[HISTORY: Adopted by the Annual Town Meeting of the Town
of Alfred 6-15-2019 by ATM Art. No. 45. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as and may be cited as the "Ordinance
for the Control and Regulation of Public Highway Excavations within
the Town of Alfred" and shall be referred to herein as "this chapter."
The purpose of this chapter is to control and regulate any and
all excavations upon or in any public highway within the municipality.
Nothing in this chapter shall apply to the municipality's
Public Works Department or to any state or state aid highway construction
and/or maintenance.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following words shall have
the meanings indicated. Words not herein defined shall have their
commonly accepted meanings.
A person, as defined in this section, who makes application
for a highway excavation permit, or any representative of said person(s).
The form or document supplied by the municipality upon which
an applicant shall supply all information required to apply for an
excavation permit.
Any day of any given week, except Saturday, Sunday or any
holiday observed by the municipality.
An immediate excavation necessary to prevent personal injury,
death or the loss of disruption of a private or public utility or
service. The applicant shall have the burden of proving that such
an emergency exists.
Any operation in which earth, rock, paving or like material
on, around or below the surface of the ground is moved, displaced,
dug, trenched, tunneled or in any similar manner disturbed, except
the agricultural tilling of soil or gardening.
Any Town way or public easement, including any sidewalks
located within the boundaries of the way or easement.
The Board of Selectmen of the municipality.
The Town of Alfred.
The form or document supplied by the municipality after approval
of an application for highway excavation.
That person who has obtained a permit for the excavation
of a highway and shall include any employee(s) or representative(s)
of the said person.
An individual, partnership, private or public organization,
utility, joint venture or corporation and includes any employee of
said person.
That individual elected by Town Meeting or appointed by the
municipal officers. The Road Commissioner may appoint or designate
any appropriate person to act in his/her stead.
Any item of personal property buried or placed below ground
for use in connection with the storage or conveyance of water, sewage,
electronic, telephonic, telegraphic or any other type of communications,
electric energy, oil, gas or other substances and including, but not
limited to, pipes, sewers, conduits, cables, valves, lines, wires,
manholes, attachments, appurtenances and those parts of poles below
ground. This definition shall not include highway drainage culverts.
The municipality requires that any person wishing to cause an
excavation of any highway of the municipality shall first obtain a
permit from the municipality, except as provided below.
No permit shall be given for the excavation of new construction
or major maintenance for five years after completion of said construction
unless for emergency excavation. Where the Town contemplates road
construction or major pavement maintenance such as overlay or recycling,
notice to owners of property not serviced by facilities within the
street shall be given by the Selectmen or their appointed representative.
Upon said notice, such owners shall make appropriate arrangements
with the respective utility districts to have services extended to
said property if utilities are located within 200 feet of the nearest
property corner. Failure to provide such utility service shall result
in any future utility service connection work being considered nonemergency.
A person who wishes to cause an excavation in any road, street
or thruway located outside the compact line established by the Maine
Department of Transportation, including but not limited to Route 111,
Route 202 and Route 4, must first acquire any required application
and permit from the Maine Department of Transportation.
The excavation application shall include the following:
A.
Name of applicant(s).
B.
Date of application.
C.
Address of applicant.
D.
Location of planned excavation (road name and number).
E.
Purpose and description of the excavation.
F.
Identification of person who will perform the excavation and any
associated work.
G.
Date excavation is to start.
H.
Date of completion of excavation and associated work.
I.
A graphic description of the proposed project.
J.
Utilities and Dig Safe notified, if required.
K.
Location of any nearby churches, businesses, utility poles and/or
cemeteries.
L.
Type of highway surface and estimated area to be excavated.
M.
Name and address of insurance carrier providing liability insurance.
N.
Any other information required by the Selectmen or their appointed
representative due to the size, nature or location of any particular
excavation proposal.
Following review of the application and determination of compliance
with the requirements of this chapter, the Selectmen or their appointed
representative shall issue an excavation permit.
A.
There shall be permit fees as determined by the Board of Selectmen
prior to the issuance of an excavation permit.
B.
