Defendant, the city of Sterling Heights, appeals as of right an order denying its motion for summary disposition in this tort liability action concerning an injuiy sustained by Antonio Moraccini that was allegedly caused by defects in a city sidewalk. The city asserted
Plaintiff, Antonio Moraccini, alleged that he was operating his three-wheeled motorized scooter when the wheels of the scooter struck concrete defects and irregularities, catapulting him from the scooter to the ground and causing severe injuries. Moraccini described the concrete where the scooter’s wheels became jammed as being uneven, damaged, and unstable, with deep cracks and crevices. Moraccini had been traveling down a sidewalk on the scooter and was about to cross a road, which indisputably fell within the jurisdiction of the county, when the accident occurred. The sidewalk was constructed by the city in 1977, and the contractor who built the sidewalk chipped or cut out the raised portion of the existing curb to bring the road flush with the sidewalk as required by MCL 125.1361.
A sidewalk constructed or reconstructed after April 12,1973 on public or private property for public use within this state, whether constructed by a public agency or a person, firm, corporation, nonprofit corporation, or organization, shall be constructed in a manner that will facilitate use by persons with physical disabilities. At points of intersection between pedestrian and motorized lines of travel, and at other points when necessary to avoid abrupt changes in grade, a sidewalk shall slope gradually to street level so as to provide an uninterrupted line of travel.
Except as otherwise provided, the governmental tort liability act (GTLA), MCL 691.1401 et seq., broadly shields and grants to governmental agencies immunity from tort liability when an agency is engaged in the exercise or discharge of a governmental function. MCL 691.1407(1); Duffy v Dep’t of Natural Resources, 490 Mich 198, 204; 805 NW2d 399 (2011); Grimes v Dep’t of Transp, 475 Mich 72, 76-77; 715 NW2d 275 (2006). “The existence and scope of governmental immunity was solely a creation of the courts until the Legislature enacted the GTLA in 1964, which codified several exceptions to governmental immunity that permit a
At the relevant time, the highway exception to governmental immunity provided in pertinent part:
Except as otherwise provided in \MCL 691.1402a], each governmental agency having jurisdiction over a highway shall maintain the highway in reasonable repair so that it is reasonably safe and convenient for public travel. A person who sustains bodily injury or damage to his or her property by reason of failure of a governmental agency to keep a highway under its jurisdiction in reasonable repair and in a condition reasonably safe and fit for travel may recover the damages suffered by him or her from the governmental agency. The liability, procedure, and remedy as to county roads under the jurisdiction of a county road commission shall be as provided in section 21 of chapter IV of 1909 PA 283, MCL 224.21. The duty of the state and the county road commissions to repair and maintain highways, and the liability for that duty, extends only to the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel and does not include sidewalks, trailways, crosswalks, or any other installation outside of the improved portion of the*393 highway designed for vehicular travel. [MCL 691.1402, as amended by 1999 PA 205 (emphasis added).][3 ]
At the time of the incident, “highway” was statutorily defined as “a public highway, road, or street that is open for public travel and includes bridges, sidewalks, trailways, crosswalks, and culverts on the highway [and it] .. . does not include alleys, trees, and utility poles.” MCL 691.1401(e), as amended by 2001 PA 131 (emphasis added).
As indicated in the prefatory language of MCL 691.1402(1), the statute applied except as otherwise provided in MCL 691.1402a. In relevant part, MCL 691.1402a(l) previously provided:
Except as otherwise provided by this section, a municipal corporation has no duty to repair or maintain, and is*394 not liable for injuries arising from, a portion of a county-highway outside of the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel, including a sidewalk, trail-way, crosswalk, or other installation. This subsection does not prevent or limit a municipal corporation’s liability if both of the following are true:
(a) At least 30 days before the occurrence of the relevant injury, death, or damage, the municipal corporation knew or, in the exercise of reasonable diligence, should have known of the existence of a defect in a sidewalk, trailway, crosswalk, or other installation outside of the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel.
(b) The defect described in subdivision (a) is a proximate cause of the injury, death, or damage.[5 ]
We hold that MCL 691.1402a, in conjunction with MCL 691.1402(1), governs the proper analysis of this case. The location where the accident took place was subject to the general authority and control of Macomb County, which is the reason that the county had to grant a permit to the city to allow installation of the sidewalk.
