[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Dobbs Ferry 4-21-1998 by L.L. No. 4-1998. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Building Department — See Ch. 13.
Building construction — See Ch. 127.
Environmental quality review — See Ch. 167.
Escrow deposits — See Ch. 169.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 264.
A. 
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
EXCAVATED/GRADED PREMISES
The whole of any premises or property from which topsoil, earth, sand, gravel, humus, rock or other mineral deposit and/or surface vegetation is excavated/graded, removed or added or from which it is proposed that such material be excavated/graded, added or removed.
EXCAVATION/GRADING WORK
The whole of an operation for the excavation/grading, removal or addition of any materials from an excavated/graded or filled premises, including the grading and seeding of said excavated/graded premises and the construction of a legal improvement or legal improvements on said excavated premises; or grading or regrading.
IMPROVEMENT
A building, wall structure, parking area, playground, walk, driveway, street, highway or road.
LEGAL IMPROVEMENT
An improvement that complies, or if constructed would comply, wholly with the provisions of all pertinent zoning, building, fire prevention and other ordinances, rules, regulations, laws and statutes affecting such improvement.
MATERIALS
Topsoil, earth, sand, gravel, humus, rock or other mineral deposit and/or surface vegetation and trees.
B. 
Words of the masculine gender as used in this chapter shall include the feminine and neuter genders and may refer to a firm, company or corporation.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, company or corporation to excavate/grade, strip or remove topsoil, earth, sand, gravel, humus, rock or other mineral deposit and/or surface vegetation or to regrade the topography by either installing topsoil, earth, sand, gravel, humus, rock or other material so as to raise the grade in whole or in part of any property located within the Village unless an excavation/grading permit for such excavation/grading work shall have been duly issued by the Building Department.
B. 
No excavation/grading permit shall be required where said materials must necessarily be excavated/graded or removed from the excavated/graded premises for usage on another location on the said excavated/graded premises or brought into the site or moved on the same site for the purpose of constructing a legal improvement thereon and the aggregate amount of said materials excavated/graded, removed or added is less than 300 cubic feet; provided, however, that the owner of the excavated/graded premises shall have filed with the Building Inspector a written agreement, in duplicate, duly executed and acknowledged by said owner and in a form required in accordance with the provisions of § 171-3B of this chapter.
C. 
No materials shall be excavated/graded or removed from any excavated/graded premises or brought into the site in excess of the maximum amount shown on the excavation/grading permit issued for such excavation/grading work or in excess of 300 cubic feet where no excavation/grading permit has been issued for such excavation/grading work.
The application for an excavation/grading permit shall be on a form approved by the Building Department, shall be duly executed and verified by the owner of the excavated/graded premises and shall be filed in duplicate. Such application shall furnish all the data and information required by the Building Department respecting the proposed excavation/grading work, including the location and purpose of the proposed excavation/grading work, the nature of the proposed legal improvement to be constructed on the excavated/graded premises, the time required to complete the proposed excavation/grading work and the approximate aggregate number of cubic yards of materials to be added, excavated/graded or removed from the excavated/graded premises. Such application so filed shall be accompanied by the following:
A. 
A topographical map prepared by an engineer duly licensed in the State of New York, drawn at a scale of not more than 100 feet to the inch with contour elevations at intervals of not more than five feet, showing the location and dimensions of the excavated/graded premises; the existing grades thereof and the proposed finished grades thereof after completion of the proposed excavation/grading work; the size and use of any existing buildings thereof; cross sections and elevations to indicate the effect of the proposed excavated/graded work upon the existing grades of the excavated/graded premises; and the relationship in grade, after completion of the proposed excavation/grading work, between the excavated/graded premises and any abutting land and highways lying within at least 50 feet of the excavated/graded premises; such map to show how such abutting land and highways would be protected with slopes not to exceed an angle of 35° or with suitable engineered masonry retaining walls or other suitable walls or terraces in accordance with the provisions of § 171-9 of this chapter.
(1) 
The topographical map shall show the location, species and approximate size of all existing trees having a trunk diameter of four inches or more at a point three feet above ground level before excavation/grading, as well as the location, size and species of all existing trees after completion of the proposed excavation/grading work.
(2) 
All final existing property grades after completion of a legal improvement shall be suitably drained by pipe, swale or gutter as specified by the Building Department. All drainage water shall be disposed of into storm sewer, dry wells or other suitable areas as approved by the Building Inspector. Such drainage and disposal shall be indicated by scaled dimensions on the topographical map.
B. 
