[Amended 3-14-1955; 10-28-1957; 8-24-1964; 8-10-1987 by L.L. No. 4-1987; 6-13-1988 by L.L. No. 12-1988; 6-14-2010 by L.L. No. 5-2010]
No municipal corporation (other than the Village of East Rockaway), public utility corporation, corporation, person or association of persons shall excavate or open the surface of any public street, road, highway or right-of way which is open to public motor vehicular traffic, or any street, road, highway or right-of-way or part thereof in and over which the Village shall have jurisdiction or shall in any way alter any curbing, gutters, gutter basins, drainage lines or other works within such a street, road, highway or right-of-way for any purpose without a street opening permit from the Village Clerk.
No street opening permit shall be issued by the Village Clerk except to a municipal corporation, a public utility corporation, a homeowner's association or an owner of property assessed upon the Village assessment roll on an application signed by said owner or on behalf of said owner by his or her duly authorized agent. (Authorization of an agent shall be signed by the owner and acknowledged before a notary public and shall accompany the application.)
Persons, corporations or entities other than those mentioned in § 250-19 may be issued street opening permits only when authorized by the Board of Trustees on such terms as shall be required by said Board.
A. 
No street opening permit shall be issued unless and until the applicant has paid to the Village Clerk the required fee, which shall be established from time to time by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
B. 
No street opening permit shall be issued unless and until the applicant has deposited with the Village Clerk a sum, in cash, established from time to time by resolution of the Board of Trustees, to be applied by the Village to the cost of restoration of the street, road, highway or right-of-way to the condition before the opening in the event that the applicant shall fail or omit to make or complete such restoration.
C. 
In lieu of the cash deposit required by Subsection B hereof, an applicant may deliver to the Village Clerk an indemnity bond of a responsible surety company or, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, its personal corporate bond, in a sum equal to the required cash deposit, guaranteeing the restoration of the street, road, highway or right-of-way to its condition before the opening was made and the maintenance thereof for one year and indemnifying the Village against the nonperformance thereof. A public utility company may deliver to the Village Clerk a cash deposit, indemnity bond or, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, other form of security, in an amount established from time to time by resolution of the Board of Trustees, which security shall apply to all locations in the Village of East Rockaway for which a street opening permit may be sought.
D. 
No street opening permit shall be issued unless and until the applicant has procured and filed with the Village Clerk proof of a policy of insurance, insuring the Village against public liability and property damage with limits of $500,000/$1,000,000 for personal injuries and $50,000/$100,000 for property damages. A municipal corporation or public utility company may, in lieu of an insurance policy, file with the Village its bond to hold the Village harmless from all damages to persons or property, including the defense of any action, which may result from any work requiring a street opening permit. Each insurance policy shall name the Village of East Rockaway as an additional insured.
E. 
No street opening permit shall be issued unless and until the applicant has executed an agreement to indemnify and hold harmless the Village of East Rockaway in the amount of any judgment or settlement obtained against the Village of East Rockaway as a result of any and all claims for personal injuries or bodily harm or property damage arising out of or by reason of negligence on the part of the applicant, its employees, agents and contractors, in connection with any work requiring a street opening permit.
Openings located on one side of the center line of a street, road, highway or right-of-way shall have a minimum width extending from the curbline to the center line of the street, road, highway or right-of-way. Any opening that is bisected by the center line of a street, road, highway or right-of-way shall have a minimum width from one curbline to the opposite curbline of the street, road, highway or right-of-way. All openings shall measure at least at least six feet in length. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Village Engineer may direct that an opening be of some other minimum size or configuration.
A. 
The applicant shall restore the pavement of any street, road, highway or right-of-way to its condition before the opening within 30 days after the excavation is backfilled or as ordered by the Village Engineer and, upon default thereof, the Board of Trustees may have the restoration work completed by the Village and the cost thereof charged against the applicant's cash deposit, indemnity bond or other form of security. Such default shall be effective on three days' notice given by certified mail to the applicant addressed to the address given on the application for the permit and, where appropriate, to the surety company.
B. 
Prior to commencing any pavement restoration work, the applicant shall submit a restoration plan for the proposed work, and said restoration plan must be approved by the Village Engineer. The extent of the plan shall be determined at the time of the initial inspection and mark-out of the street opening. If necessary, the plan shall provide maintenance protection of traffic, existing grades, proposed grades, proposed pavement section and restoration limits.
C. 
It shall be the applicant's responsibility to contact the Village Engineer to set up an initial inspection and mark-out prior to the start of any pavement restoration work.
D. 
In the event that an applicant commences or completes pavement restoration work without an approved pavement restoration plan or without the necessary inspections, the applicant will be required to remove the finished pavement regardless of its cosmetic appearance. If the applicant fails to remove the finished pavement, the applicant will be deemed in default of its obligation to restore the pavement, said work shall be conducted by the Village, and the cost thereof shall be charged against the applicant's cash deposit, indemnity bond or other form of security.
In the case of a deposit, after restoration of the street, road, highway or right-of-way is made, if the cost to the Village has not amounted to the sum deposited to cover the cost, the Board of Trustees may, by resolution, authorize the Village Treasurer to refund to the applicant the balance. However, if the cost shall exceed the sum on deposit, the applicant shall, on demand by the Village, pay such excess amount. Upon the failure of an applicant or owner of property in the Village to pay, said excess amount shall be assessed against such applicant or owner of the property as provided by law.
The applicant making the opening shall backfill or cause to be backfilled the opening and shall place thereon temporary pavement, which shall be cared for by the applicant until such time as proper settlement has taken place to allow the laying of a permanent pavement. The Village shall be notified at all stages of the work for the purpose of inspection. All restoration work shall meet or exceed the Technical Specifications for Road Pavement Restoration maintained in the office of the Village Engineer.
All openings, when unguarded, shall be barricaded, as shall be required for public safety, and shall be lit between sunset and sunrise.
The work to be done under any street opening permit shall be commenced, continued and completed expeditiously and with due diligence.
A. 
All work for which a street opening permit has been issued shall be completed prior to the expiration date of said permit.
B. 
A street opening permit shall be valid for 30 days, except as hereafter provided.
C. 
A street opening permit shall expire unless work pursuant thereto has been commenced within 10 days of the date of issuance.
D. 
A street opening permit shall be deemed in effect during the time required for the settling of backfill and restoration of permanent pavement, but in no event shall the permit continue in effect later than three months after the date of issuance unless the Board of Trustees shall further extend the time for good cause.
The Board of Trustees shall have the power to revoke a street opening permit issued hereunder whenever it shall find that the applicant has refused, failed or omitted to comply with any provisions of this article.
Any person violating any provision or requirement of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $500 or by imprisonment for a period not exceeding 30 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. A continuation of an offense against the provisions of this article shall constitute, for each day the offense is continued, a separate and distinct offense hereunder.