A. 
No person shall injure or tear up any pavement, sidewalk, or crosswalk, or any part thereof, dig any hole, ditch, or train in, or dig or remove any sod, stone, earth, sand, or gravel from, or dig, place, or construct any tunnel or drive, or bore for any pipe conduit, wire main or shaft in or under, any street, alley, or public ground in the City without having first obtained written permission from the City Engineer given in accordance with the provisions of this Code.
[Ord. No. 1980-25]
B. 
The City Engineer shall charge an amount as set forth in the Schedule of Fees for each such permit which is for excavation. If any person, firm, or corporation shall begin construction of a public sidewalk without said permit, the City Engineer shall charge a permit fee, as set forth in the Schedule of Fees, for such permit. No person, firm, or corporation may be issued any permit under this chapter if any permit fees requested by this section remain unpaid.
[Ord. No. 2018-89]
No such permit shall be granted until the applicant therefor, in addition to complying with all of the requirements of this chapter, shall deposit with the Director of Finance a sum of money sufficient to cover the expense of replacing the ground, including pavement, walks, etc. in a good condition as before the same was dug up or opened. The amount of said deposit shall be ascertained by the City Engineer and in all cases shall be fixed at the lowest sum for which said repairing or replacing can be properly done. Said repairing or replacing shall be done by the City under the direction of the City Engineer, and the actual cost thereof shall be borne by the person upon whose request such digging or opening is done.
All excavations or openings in streets, alleys, crosswalks, sidewalks, or other public grounds shall be maintained in a safe condition by the permittee from the time that the permittee makes the openings or excavations and until the City accepts the excavation for refill, and the permittee shall be liable and responsible for any and all accidents or damages of any nature, occasioned by any such openings or excavations until the same have been accepted by the City Engineer.
After completion of the work, under the provisions of this article, to the satisfaction of the City Engineer, he shall certify to the Director of Finance the amount of any surplus remaining from the amount deposited in such case and such surplus shall thereupon be paid over to the proper claimant; but if for any reason the amount of such deposit shall have been insufficient to cover the cost of such work or if any damage shall have been done to any underground work or connections, or otherwise not contemplated in the original estimate which shall have caused increased expenditure, the amount of such deficiency or damage shall be certified to the Director of Finance who shall collect the same from the person to whom the permit was issued.
It shall be unlawful for any company, firm, or corporation, their agents, servants, or employees, or for any person to make or cause to be made an opening, ditch, or excavation in or upon any of the streets, avenues, alleys, or other public places of the City for the laying of any pipes or making any change, alteration or repairs to any pipes already laid or for any other purpose whatsoever, except upon condition that a permit therefor shall have first been obtained, and any fees paid, as set forth in the Schedule of Fees, of the City Engineer for such purpose.
Any company, corporation, or person desiring to lay, lower, change or remove any gas, water, or other pipe or pipes or to make connection therewith or to make any change, alteration, or improvement in the right-of-way on any street shall first apply to the City Engineer for a permit to enter upon such street, avenue, alley, or other public place of the City. Such application shall accurately describe the premises sought to be broken, dug, or excavated, and the applicant shall agree properly to guard the place which may be dug, broken, or excavated so as to protect the City from loss and all persons from accident and injury and to complete the work to be done with reasonable dispatch and when completed to notify the City Engineer; provided, that no such permit shall be issued by the City Engineer for the digging up, excavating or disturbing of any street, avenue, or alley of the City until the cost of replacing or repairing of the same shall first have been ascertained by him and paid by the applicant to the Director of Finance. The application shall be signed by the person, firm, or corporation or their or its duly authorized agent; and in addition to the other requirements herein prescribed shall recite that the person, persons, firm, or corporation to whom the same is issued will indemnify the City against any loss or damage in any way resulting to the City by the granting of the permit to such applicant.
Upon application for the permit required by Division 2 of this article being made in the manner required in the preceding section, the City Engineer shall issue a permit to the applicant as therein authorized. The City Engineer may, if not satisfied of the responsibility of the person seeking such permit, require of them a bond or such other guaranty as will protect the public and save and keep the City harmless.
Any public utility company failing to lay, repair, or renew mains, laterals, or service connections in accordance with the provisions of the two preceding sections shall be fined as provided in this Code, and each and every day such public utility company fails to comply with the provisions of such sections shall be deemed a separate offense.
That whenever any unimproved street, alley, or other public place in the City is hereafter to be permanently improved by paving, all owners or persons in control of lots, blocks, or tracts of land abutting, fronting, touching, or along and upon such street, streets, alleys, or public places shall before or at the time the street surface is torn up for the purpose of laying such pavement, remove or cause to be removed all wrought iron or steel water service pipes now in place from the City water mains to a point designated in the Plumbing ordinance where the curb box shall be located, and at once replace the same with Type "K" copper pipe, or cause the same to be so replaced, all at their own expense, one such service pipe to be laid for each lot or part of lot or tract of land having at the time such change is made a separate water service; and that such owners or persons in control of such property along the line of improvement to be made shall make or cause to be made such change in the water service pipes hereinbefore mentioned within five days from the time the street surface in front of their respective properties shall be first torn up to start on such improvement; and any person or persons failing, neglecting or refusing to comply with the provisions of this section shall, upon conviction forfeit and pay any sum not less than $10 nor more than $50.