[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Port
Washington North by Ord. No. XII. Amendments noted where applicable.]
It is hereby declared to be the policy of the Village to provide for
the proper use of land to prevent all manner of excavations which create pits,
holes or hollows in the earth, leaving it in a hazardous or dangerous state,
or cause soil erosion which depletes the land of its natural vegetative cover
and supply of organic material, renders such land unproductive and unsuitable
for agricultural purposes and undesirable for building homes, resulting in
lower land values. By this chapter, the Village Board seeks to remove the
danger to health and life caused by deep excavations remaining in the ground
and the stripping of topsoil, thereby resulting in damage to agricultural
crops through dust storms in dry weather, by exposure of the bare earth to
wind action, and in wet periods by pools of water, which chapter will promote
the safety, health and general welfare of the people of the Village.
No excavation for purposes other than the construction of a wall, driveway, sidewalk, building or part thereof, or as permitted by § 151-9 of this chapter, shall be commenced except in conformity with the provisions of this chapter.
Before any excavation is commenced for any purpose other than those excepted in § 151-2 of this chapter, and topsoil, earth, sand, gravel, rock or other substance is removed from the ground, the owner, lessee or agent of the premises shall obtain a written permit therefor from the Village Board. For that purpose, such applicant shall file with the Superintendent of Buildings of the Village of Port Washington North a verified application in duplicate for such permit, containing a detailed statement of the proposed work, together with a plan prepared by a duly licensed engineer or land surveyor of the State of New York, setting forth in detail the following information:
A.
All information as required on the application form prepared
by the Building Department, including a detailed statement of the proposed
work and three-dimensional extent of the proposed excavation and exact condition
of the plot or premises before the work is commenced and proposed condition
of the said plot or premises after the work is completed;
B.
The plan shall be drawn to scale and give all streets
adjoining the property, the location and dimensions of the premises upon which
it is proposed to excavate, location, size and use of any existing buildings,
cross-sections of the property, giving elevations thereof at intervals of
fifty-foot squares and also at each break in the grades, and the elevation
of the premises as compared to the elevation of any abutting highways;
C.
A duly acknowledged consent, in writing, of the owner
of the premises and mortgagee, if any, including his or their addresses;
D.
Receipted tax bills or a certificate from the Receiver
of Taxes of the Village of Port Washington North, from the Receiver of Taxes
of the Town of North Hempstead and from the County Treasurer of Nassau County,
showing payment of all taxes or assessments to date against the property described
in the application;
E.
A certificate of the Commissioner of Public Works of
the County of Nassau that such proposed excavation and the finished grades
of said property as shown on this map will not interfere with the Comprehensive
Drainage Plan of the County of Nassau and will not endanger any road, street
or highway of the County of Nassau or of the Town of North Hempstead or Village
of Port Washington North or other property of the said county or town or Village;
F.
A certificate from the Commissioner of Agriculture and
Markets of the State of New York, or his duly appointed agent or representative,
stating any topsoil to be taken in the area described in the application is
apparently free of Golden Nematode of Potato.
No such excavation shall be made:
A.
Within 20 feet of any property line or below the established
grade and street level; except that, in the case of bank excavations, same
may begin at the property line.
B.
Unless adequate barricades shall be erected and maintained
together with adequate provisions of flying dust acceptable to the Building
Superintendent.
C.
Unless excavations shall be immediately refilled with
clean, nonburnable fill containing no garbage, refuse, offal, or any deleterious
or unwholesome matter, and the premises, after completion of the work, shall
be graded to the level of the nearest abutting street or road.
No stripping or removal of topsoil shall be made within 10 feet of any
property line, and upon completion of this work, the premises, if below grade,
shall be graded to the level of the abutting highway or the original grade,
if the same were below the level of the highway. Dust-down or its equal, shall
be spread to prevent dust from flying, and there shall be left upon the surface
of the land from which topsoil is removed not less than six inches of topsoil.
