Borough of Palmyra, NJ Article V Street Excavations

[Adopted 3-21-1956; amended in its entirety 11-10-1980 by Ord. No. 1980-17 (Ch. 74 of the 1971 Code)]

§ 237-22 Permit required.

It shall be unlawful at any time for any person, firm or corporation to cut, break, excavate or open any of the streets, avenues or highways of the Borough of Palmyra, or any portion thereof, for the purpose of installing, replacing, maintaining and repairing underground facilities without first making a written application to the Borough Clerk and receiving a permit for said work.

§ 237-23 Application for permit; commencement of operations.

A. The application for a permit to make an opening or excavation in any road or street shall be in writing, dated and signed by the applicant, and shall state the road or street proposed to be opened or excavated and the object and purposes thereof and shall also indicate the exact location, by length, width and depth, of said intended excavation.

B. In cases where the proposed opening involves construction of a longitudinal pipe main serving more than one property, the Borough may also require the applicant to submit plans showing the information required above and also the relationship of the proposed installation to the existing pavement, other utilities, the street right-of-way lines and any other physical features which might be affected by the proposed construction.

C. In all cases the applicant shall also submit evidence of compliance with N.J.S.A. 2C:17-4 et seq.,[1] providing for notice to gas companies of such excavations.

[1] Editor's Note: N.J.S.A. 2C:17-4 was repealed by L. 1994, c. 118. See now N.J.S.A. 48:2-73 et seq.

D. The permit granted in pursuance of said application shall be in such form as the Borough Council of the Borough of Palmyra shall decide and shall be signed by the Borough Clerk.

E. The work on any opening to be made under any such permit shall be commenced within 10 days from the date of such permit and the work prosecuted with due diligence to its completion. If for any reason work is not commenced within said period of 10 days, the applicant shall present the permit to the Borough Clerk, who shall thereupon either return the deposit or extend the time for the beginning of said work for another period of 10 days by endorsement on the permit, and no permit so extended shall be valid unless the work thereunder is commenced within 10 days from the date of such endorsement.

F. Notices.

[Added 7-9-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-23]

(1) Whenever the governing body enacts any ordinance or resolution providing for the paving or repaving of any street, the Borough Clerk shall promptly mail a written notice thereof to each person owning sewers, mains, conduits or other utilities in or under such street or any real property, whether improved or unimproved, abutting such street. Such notice shall advise such persons that no excavation permit shall be issued for openings, cuts or excavations for a period of five years from the date of completion of such improvements. The Borough shall also promptly mail copies of such notice to the occupants of all houses, buildings and other structure abutting such street for their information and to state agencies and departments or other persons who may desire to perform excavation work in such street.

(2) Within 45 days, every public utility company receiving notice, as prescribed herein, shall perform such excavation work, subject to the provisions of this section, as may be necessary to install or repair sewers, mains, conduits or other utility installations. In the event any owner of real property abutting such street shall fail within 45 days to perform such excavation work as may be required to install or repair utility service lines or service connections to the property lines, any and all rights of such owner, or his/her successors in interest, to make openings, cuts or excavations in such street shall be forfeited for a period of five years from the date of enactment of such ordinance or resolution. During such five-year period, no excavation permit shall be issued to open, cut or excavate in such street, except as provided for in accordance with Paragraph G below.

G. If, in the judgment of the Borough, an emergency, as described below, exists which makes it absolutely essential that the repairs be undertaken, excavation may be permitted. In the event of any emergency in which a sewer or water main, sewer or water lateral, conduit or underground utility of any kind or description in or under any street breaks, bursts or otherwise is in such conditions as to immediately endanger property, life, health or the public safety, the person owning or controlling such utility shall obtain the verbal approval of the Borough before taking emergency measures to cure or remedy the dangerous condition. The person owning or controlling the utility shall apply for an excavation permit, as provided herein, on the first business day on which the Borough Clerk's office is open for business after the occurrence of the emergency. Permanent repairs shall not be made until an excavation permit has been obtained.

[Added 7-9-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-23]

(1) In the event that emergency excavation of any road, street, avenue or highway of the Borough or any portion of the right-of-way is required within the five-year period following paving or repaving of such, special restoration of the roadway may be required, including but not limited to full depth milling and overlay of the road as determined by the Borough Engineer.

(2) An additional fee of $150 for emergency excavation of any road, street, avenue or highway of the Borough or any portion of the right-of-way, will be required to be paid in addition to the standard application fee.

§ 237-24 Deposit required; nonreturnable fee.

Before the issuance of any such permit, the applicant shall deposit with the Borough Clerk the following amounts:

A. A minimum deposit of $50, which shall cover an excavation no larger than 50 square feet in area.

B. An additional amount for all street openings in excess of 50 square feet, to be computed as follows:

(1) Permanent paved streets, including concrete pavement or bituminous concrete pavement on concrete or macadam base: $0.75 per square foot.

(2) Paved streets, including bituminous concrete pavement on gravel base: $0.35 per square foot.

(3) Surface-treated streets, including bituminous surface treatment on gravel or macadam base and also including bituminous mixed-in-place streets: $0.20 per square foot.

(4) Gravel streets with no treatment or pavement: $0.10 per square foot.

C. An additional amount, based on the unit prices in the preceding subsection, if the area actually excavated exceeds that estimated at the time the application was made.

D. In addition to the above deposit, the applicant shall pay a nonreturnable fee in the amount of $10 for the first 20 square feet or part thereof of any opening and $5 for each additional 10 square feet or part thereof, up to 50 square feet. In the case of openings which exceed 50 square feet, he shall pay, in addition, 25% of the amounts determined in accordance with Subsections B and C above.

