(a) Petitioning council.--Any person or persons constituting a majority in number and interest of the owner of the real estate abutting upon an area not opened as a street or abutting upon an existing street or portion of a street may petition the council to:

(1) Open or lay out and open the area as a street or portion of a street.

(2) Vacate a street or portion of a street.

(b) Hearing and decision.--Council shall hold a hearing after receiving a petition filed with council in accordance with subsection (a), following at least 15 days' personal notice to the owners of abutting real estate not joining in the petition and following at least 15 days' notice thereof in a newspaper of general circulation. Following the hearing, council shall either by motion deny the petition or by ordinance open, lay out and open or vacate the street or portion of the street. The provisions of section 1731 (relating to authority to open and vacate streets and procedure) applicable to ordinances enacted by authority of that section apply to ordinances enacted by authority of this section.

(c) Release.--A petition for the vacation of a street or portion of a street may release the borough from the damages sustained as a result of the vacation if the petition is signed by the owners of the property abutting upon the street or portion of the street. Where the release has been included in the petition, no proceedings for award of damages may be had, and no damages as a result of the vacation may, under any conditions, be awarded to an abutting property owner.

Cross References. Section 1732 is referred to in sections 1733, 1734 of this title.