It shall be unlawful for any person to violate any provision
or fail to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter. Any
person who has violated or continues to violate the provisions of
this chapter may be subject to the enforcement actions outlined in
this section or may be restrained by injunction or otherwise abated
in a manner provided by law.
A.
The Department of Public Works may, for enforcement purposes, use
any one or a combination of the following actions:
(1)
A notice of violation shall be issued specifying the nature of the
violation(s) and the corrective actions required if stormwater management
plan or ordinance noncompliance is identified;
(2)
A stop-work order shall be issued for the site by the Department
of Public Works for:
(a)
Failure to begin corrective actions identified in a notice of
violation in accordance with the general permit;
(b)
Failure to complete corrective actions identified in a notice
of violation in accordance with the general permit;
(c)
Construction which is not in accordance with the approved stormwater
management plan;
(d)
Any violation(s) of the conditions of the stormwater management
plan approval;
(e)
Failure to adhere to the sequence of construction contained
on the approved stormwater management and/or erosion and sediment
control plan;
(i)
A violation is of an immediate and serious nature, as determined
by the Department of Public Works.
(3)
Bonds or securities may be withheld or the case may be referred for
legal action if reasonable efforts to correct the violation have not
been undertaken.
(4)
At any time that the Department of Public Works or any designated
Code Enforcement Officer of the County determines that an owner, builder
or developer has failed to execute grading, roadway, utility or building
construction in accordance with the approved erosion and sediment
control or stormwater management plans, notice shall be sent advising
said owner, builder or developer of noncompliance with the Code of
Cecil County. The notice shall be presumed received three days after
being mailed to the address provided on the building permit, grading
permit or approved construction plans. Until corrective actions have
been completed to the Department of Public Works' satisfaction,
the Department of Public Works and/or any appropriate Code Official
of the County shall have the power to suspend review of any applications,
permits or plans submitted by said builder or developer, suspend any
of the permits issued to said builder or developer, withdraw or revoke
any permits issued to said owner, builder or developer and/or deny
further permits or plan approvals requested by said owner, builder
or developer.
(5)
In addition to any other sanctions, a civil action or criminal prosecution
may be brought against any person in violation of the Stormwater Management
Subtitle, the Design Manual, or this chapter.
B.
Any step in the enforcement process may be taken at any time, depending
on the severity of the violation.
C.
Any person convicted of violating the provisions of this chapter
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall
be subject to a fine of not more than $5,000 or imprisonment not exceeding
one year, or both, for each violation, with costs imposed in the discretion
of the court. Each day that a violation continues shall be a separate
offense. In addition, the Department of Public Works may institute
injunctive, mandamus or other appropriate action or proceedings of
law to correct violations of this chapter. Any court of competent
jurisdiction shall have the right to issue temporary or permanent
restraining orders, injunctions or mandamus, or other appropriate
forms of relief.
[Amended 11-13-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-12]
D.
For purposes of this section, "builder or developer" shall be defined
to mean the party to whom the building permit or grading permit was
issued (and its heirs, successors and assigns) or to whom approval
was granted for the construction plans and shall also include any
party actually performing the work of construction therein. The builder
or developer shall also include any officer of any corporation, any
partner of any partnership or any related corporation, partnership,
limited-liability company or limited-liability partnership owned in
whole or in part by any aforementioned party.
E.
Any dispute between property owners regarding redirection of runoff
is a civil liability issue between the two parties and must be resolved
between the parties or by a court of competent jurisdiction.
