City of Crystal Lake, IL Article X Procedure and Enforcement

§ 595-34 Responsibility for enforcement.

A. The City shall oversee the enforcement of this chapter.

B. The City Engineer shall enforce this chapter. In performing his/her duties, the enforcement officer may delegate routine responsibilities to a designee.

C. The City shall enforce the requirements of this chapter on municipal projects that are regulated by this chapter and are within the community's jurisdiction.

D. Upon the request of a certified community, the MCSC Chief Engineer may be the enforcement officer for any regulated development:

(1) Located within multiple certified communities; or

(2) Partially located within a certified community and partially located within a noncertified community; or

(3) Meeting the terms and conditions of a letter of understanding issued by McHenry County.

E. Each community shall remain solely responsible for its standing in the NFIP.

§ 595-35 Duties of MCSC Chief Engineer.

The MCSC Chief Engineer shall:

A. Supervise the enforcement of this chapter in certified communities by periodically reviewing the community's ordinance enforcement records and making remedial recommendations to the community;

B. Notify all the communities of the county, FEMA, and IDNR/OWR of any amendments to this chapter; and

C. Maintain a current list of all maps considered regulatory under this chapter.

§ 595-36 Duties of enforcement officer.

The enforcement officer shall:

A. Attend a minimum of four hours of annual training for enforcement officers, as scheduled by the county;

B. Ensure that all applicable consultations, waivers, approvals, and permits from federal, state, and other local authorities are received prior to issuing a stormwater management permit;

C. Utilize a form to document the following characteristics for each stormwater management permit issued:

[Amended 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 7671]

(1) The proposed hydrologically disturbed area;

(2) The existing and proposed impervious area and the impervious area that existed at the development site prior to the effective date of this chapter;

(3) Whether a flood hazard area exists on the development site;

(4) Whether an IWMC exists on the development site;

(5) The development classification;

(6) The signature of the Certified Floodplain Manager that has reviewed and recommends approval of the stormwater management permit application, if applicable;

(7) The signature of the licensed professional engineer who has reviewed and recommends approval of the stormwater management permit application, if applicable;

(8) The signature of the wetland specialist who has reviewed and recommends approval of the stormwater management permit application, if applicable;

(9) The signature of the enforcement officer issuing the stormwater management permit;

D. Approve the BFE for a regulated development, if applicable;

E. Ensure that a Certified Floodplain Manager reviews or supervises the review of a permit application within a flood hazard area.

[Added 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 7671[1]]

[1] Editor's Note: This ordinance also redesignated former Subsections E through V as Subsections F through W, respectively.

F. Ensure that a licensed professional engineer reviews or supervises the review of any plans, calculations or analyses prepared by a licensed professional engineer as part of a stormwater management permit application. The review and design engineers shall not be the same person;

G. Ensure that a wetland specialist reviews or supervises the review of any documents prepared by a wetland specialist as part of a stormwater management permit application. The review and design wetland specialist shall not be the same person;

H. Determine whether as-built plans and/or a performance guarantee are necessary to ensure regulated development is built and maintained in accordance with the stormwater management permit. The amount of a performance bond, surety, or other such security may be up to 150% of the estimated cost to complete construction of the approved stormwater management system. The estimated cost to complete construction shall be prepared by a licensed professional engineer and approved by the enforcement officer;

I. Ensure that the required notice of a petition for a variance has been given and published as required by this chapter;

J. Notify the MCSC Chief Engineer of every scheduled variance hearing not less than 15 days nor more than 30 days prior to the hearing;

K. Notify a petitioner for a variance that such variance may result in increased rates for flood insurance, if applicable;

L. Notify the MCSC Chief Engineer of an application for a CLOMR or LOMR;

M. Provide for inspections of regulated development as required by this chapter;

N. Investigate complaints of violations of this chapter within his or her community;

O. Notify violators within floodplains that failure to comply with the provisions of the NFIP could make them ineligible to receive flood insurance;

P. Utilize the legal or equitable actions, remedies and penalties necessary to enforce this chapter within his or her community;

Q. Advise, consult, and cooperate with other governmental agencies to promote the purposes of this chapter;

R. Maintain copies of all the following documents for public inspection:

(1) Stormwater management permit applications;

(2) Applicable federal, state, and other local permits;

(3) Variances;

(4) Records required for eligibility in the NFIP, including elevation certificates, floodproofing certificates, and lowest floor elevations;

(5) Documentation and data on the cost of any repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or other improvement to a building in the floodplain in order to enforce the substantial improvement requirements of this chapter;

(6) CLOMRs, LOMRs, LOMAs; and

(7) Any additional documentation submitted to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of this chapter;

S. Inspect damaged buildings, regardless of the source of the damage, located within the floodplain, to determine whether they have been substantially damaged;

T. Notify the MCSC Chief Engineer, FEMA, and IDNR/OWR of any proposed amendment to this chapter;

U. Notify IDNR/OWR of any dam that does not have a permit from IDNR/OWR;

V. Notify IDNR/OWR, IEMA, and the owner of the dam, if a dam is believed to be in an unsafe condition; and

W. Notify adjacent communities in writing 30 days prior to the issuance of a stormwater management permit involving a channel modification.

