[Adopted 11-10-1954 by Ord. No. 13-1954 (Ch. XXI, Part 3A, of the 1970 Code of Ordinances)]
A. 
The following words, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except in those instances where the context clearly indicates otherwise:
PERSON
Includes any natural person, partnership, firm, association or corporation.
STREET
Any public street, avenue, road, square, alley, highway or other public place located in Vandergrift Borough and established for the use of vehicles, including the sidewalks adjacent thereto.
B. 
In this article, the singular shall include the plural, and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.
It shall be unlawful for any person to open or to make any excavation of any kind in any street in Vandergrift Borough, except in and upon those portions thereof established for the use of vehicles, including the sidewalks adjacent thereto.
[Amended 11-9-1965 by Ord. No. 20-1965; 10-4-2004 by Ord. No. 9-2004]
Any person who shall desire to make any opening or excavation in any of the streets in Vandergrift Borough shall make application to the Borough Secretary in writing for the purpose. Such application shall be made upon the appropriate application to be furnished by the Borough through the office of the Borough Secretary or the office of the Borough Engineer and shall require, at minimum, the name of the applicant, the exact location for the proposed opening or excavation, the approximate size or depth thereof, the time when said opening or excavation may remain open, and such other information as the Borough Engineer or the Borough Council may require, and shall contain an agreement on the part of the applicant that the work shall be done in full compliance with the ordinances of Vandergrift Borough and the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the United States in relation thereto, and the applicant shall well and truly save, defend and hold harmless Vandergrift Borough from and indemnify it against any and all actions, suits, demands, payments, costs and charges for or by reason of the proposed opening or excavation from any person or entity, and all damages to person or property resulting in any manner therefrom or occurring in the prosecution of the work connected therewith, or from any other matter, caused or relating thereto, by giving the Borough a bond in such sum and with such sureties as may be approved by the Borough Engineer or the Street Committee and the Borough Solicitor. Excepting and reserving therefrom, public utilities, which shall be required to submit, on or before January 1 each year, a bond of not less than $50,000, which shall provide coverage for said public utility for a period of not less than one year from the date of issuance of said bond. Should any public utility change bond companies thereafter, it shall be the duty and obligation of the public utility to notify the bonding company of the balance of the provision of this article, requiring appropriate coverage for any excavation which was completed during the term of a prior bond but which shall remain the subject of inspection for a period not less than one year from the date of the refilling of the opening and restoration of the surface as provided in § 416-20. Said bond shall remain in place for a period of one year from the date of the refilling of the opening and restoration of surface for the purpose of enabling Vandergrift Borough by and through the office of the Borough Engineer to verify that the refilling of the opening and restoration of the surface has been done in accordance with the ordinance of Vandergrift Borough, in accordance with the specification of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and to assure that the refilling of the opening or excavation shall remain in a condition as to avoid settling or the use of inadequate materials or methods for which; and which shall protect Vandergrift Borough from any defect which should appear therein resulting from defective actions or materials from whatever source during the one-year period within which the bond shall remain in place. The bond shall only be released upon certification of the Borough Engineer. Any defects, as determined by the Borough Engineer, shall cause the bond to be forfeited to Vandergrift Borough. The decision of the Borough Engineer regarding the release of the bond shall be final.
[Amended 11-9-1965 by Ord. No. 20-1965; 10-10-1994 by Ord. No. 4-1994; 1-8-2001 by Ord. No. 2-2001; 1-3-2012 by Ord. No. 2-2012]
Before any permit shall be issued to open or excavate any street in the Borough, the applicant shall pay to the Borough Secretary a permit fee in the minimum amount of $250 to cover the cost of inspection and other incidental services in connection therewith. When application shall be made to open and excavate any longitudinal opening or excavation in excess of 20 feet, before any permit shall be issued so to open or excavate, the applicant shall pay, in addition to the minimum fee, an additional fee at $50 for each 20 feet or fraction thereof to be opened or excavated upon such street. The fees as set forth in this provision of this article may be amended from time to time hereafter by resolution of the Council of Vandergrift Borough as deemed necessary by the Council to cover the cost of inspection and other incidental services in connection with street openings.
[Amended 10-4-2004 by Ord. No. 9-2004; 12-5-2016 by Ord. No. 3-2016]
A. 
The permittee shall pay all costs and expenses incident to or arising from the project, including permitting costs as assessed by the Borough of Vandergrift and the cost of making and maintaining temporary restoration of the disturbed area and any and all permanent restoration. Any and all costs of inspection shall be incurred by the permittee and shall be paid, upon demand, to the Borough of Vandergrift to cover the costs associated with the inspector's time and any and all incidental Borough expenses, including, if necessary, any reasonable attorney's fees.
