[Amended 8-17-1993 by Ord. No. 93-38]
A. No person shall make an excavation in or upon the surface of any
street or pavement in the Township without first having obtained a
permit, except as otherwise provided in this article.
B. A separate permit shall be required for each excavation except as otherwise provided in Subsection
C of this section.
C. The Township Engineer may issue a blanket permit in cases where a
permit for more than five openings or excavations in the same unimproved
street shall be applied for. Such permit shall become void at the
expiration of three months after the date of issue.
[Amended 8-17-1993 by Ord. No. 93-38]
Every application, except an application by or on behalf of
a public utility company, for a permit to make a street or sidewalk
excavation shall:
A. Be made to the Township Engineer on forms furnished by the Township.
B. State the following:
(2) The address of applicant.
(3) The occupation of applicant.
(4) The name of the owner of the property in front of which the opening
or excavation is proposed to be made.
(5) The purpose for which the opening or excavation is to be made.
(6) The date when the work shall be commenced and the date when it shall
be completed.
(7) Such other information as the Township Engineer may reasonably require.
C. Be accompanied by a sketch or drawing designating:
(1) The location and dimensions of the proposed opening or excavation.
(2) The kind of pavement to be disturbed.
(3) The location of trees or structures that might be affected by the
opening or excavation.
[Added 8-17-1993 by Ord.
No. 93-38; amended 10-19-1993 by Ord. No. 93-55]
No public utility company shall excavate in or upon the surface
of, or beneath or below, any street or pavement except with the consent
of the Township Committee in accordance with the following:
A. Construction and installation of new structures.
(1) Prior to granting any permit to excavate in or upon the surface of,
or beneath or below, any street or pavement in the Township in order
to construct posts, poles, towers, pipes, underground lines or pipes,
aboveground lines or pipes or other structures above and below ground
for the transmission and distribution of electricity of transmission
levels in excess of 26,000 volts or natural gas or for the transmission
of telecommunications or to supply water, where no such structures
are presently in place, a public utility company shall, except in
the case of construction or installation of a lateral or service line
between a main and meter:
(a)
Submit an application to the Township Clerk seeking a permit
to excavate and containing a notice of any proposed construction or
installation which requires excavation in or upon a public street.
Said application shall contain the following:
[1]
The exact location of the excavation.
[2]
The name and address of the public utility company.
[3]
The anticipated date when the excavation and/or installation
shall be commenced and the anticipated date when the excavation shall
be completed.
[4]
A statement that all permits and approvals required by federal
and state law, if any, and regulations have been obtained and are
in full force and effect.
[5]
The purpose for which the construction or installation is to
be made.
[6]
A statement of the necessity for the construction or installation
and an analysis of the feasibility of alternative routes or locations,
including costs, to such construction or installation.
[7]
A statement as to whether the construction or installation will
result in a generation of electromagnetic fields.
[8]
A statement that identifies any hazardous substances, as defined
by the Department of Environmental Protection, that are to be used,
with a report showing those substances as a result of excavation,
generated or discharged by the excavation, construction or installation.
[9]
A full set of construction drawings.
(b)
Submit the payment of a fee of $50 along with the application
to cover the cost of reviewing the application and the accompanying
plans.
(2) Once the application and fee have been submitted to the Township
Clerk, the application shall be considered by the Township Committee
at a public hearing after public notice thereof and within 90 days
of the receipt of the application and fee.
(3) Public notice of the hearing shall be given by publication once a
week for two weeks in one or more newspapers published and circulated
in the Township, cost to be borne by the utility company.
(4) Notice provided pursuant to this section shall specify the name of
the public utility presenting the application, the date and hour of
the public hearing when the application will be considered, the date
of submission and a description of the proposal contained in the application.
(5) The Township Committee shall, within 90 days after a public hearing,
approve or reject an application. An application may be rejected by
the Township Committee only on the basis of one or more of the following
grounds:
(a)
Submission of an application that does not contain an item required and enumerated in Subsection
A(1)(a).
(b)
The deficiency of the plan for excavation, construction or installation
submitted as part of an application. Such deficiency shall be assessed
by reviewing the measures proposed to reasonably protect the health,
safety and welfare of the residents of the Township.
(6) If an application is rejected by the Township Committee, the public utility company shall not proceed with the proposed excavation. In rejecting an application, the Township Committee shall specify the grounds for such rejection. The public utility company may submit a revised application, without fee, and the Township Committee shall consider said revised application, provided that the notice provisions contained in Subsection
A(3) and
(4) have been complied with.