§ 595-37 Representative capacity.

In all cases when any action is taken by the MCSC Chief Engineer or the enforcement officer, or his or her duly appointed designee, to enforce the provisions of this chapter, such action shall be take either in the name of the county or the certified community, as the case may be, and neither the MCSC Chief Engineer or the enforcement officer nor his or her designee, in so acting, shall be rendered personally liable.

§ 595-38 Community certification.

A. Certification criteria. Any community of McHenry County, including multi-county municipalities, that meets the following criteria may be certified by MCSC to enforce the provisions of this chapter within the community's jurisdiction:

[Amended 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 7671]

(1) The community shall be participating in the regular phase of the NFIP and shall not be a NFIP-sanctioned community;

(2) The community shall have adopted this chapter or an ordinance that is at least as stringent and contains all the criteria of this chapter;

(3) The community shall have a Certified Floodplain Manager in the employ or under contract; and

(4) The community shall agree to perform the duties of the enforcement officer within the community's jurisdiction.

B. Certification process and duties.

(1) A petition for certification shall be submitted to the MCSC indicating how the community meets the certification criteria of this chapter. A copy of the community's adopted ordinance shall be included with the petition.

(2) Within 90 days of receipt of the petition and in conjunction with the next regularly scheduled MCSC meeting, the MCSC Chief Engineer shall make a recommendation to the MCSC; based on his or her review of the petition recommendation shall be presented.

(3) Within 60 days of the MCSC Chief Engineer's recommendation, the MCSC may approve the petition as submitted, may approve the petition with conditions, or may deny the petition. A notice of the MCSC action shall be submitted to the petitioning community.

(4) Certified communities shall notify the MCSC Chief Engineer within two weeks of any change in:

(a) The community's enforcement officer; or

(b) The Certified Floodplain Manager(s), licensed professional engineer(s) or wetland specialist(s) responsible for review of stormwater management permit applications for the certified community.

[Amended 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 7671]

(5) Certified communities shall submit an annual report summarizing the community's stormwater management permit activity. At a minimum, the annual report shall include:

[Amended 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 7671]

(a) The name and contact information for the enforcement officer;

(b) The name and contact information of the Certified Floodplain Manager;

(c) The name and contact information for the licensed professional engineer responsible for reviewing or supervising the review of any plans, calculations or analyses prepared by a licensed professional engineer as part of a stormwater management permit application;

(d) The name and contact information for the wetland specialist responsible for reviewing or supervising the review of any documents prepared by a wetland specialist as part of a stormwater management permit application;

(e) Documentation of the following characteristics of each stormwater management permit issued:

[1] The proposed hydrologically disturbed area;

[2] The existing and proposed impervious area and the impervious area that existed at the development site prior to the effective date of this chapter;

[3] Whether a flood hazard area exists on the development site;

[4] Whether an IWMC exists on the development site;

[5] The development classification;

[6] The signature of the Certified Floodplain Manager that has reviewed and recommends approval of the stormwater management permit application, if applicable;

[7] The signature of the licensed professional engineer that has reviewed and recommends approval of the stormwater management permit application, if applicable;

[8] The signature of the wetland specialist that has reviewed and recommends approval of the stormwater management permit application, if applicable;

[9] The signature of the enforcement officer issuing the stormwater management permit;

(f) A list of any stormwater management permits issued for regulated development that was designed and reviewed by the same firm;

(g) A summary of any variances granted to the provisions of this chapter; and

(h) A list of any pending violations to the provisions of this chapter.

(6) Certified communities shall petition for recertification every five years.

C. Committee review of performance.

(1) Within the five-year certification period, the MCSC or the MCSC Chief Engineer may periodically review the community's ordinance enforcement records and make remedial recommendations to the community, if necessary. Review findings will be used in the assessment of petitions for recertification from certified communities.

(2) The MCSC may rescind a community's certification for the following reasons:

(a) The community is no longer a participant in the NFIP;

(b) The community adopts an ordinance or amends its ordinance so that its ordinance is less restrictive than this chapter; or

(c) The community fails to enforce the provisions of this chapter or issues a permit not meeting the requirements of this chapter.

(3) The MCSC Chief Engineer may immediately rescind a community's certification for the above reasons until the MCSC can discuss the reasons at the next regularly scheduled meeting.