B. 
The permittee shall be responsible for all matters associated with traffic control and, should the work on the excavated portion of the street not be completed before the end of the normal workday, the permittee shall promptly backfill the opening and restore the surface in a temporary fashion so as to maintain safe lanes of travel for pedestrian, motor vehicle, cyclist or any other form or mode of transportation over and along any excavated portion of the roadway.
C. 
At no time shall any action of the permittee alter drainage in any manner from the original flow of drainage on the street or roadway.
D. 
All repair or restoration of a street opening on a brick street shall be completed in the manner identified in Attachment 1[1] and made a part of this article, to be amended, from time to time hereafter, as deemed appropriate and as directed by the Engineer of the Borough of Vandergrift.
[1]
Editor's Note: Attachment 1 is on file in the Borough's offices.
E. 
All repair or restoration of a street opening having an asphalt or concrete surface shall be in the manner identified in Attachment 2[2] and made a part of this article, to be amended from time to time hereafter as deemed appropriate and as directed by the Engineer of the Borough of Vandergrift. Where curbing exists, if the curbing is damaged in any manner however slight, the curbing shall be replaced in increments not less than the longitudinal width of the portion of the roadway to be repaired and reclaimed under this section. Where any portion of the right-of-way is maintained as a lawn, backfilling shall consist of No. 2A modified stone stopping 12 inches below the surface. The remaining 12 inches of surface are to be backfilled with suitable soil, screened and compacted appropriately, for planting, and the same shall be planted to restore any and all landscaping at minimum to its original condition. In the event that any sidewalks are affected, however slight, by the excavation or by any equipment, earth movement or otherwise, it shall be the responsibility of the permittee to repair or replace the sidewalk in a manner so deemed appropriate by the adjoining landowner whose property is affected by the damaged sidewalk and in conjunction with the Borough Engineer, who shall define the parameters of required restoration and repair. Any and all sidewalks to be repaired or replaced must be replaced with concrete in the manner consistent with the existing sidewalk, and no repair of any partial slab shall be permitted.
[2]
Editor's Note: Attachment 2 is on file in the Borough's offices.
F. 
Permittee shall be responsible and required to repair any and all existing sewer grates, catch basins, manholes, lamp holes, inspection stacks, sewer pipes and any portion or portions of sewer systems in any areas, including curbing affecting the sewer system, to their original condition at the time of surface restoration. Any damage caused as a result of the excavation, including any damage which was incidental to the excavation, shall be restored by the permittee with all costs to be borne by the permittee. Any and all replacements and repairs must be completed in accordance with PennDOT specifications. No actions by the permittee shall modify the flow of stormwater to or from any of the existing storm grates or portions of the sewer system affected by the excavation.
G. 
Upon completion of the repair, restoration or construction of the excavated area, the excavation site shall be refilled in accordance with the requirements of this section within 72 hours of completion of the work connected with the excavation in question by the permittee. All temporary backfilling shall conform to the original contour of the surface in the manner as prescribed above, utilizing No. 2 modified stone in layers and with surface repair as further identified herein.
H. 
Within nine months after the restoration of the excavated area in temporary fashion, any permittee who shall open or excavate any portion of any improved street of the Borough of Vandergrift shall thoroughly and completely restore the surface of the roadway from curb to curb or from existing improved edge line to existing improved edge line, including the area so excavated, for a distance of not less than 10 feet in each direction from the edge line of the excavated area on each longitudinal side of the excavation in accordance with the specifications as identified in this section. Should any defect appear therein, resulting from any action of the permittee or inaction of the permittee, which would be identified by the Borough of Vandergrift or its designated agent, within one year after completion of the final restoration process, the permittee shall either restore, repair and replace, as deemed necessary by the Borough Engineer, within 60)days' notice by the Borough of Vandergrift of the defective conditions or, upon failure to complete the same, shall reimburse the Borough of Vandergrift any and all costs and expenses, including engineering costs and reasonable attorney's fees, which would be necessary to enforce any of the requirements of this section and to effectuate any and all necessary repairs and replacement of permanent paving surface upon demand of the Borough of Vandergrift. Any such requests of the Borough of Vandergrift shall, in the instance where a bond is posted annually, be resolved in favor of the Borough of Vandergrift by the permittee within 60 days of the request of the Borough of Vandergrift; otherwise, the bond posted shall be forfeited in favor of the Borough of Vandergrift to the extent of the bond funds necessary for the restoration of the excavation or disturbance in accordance with the conditions identified in this section; further directed that any costs, fees or expenses incurred by the Borough of Vandergrift, including engineering costs and reasonable attorney's fees which may be incurred as a result of any demand for forfeiture, shall be paid either by the forfeiting entity or its bonding entity.