§ 237-25 Bond in lieu of deposit.

A. When the amount of the deposit, as determined under § 237-24 above, would exceed $1,000, the applicant may, at his option, furnish a guaranty bond for the full amount of such deposit instead of making the required deposit. Said bond shall unconditionally guarantee that the applicant will make the proposed street opening, backfill the same and restore the pavement in accordance with the requirements of the Borough.

B. In the event that the applicant elects to provide a bond, as set forth in Subsection A above, and in the event that the bond guarantees that the applicant will repair any pavement defects resulting from the street opening in the manner and at the times required by the Borough for a period of one year following completion of the street surfacing, the amount of the fee to be paid will be reduced to $25, plus 5% of the amounts determined under § 237-24C above.

§ 237-26 Bond and fee for public utilities.

A. When the applicant is a public utility, as defined by the statutes of the State of New Jersey, the Borough may accept, in lieu of the required deposits and fees previously set forth herein, a guaranty bond to the Borough in the sum of $10,000, plus a permit fee of $10.

B. In the case of exceptional or complicated openings or where the proposed opening involves construction of a longitudinal pipe main serving more than one property or in any case where the area to be opened exceeds 500 square feet, the applicant shall also pay the actual cost of inspection or inspections.

C. Such bond shall guarantee payment of the amount that would have been deposited in the event of failure of the applicant to comply with this article. Such bond shall guarantee that the public utility will make the proposed street opening, backfill the same and restore the pavement in accordance with the requirements of the Borough. Such bond shall also include the one-year guarantee set forth in § 237-25 of this article. The Borough, at its option, may accept a corporate bond. Where the estimated cost of restoration exceeds $10,000, the public utility shall supply an additional bond to cover such excess.

D. Said bond shall not be considered to be filed until it is approved and accepted by resolution of the Borough Council.

E. In the event that, after the proper filing of a bond by a public utility as aforesaid, said public utility shall fail to abide strictly by the provisions of this article, the Borough Council may, by resolution and without prior notice to the public utility, revoke the privileges granted under its bond, return such bond to the public utility and require cash deposits for all future street openings made by said public utility as well as cash deposits for all openings not properly restored as of the date of revocation of said bond.

§ 237-27 Use of deposit by Borough; refunds.

In the event that the applicant should fail to properly excavate, backfill or restore the pavement in accordance with the Borough requirements and within the time set forth on the application, the Borough may use such portion of the deposit as may be necessary to properly complete the work. When the work has been completed in accordance with the requirements and regulations as contained herein and as may from time to time be adopted by the Borough to implement this article, the deposit or such portion of the deposit which may remain will be refunded to the applicant.

§ 237-28 Permit conditions.

A. The permit issued shall designate the number of square feet to be excavated and the location of same and shall further designate the time within which the work contemplated thereunder shall be completed. The work shall be performed within the time specified in the permit.

B. In the case of any opening which restricts vehicular traffic to less than two ten-foot-wide travel lanes, excavation and backfill shall be made within a single eight-hour period, except under special occasions or circumstances where underground conditions or structures warrant a longer period of time. In other cases they shall be made within one week's time, except where underground conditions or structures warrant a longer period of time.

C. Street openings shall be resurfaced within the period of time designated by the Borough at the time the application is approved. Prior to resurfacing, the backfill shall be maintained in order to prevent depressions or bumps in the street surfaces, and suitable material shall be applied thereto to keep down dust.

§ 237-29 Work to be done as expeditiously as possible.

Any person, firm or corporation making any opening or excavation in any road or street in the Borough of Palmyra shall carry out the work as expeditiously as possible and in such a manner as to cause the least public inconvenience and to permit the use of the sidewalk by pedestrians and the roadway by vehicles and the flow of water along the gutters.

§ 237-30 Safety requirements.

All openings, diggings, excavations, piles of material, equipment and barricades, including earth, dirt, stone or other materials removed from the excavation, shall be carefully guarded at all times to prevent accidents, and a sufficient number of lighted lanterns, flares or torches shall be maintained between sunset and sunrise by the contractor or person to whom such permit has been granted to designate such openings or obstruction during the hours of darkness. Where any excavation or trench is to extend across any road or street, only 1/2 of the same shall be made at one time, and it shall be properly backfilled before the other 1/2 is excavated so as not to interfere with traffic.

§ 237-31 Existing features to be protected.

All existing pavements, road surfaces, sidewalks, curbs, gutters, pipes, manholes, drains, conduits or other installations or fixtures and property liable to be injured, damaged or destroyed shall be properly protected by the person, firm or corporation doing any work for which a permit has been granted during the time when such work is being performed.

§ 237-32 Waiver of requirements.

A. In the case of a subdivider, where escrow funds or other suitable guaranty for complete reconstruction of an existing road has been provided and where proper approvals for all proposed work have been obtained, the Borough Council may waive the requirements of this article.

B. In the case of a contractor performing work for the Borough of Palmyra, the Borough Council may waive the requirements of this article.

§ 237-33 (Reserved) [1]

[1] Editor's Note: Former § 237-33, Emergency openings, was repealed 7-9-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-23.

§ 237-34 Violations and penalties.

[Amended 7-9-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-23]

Any person violating any of the provisions of this Chapter 237, Article V, upon conviction by a court of competent jurisdiction, shall be fined in an amount not less than $500 and no more than $1,000 and still be required to comply with the requirements herein. Each day such violation is committed or permitted to continue shall constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable as such hereunder.