(7) If an application is approved by the Township Committee, a resolution
consenting to the public utility company's excavation shall be voted
upon by the Township Committee. The resolution shall be valid until
the excavation, construction or repair is complete, not to exceed
one year from the date of approval.
(8) Every person making an excavation in any street pursuant to any permit
issued under the provisions of this subsection shall comply with the
following conditions:
(b)
Where pavement has been opened, the area opened shall be paved
as follows upon completion of the excavation: if a street opening
of 150 linear feet or greater is proposed and if the public utility
company does not return the street to the condition as existed before
the excavation, the public utility company is responsible for repaving
the entire street, curb to curb, in the area of the excavation.
B. Replacement of existing structures. Prior to issuing any permit to excavate in or upon the surface of, or beneath or below, any street or pavement in the Township in order to repair or replace existing posts, poles, towers, pipes, underground lines or pipes, aboveground lines or pipes or other structures above and below ground for the transmission and distribution of electricity or natural gas or for the transmission of telecommunications or to supply water, a public utility company shall, except in the case of a repair or replacement of a lateral or service between a main and meter, comply with Subsection
A(1)(a)[1] through
[5], inclusive. Once the application fee has been submitted to the Township Clerk, the Township Engineer and the Township Administrator shall issue or deny, by written notice, a permit for such repair or replacement. "Replacement" or "replace," as used in this article, means the substitution of a similar installation having the same function as that which is already in place.
C. Repairs. In the event of an emergency which requires excavation in
or upon the surface of, or beneath or below, any street or pavement
in the Township in order to repair or replace existing poles, towers,
pipes, underground lines or pipes, aboveground lines or pipes or other
structures above and below ground for the transmission and distribution
of electricity or natural gas or for the transmission of telecommunications
or to supply water, a public utility company shall notify the Township
Police Department, describing the nature of the emergency and the
proposed repair and/or excavation. This requirement shall not apply
to any emergency repair to a lateral or service line between a main
and a meter.
D. Right of appeal. Nothing under this article is intended to or shall
interfere with a public utility company's right to appeal any decision
made pursuant to this article to the Board of Public Utilities.
[Amended 6-24-1992 by Ord. No. 92-19; 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-44; 6-23-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-23]
A. The aforesaid permit shall be issued by the Township Engineer. The
fee shall be $100 for any opening between the curbline and property
line of any street or any opening into the street beyond the curbline.
In addition, the excavator shall deposit with the Township Engineer
or his designee a certified check, bank check, money order or bond
in an amount equal to the cost of restoration, to be computed as the
product of the area of the opening at the unit prices. In no event
shall the deposit be less than $500 for each excavation. After its
completion, the Township Engineer shall inspect the restoration to
determine compliance with provisions of this article. If it becomes
necessary for the Township to restore the excavation, then the cost
thereof shall be charged against said deposit. The Township Engineer
is authorized to retain the deposit for a one-year period from date
of application.
B. An escrow shall be posted to cover the cost of inspection services
regarding the pavement restoration. Said escrow will be set by the
Township Engineer. The minimum amount shall be $500 and it shall be
replenished when it reaches 25% of the initial deposit.
C. The unit prices for the excavation deposit shall be as follows:
(1) Concrete pavement, asphalt, brick, stone block or other materials
on a concrete foundation: $150 per square yard.
(2) Bituminous concrete or bituminous macadam on a crushed stone or telford
base or on stone block on sand foundation: $100 per square yard.
[Amended 6-23-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-23]
Permits shall be issued by the Township Engineer and the amount of the fee paid as specified in §
367-42 shall be shown thereon. Before the street is excavated or opened, the permittee shall notify the Municipal Engineer in writing, which may be by fax or e-mail, not less than seven days before undertaking any excavation or opening in a public right-of-way in the Township.
[Amended 6-23-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-23]
A. The work of opening or excavating to be done under permits issued
pursuant to this article shall be commenced within 30 days after the
date of the permit, otherwise the permit shall become void and the
holder thereof shall become entitled to the return of the fee paid
less the charge of $25. After commencement of the work, the same shall
be diligently prosecuted to completion.
B. The permit shall not be assigned or transferred except upon the prior
written consent of the Township Engineer or his designee.
C. No permit shall be issued for a newly constructed or substantially improved street for a period of five years from the date of acceptance of such construction except in cases of emergency as described in §
367-52, Emergency conditions. Ninety days prior to the start of construction of permanent pavement on any street, the Township Engineer or his designee shall notify, in writing, all property owners of record on such street, all utility companies serving such street, the Police Chief and the Fire Chief of such construction and of the provisions of this section. Sidewalks shall be exempt from the provisions of this section.