All other work in connection with openings in any street, including excavation, protection, refilling and temporary paving, shall be done by the applicant at his expense, and all such work shall be subject to the provisions of this article and to the supervision and approval of the Street Committee, provided that the Street Committee may require that cutting of the surface of improved streets and the backfilling of all excavations therein shall be done by the Borough, and the charge therefor shall be paid by the applicant on the basis of actual cost of the work plus 20%.
A. 
No opening or excavation in any street shall extend from the curbline into the highway a distance greater than one foot beyond the center line of the street before being refilled and the surface of the highway restored to a condition safe and convenient for travel.
B. 
No more than 450 feet longitudinally shall be opened in any street at any one time.
C. 
The work of excavation shall be so conducted as not to interfere with the water mains, sewers or their connections with the houses, or any other subsurface lines or constructions, until permission of the proper authorities in connection with such subsurface lines or connections shall have been obtained.
D. 
No tunneling shall be allowed without the express approval of the Street Committee and permission therefor endorsed upon the permit. The backfilling of a tunnel excavation shall be made only in the presence of the Street Committee or an inspector designated by it and shall be done only in accordance with the specification of the Department of Highways of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
E. 
All openings or excavations shall be backfilled promptly with suitable materials and thoroughly compacted in layers with an approved mechanical back tamper, each of which shall not exceed six inches in depth. On improved streets, the backfilling shall be placed to within 10 inches of the surface.
F. 
On improved streets, a temporary paving of suitable stony materials, thoroughly bound and compacted, shall be installed flush with the surface of the adjoining paving. Permanent paving shall be completed at such time as the Street Committee so directs.
G. 
During the making of any excavation in any street, every necessary and reasonable protection shall be taken by the applicant and the parties making the same to keep the street in a safe and passable condition both day and night by guards, barriers, lanterns and other devices, and all excavating permits are granted under and subject to the express condition that the person to whom the same is issued shall indemnify, save and keep harmless the Borough from any loss in damages or otherwise whatsoever, which may or shall be occasioned at any time by the said excavation or by any leak, explosion or other injury from any pipe, apparatus, conduit or any other matter placed in the said excavation.
H. 
The applicant shall notify the Street Committee when the opening or excavation is ready for backfilling before any backfilling is done and when the work is completed by the proper backfilling in the case of unimproved streets and by temporary paving in the case of improved streets.
I. 
In the event that any work performed by or for a permit holder shall, in the opinion of the Street Committee, be unsatisfactory, and the same shall not be corrected in accordance with its instructions within the time fixed by it, or in the event that the work for which the permit was granted is not completed within the time fixed by the Mayor, the Borough may proceed to correct such unsatisfactory work or complete any such work not completed and charge the cost thereof plus 20% to the applicant.
In the case of any leak, explosion or other accident in any subsurface pipe, line, construction or apparatus, it shall be lawful for the person owning or responsible for such pipe, line, construction or apparatus to commence an excavation to remedy such condition before securing a permit, provided that application for a permit shall be made immediately and not later than the next business day thereafter and that all other provisions of this article are complied with. If any such emergency condition shall not be immediately attended to by the owner or person responsible for such pipe, line, construction or apparatus, the Street Committee, after such notice as it shall deem necessary under the circumstances of the particular case, shall proceed to do the work necessary and required by such emergency and charge the same on the basis of the cost plus 20% to such owner or person.
The Street Commissioner shall give timely notice to all persons owning property abutting on any street within the Borough about to be paved or improved and to all public utility companies operating in the Borough, and all such persons and utility companies shall make all water, gas or sewer connections, as well as any repairs thereto, which would necessitate excavation of the said street, within 30 days from the giving of such notice, unless such time is extended in writing for cause shown by the Street Committee. New paving shall not be opened for a period of five years after the completion thereof, except in case of emergency, the existence of which emergency and the necessity for the opening of such paving to be determined by the Borough Council. If it is sought to excavate upon or open a street within five years after the completion of the paving thereof for any other reason than an emergency as above stated, the applicant shall make written application to the Borough Council, and a permit for such opening shall only be issued after express approval of Council.
Payment for all work done by the Borough under the provisions hereof shall be made by the person made liable therefor under the provisions hereof within 30 days after a bill therefor is sent to such person by the Borough. Upon failure to pay such charges within such time, the same shall be collectible by the Borough in the manner provided by law for the collection of municipal claims.
[Amended 1-10-1989 by Ord. No. 2-1989]
Any person, whether as principal, agent or employee, who violates or assists in the violation of any provision of this article, shall be guilty of an offense and, upon conviction, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $200 or more than $600 and costs of prosecution and, in default of payment of fine and costs, to undergo imprisonment for not more than 30 days.