MCL 691.1402a and its relationship to MCL 691.1402(1) were examined in Robinson, 486 Mich at 11-13, 22, wherein the Court stated:
Although the very first sentence of MCL 691.1402a(l) begins by stating that a municipality is not liable for injuries arising from a portion of a county highway outside the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel, including a sidewalk, trailway, crosswalk, or other installation, this sentence is prefaced by the language “[e]xcept as otherwise provided by this section,” and the very next sentence of this subsection states that a municipality is liable for such injuries under certain circum*396 stances. That is, a municipality is liable for injuries arising from a defective sidewalk adjacent to a county highway if (a) the municipality knew or should have known at least 30 days before the occurrence of the injury of the existence of the defect in the sidewalk and (b) that defect was a proximate cause of the injury. MCL 691.1402a(l). In addition, MCL 691.1402a(2) provides that a discontinuity defect of less than 2 inches creates a rebuttable inference that the municipality maintained the sidewalk in reasonable repair, as is required by MCL 691.1402(1); this is the statutory two-inch rule.
As discussed earlier, MCL 691.1402(1) imposes liability on municipalities for injuries resulting from defective sidewalks, i.e., sidewalks that the municipality has failed to maintain in reasonable repair. However, MCL 691.1402a limits this liability by providing that municipalities are only liable for injuries resulting from defective sidewalks adjacent to county highways under the specified circumstances. . .. [Wjhen MCL 691.1402(1) and MCL 691.1402a are read together, it is clear that municipalities are generally liable for injuries resulting from defective sidewalks.
.. . MCL 691.1402a does not apply to sidewalks adjacent to highways other than county highways, such as sidewalks adjacent to state highways. [Citations omitted.]
In this case, the area in dispute is adjacent to and abuts a county highway, and while Robinson concerned a sidewalk, MCL 691.1402a(l) also spoke of “other installation^]” outside the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel.
MCL 691.1402a, which was added by 1999 PA 205, and took effect December 21,1999, was enacted to limit municipal liability relative to injuries occurring caused by defective sidewalks, trailways, crosswalks, and other installations located within portions of a county highway, because the county’s liability was limited under
After analyzing the Michigan Constitution, statutes, and common law on this issue, we believe that the Legislature intended municipalities to retain reasonable control over sidewalks within their boundaries, as long as the control pertains to local concerns and does not interfere with the state or counties’ control over their highways.. .. [Ojur conclusion is consistent with public policy and the overall legislative scheme. It treats townships the same as cities, and ensures that those persons injured on township sidewalks abutting a county road are not within the only class of persons without a remedy against a governmental agency. Because we believe the Legislature intended townships to be subject to liability for injuries occurring as a result of a failure to maintain sidewalks within their*398 boundaries, we would remand these cases to their respective circuit courts for trial. [Id. at 690-691 (emphasis added) .][10 ]
Subsequently, the Legislature enacted MCL 691.1402a, and we note for historical background purposes the following commentary in House Legislative Analysis, HB 4010, January 4, 2000, with respect to the proposed act:
The statute [MCL 691.1402] does not directly address the liability of local governments for sidewalks, etc. alongside . . . county roads, but the courts have rendered decisions on the matter. . . . [I]n a recent decision, Listanski v Canton Township (1996), the Michigan Supreme Court said townships are liable for injuries occurring on sidewalks abutting county roads within their boundaries. This decision overturned a court of appeals decision saying townships were not liable because they lack sufficient jurisdiction. (Townships must seek approval from the county in order to construct, repair, or maintain sidewalks along county roads.) The state supreme court said its decision, “treats townships the same as cities, and ensures that those persons injured on township sidewalks abutting a county road are not within the only class of persons without a remedy against a government agency.” Legislation has been introduced to address the liability of municipalities for “installations” alongside county roads.
The bill would provide protection to townships, cities, and villages against “slip and fall” and similar lawsuits on sidewalks, bikepaths, trailways, and similar installations*399 along the side of county highways. It limits liability to instances in which [knowledge, causation, and two-inch rule provisions are set forth] [.]
