim it. "The same philosophy applies to the city," she says. "Under state law ground must be in public use for 21 years. At that time affidavits can be filed with the Department of Streets stating, by at least three citizens, that this ground has been an open street for at least 21 years." "Dedication" is the other method for opening a street. In this case, says Hite, a land owner dedicates part of their property to public use, such as a street or a sidewalk. "When a person places one of these markers in the sidewalk," she continues, "they are accomplishing two purposes. One, they are stating the ground behind the marker is private, not public, and they are also putting people on notice that this is not a street and therefore cannot be opened by affidavit." Bet those office tower owners are breathing a little easier now.

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