A written agreement, in duplicate, duly executed and acknowledged by the owner of the excavated/graded premises, and in a form approved by the Building Department, covenanting and agreeing on the part of such owner to perform the proposed excavation/grading work in its entirety in strict accordance with all applicable ordinances, rules, regulations, laws and statutes, and consenting for himself, his heirs and successors that, in the event of any failure of such performance at any time, any officers, employees and duly authorized agents of the Village may, upon direction of the Board of Trustees, enter upon the excavated/graded premises and take all action thereon as is deemed necessary and appropriate to restore said premises to a safe, clean and properly appearing condition at the expense of the owner and, further that, in the event of failure of such performance at any time, the Board of Trustees may declare any performance bond filed by the owner to be in default, collect the sum payable thereunder and use such bond proceeds to defray the expense of the aforementioned restoration of the excavated/graded premises.
C. 
A duly acknowledged written consent of all mortgagees holding mortgages, if any, on the excavated/graded premises, consenting to the proposed excavation/grading work.
D. 
A certificate from the Receiver of Taxes of the Village certifying that all taxes and assessments levied against the excavated/graded premises have been paid as of the date of the application.
E. 
The amount of fee required for the issuance of the excavation/grading permit applied for, which fee shall be as set from time to time by the Board of Trustees.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 175, Fees.
F. 
A performance bond in the amount as determined below, issued by a bonding or surety company approved by the Building Department, conditioned for the faithful performance by said owner of the proposed excavation/grading work in its entirety in accordance with all terms, conditions and provisions of this chapter and of the agreement executed by said owner filed in conjunction with the application.
Total Number of Cubic Yards to be Added, Excavated/Graded or Removed
Amount of Bond Required
37 or less
$1,000
Between 38 and 50,000 inclusive
$5,000
Between 50,001 and 100,000 inclusive
$10,000
Between 100,001 and 200,000 inclusive
$20,000
Between 200,001 and 500,000 inclusive
$30,000
In excess of 500,000
$50,000
A. 
No excavation/grading permit shall be issued unless the Building Inspector and the Superintendent of Public Works shall have determined that the proposed excavation/grading work and the proposed finished grades of the excavated/graded premises after completion thereof will not interfere with or overload any existing or planned drainage facilities of the Village, will not endanger any street, highway or road within the limits of the Village and are necessitated for the purpose of constructing a legal improvement or legal improvements on the excavated/graded premises, unless the Board of Trustees shall have waived this requirement.
B. 
In the event that the Building Department shall in any instance determine that the proposed excavation/grading work or any part thereof is not necessitated for the purpose of constructing a legal improvement or legal improvements on the excavated/graded premises, the owner of such excavated/graded premises may apply to the Board of Trustees for a waiver of this requirement. The Board of Trustees shall have the right to waive said requirement upon such terms and conditions as may be deemed appropriate, including the right to increase the amount of the performance bond required pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
C. 
Upon the issuance of an excavation/grading permit, the excavation/grading work permitted thereby shall be undertaken, performed and completed in accordance with all the provisions of this chapter. The permit shall be nontransferable and shall expire six months from the date of its issuance unless the Building Department shall extend same for such period or periods of time and upon such terms and conditions as it shall deem reasonable.
If an application for an excavation/grading permit shall be finally rejected or denied, the Building Department, upon the request of the applicant, shall refund the portion of the fee paid by him in excess of $10.
The excavation/grading on the excavated/graded premises shall be performed in strict accordance with the topographical map filed by the owner of the excavated/graded premises and in the following manner:
A. 
No materials shall be added, excavated/graded or removed except from those areas and portions of the excavated/graded premises as are expressly indicated for excavation/grading, addition to or removal on said topographical map.
B. 
No materials shall be excavated/graded, moved, added to or removed from any area or portion of the excavated/graded premises at any depth below the proposed grade shown for such area or portion on said topographical map.
C. 
The grades and slopes of the excavated/graded premises shall be finished in accordance with all details shown on said topographical map.
D. 
Retaining wall installation in accordance with all wall details shown on said excavation/grading plans as designed by a licensed engineer and approved by the Building Inspector.
In any case where excavation/grading work will be, is being or has been performed on excavated/graded premises, whether or not an excavation/grading permit has been or is required to be issued therefor, the Building Department shall have the right and authority to impose the following additional requirements on the owner of the excavated/graded premises:
A. 
The furnishing of such data, information, maps and plans as shall be necessary to determine whether the excavation/grading work will be, is being or has been performed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
The submission of sworn periodical reports setting forth the amount of materials that have been excavated/graded, added, moved or removed from the excavated/graded premises and the placing of such stakes and markings on the excavated/graded premises as shall be required by the Building Department for the purpose of inspection.