With respect to MCL 691.1402a(l), the question that must be answered in the case at bar is whether the concrete base of the area comprising the so-called curb cutout (hereafter simply referred to as the “curb cutout”) constituted a portion of the county highway falling outside the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel, which includes sidewalks or other installations. We initially conclude that the curb cutout was not an improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel. Clearly, the curb cutout was designed to make pedestrian travel easier for all individuals, not for ease in vehicular travel. We shall, however, review a couple of cases addressing curbs in general.
In Meek v Dep’t of Transp, 240 Mich App 105, 113; 610 NW2d 250 (2000), a highway-design-defect case, this Court held that a “barrier curb must be considered part of the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel and comes within the highway exception to governmental immunity.” The Meek panel, in support of its holding, relied on Gregg v State Hwy Dep’t, 435 Mich 307, 314-315; 458 NW2d 619 (1990), in which our Supreme Court ruled that a highway shoulder is part of the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel. Meek, 240 Mich App at 114. However, in Grimes, 475 Mich at 84, the Michigan Supreme Court “overrule[d] Gregg and its progeny to the extent that they can be read to suggest that a shoulder is ‘designed for vehicular travel.’ ”
In Sharp v Benton Harbor, 292 Mich App 351; 806 NW2d 760 (2011), the plaintiff stepped onto a curb that abutted a city street and the curb allegedly crumbled, causing the plaintiff to fall to the ground.
Having concluded that the curb cutout did not constitute an improved portion of the county highway designed for vehicular travel, the final question to be answered is whether the curb cutout otherwise qualified as a portion of the county highway under MCL 691.1402a(l), i.e., whether it constituted an abutting “sidewalk, trailway, crosswalk, or other installation.” The curb cutout abutted the county highway, and we believe that it falls within the definition of “highway” pursuant to Sharp and that it also constituted an “installation” for purposes of MCL 691.1402a(l). An “installation” is defined as “something installed, as machinery or apparatus placed in position or connected for use.” Random House Webster’s College Dictionary (2001). While we have a fairly unique set of circumstances in which the original curb was simply cut into, as opposed to the common situation in which a curb and sidewalk are designed, poured, and constructed to flow together in order to accommodate pedestrian traffic, there remains a concrete base, or remnants thereof, that fits within the broad definition of an “installation” and that is comparable in kind, character, and nature to a sidewalk, crosswalk, or trailway. See Neal v Wilkes, 470 Mich 661, 669; 685 NW2d 648 (2004) (“Under the statutory construction doctrine known as ejusdem generis, where a general term follows a series of specific terms, the general term is interpreted ‘to include only things of the same kind, class, character, or nature as those specifically enumerated.’ ”) (citation omitted).
“[A] sidewalk is a path for pedestrians along the side of a road.” Hatch v Grand Haven Twp, 461 Mich 457, 464; 606 NW2d 633 (2000).
Whether constituting a sidewalk or an installation, or a combination thereof, the curb cutout was indeed a portion of the county highway not designed for vehicular travel, thereby falling within the parameters of MCL 691.1402a(l).
With respect to whether the city knew or should have known about the alleged defects 30 days before the occurrence, whether the alleged defects were the proximate cause of plaintiffs injuries, and whether the statutory two-inch rule has any application, MCL 691.1402a(l) and (2), these are all matters outside the scope of this appeal and may be raised by the city in the trial court.
Affirmed. Having prevailed in full, plaintiff is awarded taxable costs pursuant to MCR 7.219.
MCL 691.1402a was amended by 2012 PA 50, effective March 13, 2012. The amended version of the statute, which limits its application solely to “a sidewalk . .. installed adjacent to a municipal, county, or state highway,” is not applicable here, considering the effective date of the amendment and the earlier date of the incident.
MCL 125.1361 provides in relevant part:
Unless otherwise indicated, all references to MCL 691.1402 are to the statute as amended by 1999 PA 205, the version in effect at the time of the incident.
The amendments of this provision by 2012 PA 50 are only stylistic in nature. Unless otherwise indicated, all references to MCL 691.1401 are to the statute as amended by 2001 PA 131, the version in effect at the time of the incident.
