No person or corporation shall open or cause
to be opened by cutting or digging the surface or soil in any street,
highway or public ground for any purpose whatever without first securing
the written permit from the Village Clerk on forms to which has been
affixed the approval and consent of the Superintendent of Public Works,
and paying the following prescribed fees therefor, or without complying
with the following provisions relating thereto.
[Amended 5-2-1994 by L.L. No. 1-1994]
The fees for the street openings not exceeding
10 square feet in area are fixed as follows: $100 to cover the cost
of issuing permit, records, inspection and supervision, plus a deposit
of not less than $300 to guarantee proper restoration. Larger street
opening fees and deposits shall be determined by the Superintendent
of Public Works or the Plumbing Inspector.
All openings shall be carefully backfilled,
tamped and puddled by the owner, after which the surface of the street
will be restored. The deposit will be retained until the frost has
left the ground the following spring, which will usually be understood
to be by May 1. Any repairs or other restoration which may be necessary
will be promptly made by the Village of Depew and paid for out of
the balance of the deposit then one hand, and any balance then remaining
shall be returned to the person in whose name the permit was originally
issued.
Public utility corporations and other governmental
agencies shall obtain a separate permit from the Village Clerk for
each opening, paying therefor a fee of $50 to cover the costs of issuing
permit, recording, inspection and supervision; but they may, in lieu
of making the deposits hereinbefore specified, file with the Village
Clerk a bond, to be approved as to form, amount and sufficiency of
sureties by the Village Attorney, conditional upon the proper restoration
of highways in accordance with the directions of the Superintendent
of Public Works, and to his or her satisfaction; the payment to the
Village, upon demand, of any costs and expenses made by it in restoring
the surface of any highway or public place opened by such corporation;
and the saving of the Village of Depew, its officers and servants,
harmless from any loss, injury or damage, due to opening highways
or public places, or to any negligence or fault of such corporation,
its servants or agents in connection therewith. In cases of emergency,
due to breakage of pipes, etc., openings may be made before obtaining
the permit, but a permit must be obtained as soon as practicable,
and in every case in less than 24 hours from the time of making the
opening or as soon as practicable if the Village Office is closed.
All trenches or openings made by a public service
corporation or other governmental agency shall be backfilled by it,
by tamping or puddling, or both, and the surface of the street shall
be restored first, as soon as convenient after the opening has been
filled, and again, if necessary, after any settlement, after the succeeding
winter, but not longer than one year after the first surfacings shall
be borne by the corporation making the openings and shall be paid
within 30 days of the rendering of a bill by the Village, if any work
by the Village shall be necessary.
At the time that a request is made to the Village
Clerk for a permit, the applicant therefor shall furnish an insurance
policy with the Village of Depew as the named insured to save the
Village harmless from any public liability for any acts of the applicant.
The limits of such policy shall be in such amount as the Village Board
shall fix, by resolution, but in no event less than $10,000.
All culverts hereafter constructed along or
near to the line of the gutter of any public highway, under and across
any private entrance to any highway or public place, shall consist
of stone, concrete or other masonry with an interior cross section
of not less than 144 square inches and at least an interior dimension
of six inches, likewise to be laid on the line of the highway gutter.
No vitrified pipe or clay pipe, wooden box or wooden cover shall be
used for such purpose.
No existing culvert under private entrance shall
be substantially altered or repaired except to reconstruct the same,
and in any such existing culvert shall become broken or damaged, or
fail to carry off properly the water flowing thereto, the owner or
occupant of the premises for which such private entrance is provided
shall, upon demand of the Superintendent of Public Works, forthwith
reconstruct the same in accordance with the provisions of said section.
No such culvert shall be constructed nor shall
any culvert basin, or other structure interfering or tending to interfere
with the free and open operation of any highway gutter, be constructed
without the written consent of the Superintendent of Public Works,
and all such work shall be performed and completed under the directions
of and to the satisfaction of said Superintendent of Public Works.