C. 
The employment of such inspector as may be designated by the Building Department, without any cost or expense to the Village, to supervise and inspect any excavation/grading work thereon for the purposes of determining whether such work is being performed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
No topsoil shall be removed from any excavated/graded premises except within the construction lines of a legal improvement, the construction of which necessitates the removal of such topsoil, without the express consent of the Board of Trustees. Before any earth, sand, gravel, humus, rock or other mineral deposit is excavated/graded, added, moved or removed from any part of the excavated/graded premises lying outside the construction lines of a legal improvement, the topsoil thereon shall be separated, stripped and neatly piled on the excavated/graded premises so that such topsoil may be restored to such part of the excavated/graded areas upon completion of the grading thereof unless the aforesaid consent to do otherwise is granted by the Board of Trustees.
No excavation/grading or filling shall be made closer than 25 feet to any abutting property line of the excavated/graded premises with an angle of slope exceeding 35° unless a suitable masonry retaining wall or other suitable wall or terrace designed by an engineer duly licensed in the State of New York and approved by the Building Department is constructed to protect such abutting property. If such wall or terrace is over four feet in height, a suitable iron or pipe guardrail, as approved by the Building Department, shall be installed on top of said wall or terrace.
Where the depth of an excavation/grading or fill area is more than four feet in height, the banks shall be broken down at the end of each working day so that the slope shall not exceed 45°. The Building Department shall have the right and authority to require adequate safeguards where an excavation/grading is liable to damage any existing building or wall and to require a suitable barricade around any open excavation/grading when necessary. All excavated/graded areas shall be protected during construction with adequate erosion controls, as outlined in the Westchester County Best Management Practices, as approved by the Building Inspector.
Any mud, dust or debris carried onto any public street, highway or road as a result of any excavation/grading work shall be scraped and swept broom-clean at the end of each working day.
The owner of the excavated/graded premises shall repair any damage caused by drainage from the premises and shall correct any such drainage problems in the manner prescribed by the Building Department.
A. 
Any excavation/grading made for the purpose of constructing an improvement on the excavated/graded premises which shall remain open for more than 90 days from the date of the beginning of such excavation/grading shall be deemed abandoned unless the foundation of a building constituting a legal improvement or the construction of a legal improvement other than a building shall have been commenced. The owner of any excavated/graded premises which shall be deemed abandoned shall, within a period of 30 days from receipt of written notice from the Building Department, replace any materials which have been excavated/graded or removed from the excavated/graded premises and grade said premises to their original grades and seed same in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
No building foundation constructed or in the process of construction shall remain open for more than six months from the date of the beginning of the excavation/grading therefor unless that portion of the building above the foundation shall be in progress of construction.
C. 
All improvements constructed shall be completed within one year from the date of the issuance of the building permit issued therefor or the date of the issuance of the excavation/grading permit relating to such improvement, whichever date is the earlier.
D. 
In the case of undue hardship, the Building Department shall have the right to vary the provisions of this section.
After the grading of the excavated/graded premises has been completed, topsoil shall be replaced and spread evenly over the graded portion of the excavated/graded premises lying outside the construction lines of a legal improvement. In addition, a seed mixture containing 40 pounds of perennial rye grass, 25 pounds of domestic rye grass, 25 pounds of chewing fescue and 10 pounds of mixed clover per 100 pounds, or similar coverage, shall be sown on said portion of the excavated/graded premises at the rate of 100 pounds per acre, and the seed shall be brushed in lightly and rolled firm. All boulders and loose rock shall be buried or removed from the disturbed areas, and all tree stumps, brush and other debris shall be removed from the disturbed areas. If the excavation/grading work shall have been performed for the preparation and construction of a parking area, such parking area shall be covered with at least two inches of blacktop on a suitable base or with such other paving as may be approved by the Building Inspector and shall be properly rolled.
Upon the completion of any excavation/grading work permitted under this chapter, the owner of the excavated/graded premises may apply to the Building Department for the cancellation of any performance bond filed with it, forwarding with such application a topographical map prepared by an engineer duly licensed in the State of New York, showing all the conditions existing on the excavated/graded premises after the completion of the excavation work. Such topographical map shall be drawn to the same datum plane as the topographical map filed with the application for the excavation/grading permit. The Building Department shall thereupon inspect the excavated/graded premises and complete a report thereon, certifying as to whether all the provisions of this chapter have been fully complied with. The Building Department shall then forward to the Board of Trustees such report, whereupon the Board of Trustees may, if satisfied with the performance and completion of the excavation/grading work, cancel the performance bond filed.