D. For any applicant to open any paved or improved street surface which
is less than five years old, the Township Engineer or his designee
shall be required to secure approval therefor from the governing body
by resolution before any permit can be approved hereunder.
E. Charges.
(1) Should an applicant be granted a permit to open the paved street as described hereinabove in Subsection
D, there shall be a charge for said opening, except in the case of emergencies as described §
367-52, Emergency conditions. The charge shall be on a sliding scale determined as follows:
(b)
Area of road cut in square feet x $5 = varies.
(2) The assessment factor is 2% of the above total for each unelapsed month or fraction thereof of the five-year (sixty-month) restricted period. The maximum assessment shall be 120% of the above total; provided, however, that no assessment hereunder shall be less than $500. Inspection and permit fees set forth herein are payable in addition to the assessment charge(s) set forth herein pursuant to §
367-42. No portion of the assessment charge shall be refundable nor shall such assessment payment relieve the permit holder from the required insurance(s) for the restoration of all road openings in "new street" pavement. All restoration hereunder shall include restoration to new street condition as required by the Township Engineer which may include infrared pavement repair.
[Added 8-17-1993 by Ord.
No. 93-38]
This article shall not be construed to require a permit for
street openings or excavations by any person performing work under
or in connection with a contract with or for the Township.
Every person making an opening or excavation in any street pursuant
to any permit issued under the provisions of this article shall comply
with the following conditions:
A. Openings and excavations shall be protected with proper barricades
while open and with lights at night.
B. No opening or excavation shall remain open for a period longer than
five days.
C. Backfill shall be tamped in eight-inch layers or puddled, as directed
by the Township Engineer.
D. Broken pavement shall be retained separate from excavated earth and
shall be replaced on top of the earth backfill and the surface brought
level with the adjacent street surfaces.
E. Where pavement shall be opened, it shall be cut six inches wider,
on each side, than the width of the opening or excavation.
F. In cases where deemed necessary by the Township Engineer and by him
ordered, sheathing shall be placed in the opening or excavation to
protect the walls and the adjacent roadway. When directed by the Engineer,
such sheathing shall remain in the opening permanently and shall be
cut off 30 inches below the level of the surface of the street.
G. In cases of openings or excavations in which sewer pipe is to be
laid, if, in the opinion of the Township Engineer, the bottom of the
opening or excavation shall not be sufficiently stable to support
such pipe properly, stone or concrete base shall be laid as the Township
Engineer shall direct, such base to be in conformity with the Township's
standard sewer specifications.
H. Tunneling shall be permitted only with the approval and permission
of the Township Engineer. Dirt and materials excavated from tunnels
shall be removed and disposed of, and the backfill for tunnels shall
consist of cinder concrete, composed of one part cement and eight
parts cinder, mixed sufficiently dry to allow thorough tamping so
that the excavation shall be solidly and completely filled.
I. The person to whom a permit is issued shall maintain the backfill
of the opening or excavation in a safe and passable condition for
a period of six months after the date of the permit. By accepting
such permit, the permittee shall assume full responsibility for the
safety of the public in its relation to such opening or excavation
and shall save the Township harmless from all liability.
J. All work performed in accordance with permits issued under this article
shall be constructed, removed, replaced, or repaired in accordance
with such grades and specifications as may be determined or promulgated
by the Township of Engineer, and the permittee shall perform the work
so as to meet the grade and alignment of the adjoining sidewalk, curb,
and driveway and/or such established line and grade as may be determined
by the Township Engineer, and in accordance with the latter's directions.
[Added 6-23-2015 by Ord.
No. 2015-23]
K. All street openings, excavations, and restoration thereof shall be
made under the supervision and control of the Township Engineer and
subject to his inspection. The Township Engineer shall not be required
to inspect any work done under the provisions of this section unless
the permittee shall have given not less than 48 hours' notice that
said work is ready for inspection.
[Added 6-23-2015 by Ord.
No. 2015-23]
L. Restoration. The permittee shall restore the site or work promptly,
upon completion thereof, all surplus excavated material and debris
to be removed, and shall restore the site of the work in a neat and
orderly condition. Where topsoil, seeded areas or sod is disturbed
in the course of the work, the permittee shall restore the ground
surfaces to a condition the same as they were previously. The Township
Engineer shall approve the method of restoration which may include
infrared pavement repair.
[Added 6-23-2015 by Ord.
No. 2015-23]