MCL 691.1402a(l), as added by 1999 PA 205. Subsection (2) of the statute contained the two-inch rule. MCL 691.1402a(2); see generally Robinson, 486 Mich at 10, 13 (noting that a municipality is not liable for damages arising from a depression in a sidewalk that does not exceed 2 inches in depth). Subsection (3) of the statute contained a liability limitation pertaining to off-road recreational vehicles (ORVs). MCL 691.1402a(3); Robinson, 486 Mich at 11 n 9 (recognizing that municipalities are not liable for injuries resulting from the use of off-road vehicles absent gross negligence). Unless otherwise indicated, all references to MCL 691.1402a are to the statute as added by 1999 PA 205, the version in effect at the time of the incident.
There was documentary evidence indicating that in 1974, the Ma-comb County Road Commission granted the city a “permit to contract, operate, use and/or maintain within the right-of-way.” The permit allowed the city to install sidewalks. Under the permit, the city was required to operate and maintain the sidewalks it installed. As stated earlier, in 1977 the city hired a contractor who installed the sidewalk and created the curb cutout.
A “municipal corporation” was defined as “a city, village, or township or a combination of 2 or more of these when acting jointly.” MCL 691.1401(a). Accordingly, the city is a municipal corporation for purposes of MCL 691.1402a(l).
On the issue of jurisdiction in relationship to governmental immunity, this Court in Carr v City of Lansing, 259 Mich App 376, 381; 674 NW2d 168 (2003), observed:
A governmental agency must have jurisdiction over a highway for it to he liable under the highway exception for breaching its duty to maintain a highway “in reasonable repair so that it is reasonably safe and convenient for public travel.” An agency has jurisdiction when it has control over the highway... . [0]nly one agency may have jurisdiction for purposes of liability under the highway exception .... [Citations omitted.]
We also note Mason v Wayne Co Bd ofComm’rs, 447 Mich 130, 136 n 6; 523 NW2d 791 (1994), in which the Court stated that the purpose behind the language in MCL 691.1402(1), which limited the state and counties’ liability to defects in the improved portion of a highway designed for vehicular travel, “is to allocate responsibility for sidewalks and crosswalks to local governments, including townships, cities, and villages.”
The Listanski Court also observed, “Additionally, there is no reason in logic or policy for the Legislature to have ... retained city responsibility to repair and maintain sidewalks along city roads, but eliminated city and township responsibility for repair and maintenance of sidewalks along state or county roads.” Listanski, 452 Mich at 687 n 10 (citation omitted).
We note that Meek was also effectively overruled by Hanson v Mecosta Co Rd Comm’rs, 465 Mich 492, 502; 638 NW2d 396 (2002), which held that the highway exception to governmental immunity “does
A “curb” is defined in the dictionary as “ ‘a rim, [especially] of joined stones or concrete, along a street or roadway, forming an edge for a sidewalk.’ ” Sharp, 292 Mich App at 356, quoting The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Second Edition Unabridged.
The city argues that a “short curb” still exists in the curb cutout areas at issue, noting lines of demarcation that are generally present in the concrete. Even were we to use the terminology “short curb,” it would not change our analysis, given that the area, regardless of its moniker, is designed and used for pedestrian traffic. As such, a “short curb” constitutes an “installation” for purposes of the former version of MCL 691.1402a, as it is similar to a sidewalk, crosswalk, and trailway.
The Court cited with approval definitions of “sidewalk” set forth by this Court in Stabley v Huron-Clinton Metro Park Auth, 228 Mich App 363, 367; 579 NW2d 374 (1998), which included “a path for pedestrians, usually paved, along the side of a street,” a “walk or raised path for pedestrians,” and “part of a public street or highway designed for the use of pedestrians.” Hatch, 461 Mich at 462 (citations and quotation marks omitted). We note that with the enactment of 2012 PA 50, the Legislature specifically added a definition of “sidewalk,” which provides that “sidewalk” means “a paved public sidewalk intended for pedestrian use situated outside of and adjacent to the improved portion of a highway designed for vehicular travel.” MCL 691.1401(f), as amended by 2012 PA 50.