No topsoil shall be removed between the first day of October and the first
day of April in the following year. All areas from which topsoil is removed
shall, during the period between August 20 and October 1, inclusive, be prepared
into a loose, level seedbed, limed, fertilized and seeded in the following
steps:
A.
Apply ground limestone at the rate of one ton per acre.
B.
Apply 5-10-5 fertilizer at the rate of 600 pounds per
acre.
C.
Disc area to work limestone and fertilizer into the soil
to a depth of at least thee inches.
D.
Smooth area with a smoothing harrow.
E.
Sow the following seed mixture at the rate of 100 pounds
per acre:
|
Seed
|
Amount in Pounds
| |
|---|---|---|
|
Timothy
|
30
| |
|
Kentucky Bluegrass
|
25
| |
|
Redtop
|
10
| |
|
Perennial Rye Grass
|
30
| |
|
Alsike Clover
|
4
| |
|
Wild White Clover
|
1
| |
|
Total mix
|
100
|
F.
Brush in seed lightly.
G.
Roll firm with ground roller.
A.
Bond or cash deposit.
(1)
Before the issuance of a permit, the applicant and the
owner of record of the premises shall execute and file with the Village Clerk
a bond, approved by the Village Board of the Village of Port Washington North
in an amount to be fixed by said Board, but not less than $2,000, with a surety
company as surety and conditioned for the faithful performance of the conditions
contained in this chapter, the observance of all municipal ordinances, and
to indemnify the Village of Port Washington North for any damage to Village
property. In the event of a default, such bond shall be forfeited to the Village
of Port Washington North.
(2)
Said bond shall remain in full force and effect until a certificate of completion has been issued by the Building Superintendent, certifying to the fact that all provisions of this chapter and conditions of the permit have been fully complied with. Application for such certificate shall be made by the applicant, owner, lessee, or his agent on forms provided by the Village of Port Washington North and shall be accompanied by a map drawn to scale showing a cross-section of the affected property, giving elevations thereof as provided in § 151-3B of this chapter, prepared by a duly licensed engineer or land surveyor of the State of New York after the completion of the operations, who shall also certify that there is not less than six inches of topsoil remaining upon the ground from which topsoil has been removed and that such area has been seeded in compliance with § 151-5 hereof.
(3)
In lieu of such a bond, a cash deposit or deposit of
negotiable securities may be made with the Treasurer of the Village.
A.
Sandbank and pit excavations. Such permits shall expire
by limitation one year from the date of issuance unless extended by the Village
Board.
B.
Topsoil removal. Such permits shall expire by limitation
60 days from the date of issuance unless extended by the Village Board, and
no permit or permits shall be granted:
(1)
For removal of more than four acres of topsoil from any one tract of land until full compliance with the chapter is had under any existing permit for the same tract, except the preparation of the ground and seedings as provided in § 151-5 thereof; and
(2)
No permit shall be valid except between April 1 and October
1 of any year.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall require a person to obtain a
permit for or prevent a person from removing topsoil from one part of his
lands to another part of the same premises when such removal is necessary
as an accessory use or is made for the purpose of farming or improving said
property.
For any and every violation of the provisions of this chapter, the owner,
general agent, or contractor of a building or premises where such violations
have been committed or shall exist, and the lessee or tenant of the premises
where such violation has been committed or shall exist, and the owner, general
agent, contractor, lessee or tenant of any part of the premises in which part
of said violation has been committed or shall exist, and the general agent,
architect, engineer, surveyor, building contractor or any other person who
knows, permits, takes part or assists in any such violation or who maintains
any premises in which any such violation shall exist, shall be punishable
by a fine of not more than $250 and/or 15 days' imprisonment. Each day that
a violation occurs shall be deemed a separate and distinct offense. Such fines
or penalties shall be collected as like fines are now by law collected. Such
a violation shall also constitute disorderly conduct, and the person violating
same shall be a disorderly person.
