[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
Except as provided in this article and in emergencies, it shall
be unlawful for any person to make any tunnel, opening or excavation
of any kind in or under the surface of any street without first securing
a permit from the City for each separate undertaking; provided, however,
any person maintaining pipes, lines or other underground facilities
in or under the surface of any street may proceed with an opening
without a permit when emergency circumstances demand the work to be
done immediately, provided the permit could not reasonably and practicably
have been obtained beforehand. Such person shall thereafter apply
for a permit on the first regular business day on which the office
of the City Engineer is open for business. Such permit shall be retroactive
to the date when the work was begun if the City Engineer decrees an
emergency to have existed on the date the work was initiated. Any
person violating any provision of this section shall, upon conviction,
be penalized by a fine of $300 for each violation.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
It shall be the duty and responsibility of any applicant for
a permit under this division to:
A.
Make a written application for the permit required by this division
with the City Engineer on such form as the City Engineer shall prescribe.
No work shall commence until the City Engineer has approved the application
and plan and issued a permit and until the permittee has paid and
provided all fees, deposits, certificates and bonds required by this
division.
B.
Furnish in duplicate a written description or plan showing the work
to be performed under such permit. If approved by the City Engineer,
one copy of such plan shall be returned to the applicant at the time
the permit is granted, with the City Engineer's approval thereon.
C.
Agree to save the City and its officers, employees and agents harmless
from any and all costs, damages and liabilities which may accrue or
be claimed to accrue by reason of any work performed under the permit.
The acceptance of any permit under this division shall constitute
such an agreement by the applicant, whether such agreement is expressed
or not.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
No person to whom a permit has been granted under the provisions
of this division shall perform any of the work authorized by such
permit in any amount or quantity greater than that specified in the
permit; except that, in emergencies or upon approval by the City Engineer,
additional work may be done under the provisions of the permit in
any amount not greater than 10% of the amount specified in the permit.
Any deposit and bond posted in connection with the original permit
shall be deemed to cover any such additional work as may be approved
pursuant to this section within the limit mentioned in this section.
Work for which a permit has been issued under the provisions
of this division shall commence within 10 days after the issuance
of the permit therefor. If not so commenced, the permit shall be automatically
terminated. Permits so terminated may be renewed upon the payment
of an additional permit fee as originally required.
Permits required by the provisions of this division shall not
be transferable from one person to another, and the work authorized
thereby shall not be made in any place other than the location specifically
designated in the permit.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
Every permit issued under the provisions of this division shall
expire at the end of the period of time which shall be set out in
the permit. If the permittee shall be unable to complete the work
within the specified time, he shall, prior to expiration of the permit,
present in writing to the City Engineer a request for an extension
of time, setting forth therein the reasons for the requested extension.
If in the opinion of the City Engineer such an extension is necessary
and not contrary to the public interest, the permittee may be granted
additional time for the completion of the work.
In no case shall any opening in or under the surface of any
street made by a permittee be considered in the charge or care of
the City or any of its officers or employees, and no officer or employee
is authorized in any way to take or assume any jurisdiction over any
such opening, except in the exercise of the police power, when it
is necessary to protect life and property.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
It shall be the duty and responsibility of any person to whom
a permit required by this division has been issued to:
A.
Pay a permit fee as provided in § 66-320; provided, however, that public utilities or authorities may elect to be billed monthly for such fees as they accrue, except that a public utility shall not be required to pay such fee when the City opens any street and requests the utility company to check, repair or improve its service. In no case shall any permit fee be refunded.
C.
Submit, when required by the City Engineer, a list of owners and
tenants of all properties abutting the area where the work authorized
by the permit is to be performed.
D.
Present evidence that all materials, labor and equipment which are
needed to complete such work as authorized by the permit are available.
E.
Keep the original copy of the permit and an approved copy of the
plan at all times while such work is in progress at the location for
which the permit was granted and show such permit or plan upon demand
to the City highway authorities or any police officer or keep such
copy at the main office open to public inspection.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
A.
Any permit issued under this division may be revoked by the City
Engineer, after notice to the permittee, for:
(1)
Violation of any condition of the permit or of any provision of this
article;
(2)
Violation of any provision of any other applicable ordinances or
law relating to the work;
(3)
Existence of any condition or the doing of any act constituting or
creating a nuisance or endangering the lives or properties of others.
A permittee may be granted a period of three days, or such additional
time as is reasonably required in the opinion of the City Engineer,
from the date of the notice to correct the violation and to proceed
with the diligent prosecution of the work authorized by the permit
before such permit is revoked.
B.
Written notice of any such violation or condition shall be served
upon the permittee or his agent engaged in the work. The notice shall
contain a brief statement of the grounds relied upon for revoking
the permit. Notice may be given either by personal delivery thereof
to the person to be notified or by certified or registered United
States mail addressed to the person to be notified.
C.
When any permit has been revoked for adequate cause and the work
authorized by the permit has not been completed, the City Engineer
shall do such work as may be necessary to restore the street or part
thereof to as good a condition as before the opening was made. All
expenses incurred by the City shall be recovered from the deposit
or bond the permittee has made or filed with the City.
[Amended 9-27-1994 by Ord. No. 1994-20; 6-20-2000 by Ord. No.
2000-12]
All permits for street openings, including those for utility pole installations or relocations, shall be accompanied by an administrative fee as provided in Chapter A110, Fee Schedule, of the City Code, which shall cover the City's costs to process and file the permit. All permits for street openings, excluding those regulated by the Department of Public Utilities, shall be accompanied by a fee as provided in Chapter A110, Fee Schedule, of the City Code, which shall cover the City's costs to inspect all facets of the excavation and repair of the opening. Such payment shall be nonrefundable.
The fee required by this division may be either in the form
of a certified, treasurer's or cashier's check or in lawful money
of the United States.
[Amended 7-15-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-40]
No public utility or authority shall be required to pay the
fee required by this division at the time of making application, but
may be billed periodically for the fees by the Department of Community
Maintenance.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
The City Engineer is authorized to establish a schedule of charges
for labor, materials and such other expenses as may be incurred by
the City as a result of insufficient or inferior work done by a permittee.
The schedule shall be open to public inspection in the office of the
City Engineer upon demand.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
The decision of the City Engineer as to the cost of any work
done or repairs made by the City Engineer or under the direction of
the City Engineer pursuant to the provisions of this article shall
be final and conclusive as to such cost.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
Upon completion of the work done under a permit issued under
the provisions of this division, the project representative shall
file a capsuled report of that work with the City Engineer. The capsule
should include information pertaining to any unusual location of service
lines encountered during the project, any incidences of ledge, swamp
or clay, or any other condition which would have affected the use
of a standard project procedure.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
The capsulated reports of permit work shall be kept filed alphabetically
by street and number according to the sites of the permit excavations,
and these shall be available for public inspection in the City Engineer's
office, Streets Division.
[Amended 6-18-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-19]
The provisions of this division may be waived by the City Engineer
in the case of public utilities.
[Added 10-14-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-17]
No utility line extensions in City streets or subdivisions shall
be allowed during the period running from December 15 through March
15 unless permission is granted by a majority vote of the City Council.
For the purpose of this section, a "utility line extension" shall
be defined as any addition or modification that results in an expansion
of the existing utility line. This section shall not apply to connection
of a new or existing home or building to an existing utility main
or to repairs to fix a break in an existing main line or service connection.
