[Adopted 7-21-1964 by Ord. No. 448]
[Amended 12-6-1988 by Ord. No. 0.8.88]
No person, firm or corporation shall disturb, dig into, excavate or make an opening of any kind in the surface, bed and right-of-way of any street, road, avenue or other right-of-way dedicated to the public, which has been accepted by or jurisdiction over which has been exercised in any manner by the Borough of Paulsboro, heretofore or hereafter, without first having obtained a permit therefor in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance from the Construction Official or other properly designated municipal official. The only persons who can make such openings or excavations without obtaining a permit are employees of the Borough of Paulsboro or of any of its utilities, in the performance of their Borough duties and work under the supervision of Borough officers.
[Amended 12-6-1988 by Ord. No. 0.8.88]
The only time an opening for an excavation may be made in, upon or under the surface of any street, without first having obtained a permit, is in the event of any sudden and emergent break of any water, sewer, gas, oil or other underground lines which endanger the life, health and safety of the public or people of Paulsboro or their property. The making of any such opening or excavation shall be reported immediately within 24 hours to the Police Department and the Construction Official, and a permit therefor shall be obtained within 48 hours.
[Amended 12-6-1988 by Ord. No. 0.8.88]
Each application for a permit to open or excavate in or under the surface of any street shall be in writing, numbered consecutively by calendar year and kept on file in the office of the Construction Official. In each application shall be set forth the name and address of the applicant, the name and address of the property owner or other person for whose benefit the opening or excavation is being made, the street and exact location of the opening or excavation, the size, length, breadth and depth of the opening or excavation and its purpose, the type of street surface, the time and date when it is to be made, the date that the opening or excavation and street surface will be restored and such other details as may be necessary. Each application shall be in duplicate, and a copy of the permit, if granted, shall be attached thereto. The application shall also contain space and provision to note thereon that there has been a completion and an inspection of the restoration of the opening or excavation and of the street surface, which shall be in a satisfactory manner, and the date of the same and signature of the Borough official making the inspection.
When any street has been covered with a hard surface, two inches or more in thickness, much as concrete or F.A.B.C., No. 1, within five years from the date on which a permit to open it is requested, no permits to open the surface of the same shall be granted except upon a majority vote of the Borough Council after presentation and consideration of the application therefor, the Council being satisfied that one or more of the following reasons exists making it necessary to grant the permit:
A. 
An emergency situation, such as set forth in § 69-2 above, exists.
B. 
The necessity and purpose for opening the surface of the street could not have been and was not discovered by the applicant for the permit prior to the time the hard surface was installed, and the applicant is bound by the actions of any predecessor in title to his lands in this respect.
C. 
The best interests of the Borough require that the permit be granted.
A permit, as set forth in this ordinance above, shall be required for any tunneling or mechanical boring under the surface of any street for any purpose whatsoever. Any such tunneling or boring shall be done only after the Borough Engineer has recommended that it be permitted and shall be done under the supervision of said Engineer, whose services shall be paid for by the applicant.
A. 
All pavements, sidewalks, curbs, gutters, pipes, manholes, drains, conduits or other installations and private property of adjoining owners shall be properly protected by the person or firm obtaining the permit for the street opening. Any damage thereto shall be the responsibility of and paid for by the person or firm to whom the permit is issued. A surety bond may be required for this purpose by the Borough Council.
B. 
All openings shall be protected at all times to prevent injury to persons and property. The holder of the permit may be ordered to furnish additional protection for this purpose at any time by an official or proper supervisory employee of the Borough.
C. 
Where the excavation will extend across the full width of a street, 1/2 of the same shall be made at one time and shall be properly backfilled before the other 1/2 is excavated so as not to interfere with traffic.
All surfaces and subsurfaces of street openings shall, at the cost and expense of the person or firm obtaining the permit, be replaced in such a manner as is acceptable practice and procedure of the Borough or may be recommended by the Borough Engineer. The materials used to refill the subsurface shall be tamped and of the proper type and grade for that location. The surface shall be replaced with an application of new materials, in a workmanlike manner, of the same type and grade as existed there at the time of excavation. All debris shall be removed from the area and the surface, and any surrounding area used or disturbed shall be restored at least to its original or a better condition. Replacement of the surface shall be done by persons or firms who are engaged in such type of work and are, in the opinion of the Borough Engineer, competent to do the same.
A bond with sufficient surety shall be posted in double the amount of the estimated cost of replacing the subsurface and surface of any proposed street opening by the applicant for the permit. Money may be posted in lieu of a bond for the estimated amount of such cost. If the opening is one more than 10 square feet in size or the replacement of the subsurface and surface thereof will or does amount to more than $100, the Borough Council may, in its discretion, order that a maintenance bond for one year be posted by the holder of the permit. Special arrangements which will properly protect the interests of the Borough may be made with public utilities franchised and operating in the Borough with regards to posting of bonds for street openings.
All street openings shall be opened, closed and replaced as expeditiously as possible under the circumstances and purpose of the opening. If the same are not replaced expeditiously as aforesaid and good cause for the delay is not shown, the Borough may, after notice and hearing thereon, proceed to close and replace the street opening and charge the cost thereof to the holder of the permit.
A. 
The fees to be charged for permits for street openings and Borough rights-of-way shall be as follows:
[Amended 12-6-1988 by Ord. No. 0.8.88]
(1) 
For 80 square feet or less in size: $50.
(2) 
For each additional one square foot in size: $0.50 per square foot.
(3) 
For tunneling and boring up to a distance of 50 feet: $50. The fee for an additional 50 feet shall be $25.
B. 
These fees are intended to cover the cost of supervision of the street opening and issuing the permit.
Any person or persons violating any of the provisions of this ordinance shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding $200 or by imprisonment not exceeding 90 days, or both.
If any part or parts of this ordinance are for any reason held invalid, such decision shall not affect the other parts of the same.