In addition, the following charges are hereby established in order
to cover the reasonable cost of resurfacing and/or repaving an excavation
opening and shall be paid to the municipality prior to the issuance
of any excavation permit.
During the project period there will be inspections done by
the person(s) designated by the Board of Selectmen. The number of
inspections required will be determined by the magnitude of the project
and will be stated on the application for permit. The fee for each
inspection will be $50.
The excavation permit shall be subject to the following conditions:
A.
Except for emergency excavations, as defined in § 132-4, no excavation permits will be issued between November 15 of any given year to April 15 of the following year.
B.
Prior to excavation, the pavement shall be saw-cut to provide straight
clean vertical joints. Any undermining of existing pavement shall
require an additional saw cut back to a point where the existing pavement
is fully-supported by existing materials.
C.
Responsibility for public safety surrounding the excavation site
rests exclusively with the permittee. Should the Selectmen or their
appointed representative feel that inadequate safety measures are
being used, he/she or they may direct corrective action, which the
permittee shall promptly undertake.
D.
The permittee shall be responsible for compliance with any applicable
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements.
E.
The permittee shall not be permitted to leave open, at any time,
any excavation trench without prior approval from the Selectmen or
their appointed representative. The permittee shall cause the excavation
to be fully and completely filled to the surface of the surrounding
highway before making any further excavation.
F.
Use subgrade backfill material (common borrow) compacted up to two
feet below the existing surface elevation that is consistent with
the existing subgrade material. Use a well-graded gravel box material
similar to the existing box materials for the "18 to 21" of fill directly
below the pavement. Unless otherwise permitted by the Road Commissioner,
backfilling and compaction of roadway and sidewalk subgrade materials
shall conform to MaineDOT Standard Specification 304.03 in order to
prevent future settling of roadway materials. The maximum compacted
thickness of any base or subbase course layer shall not exceed 12
inches. The material as spread shall be well-mixed with no pockets
of either fine or coarse material. Segregation of large or fine particles
will not be allowed. Common borrow materials shall conform to MaineDOT
Standard Specification 703.18 preventing frozen materials, perishable
rubbish, peat, and other unsuitable materials from being present in
excavation backfill. Should the contractor wish to route public traffic
over completed aggregate subbase course, permission must be granted
by the Road Commissioner. Should permission be granted, the aggregate
subbase course shall be constructed with a minimum one-inch surcharge
over finished pavement grade and signed with a "BUMP" sign. The contractor
shall bear full responsibility for and make all necessary repairs
to the subbase course until the repair is paved. When the surcharge
is removed, it may be placed in adjacent gravel shoulders. Removal
of the surcharge shall be followed immediately in succession by the
fine grading of the aggregate subbase and construction of the paving
course.
G.
Prior to the commencement of an excavation project, the permittee
shall obtain, and retain for the duration of the excavation project,
liability insurance in an amount no less than $1,000,000. The municipality
shall be named as an additional insured upon the policy, and the certificate
shall indicate that the policy shall not be canceled without 30 days'
prior notice to the municipality.
Any company performing any excavation in a Town way, repairs
and or installations or repairs of any underground infrastructure
may be required to provide a secured guarantee such as a job bond,
insurance certificate and/or escrow account for three years from the
date of completion of the work and shall be responsible for correcting
any defects in or repairs to such work. The contractor shall notify
the Selectmen or their appointed representative prior to correcting
any problems or making any repairs to the street opening during this
three-year period.
A utility company, including but not limited to cable television,
water, sewer, telephone, gas or power, performing a major opening
may obtain permission from the Selectmen or their appointed representative
to perform its own repairs in accordance with the specifications established
in this chapter. Any utility company performing its own repairs may
be required to provide a secured guarantee such as a job bond, insurance
certificate and/or escrow account for three years from the date of
completion of the work and shall be responsible for correcting any
defects in or repairs to such work. The utility shall notify the Selectmen
or their appointed representative prior to correcting any problems
or making any repairs to the street opening during this three-year
period.
A.
When an excavation made in any highway subject to this chapter has
been backfilled, in accordance with § 132-13F of this chapter,
and upon the direction of the Selectmen or their appointed representative,
the municipality shall cause the excavation trench to be patched with
premixed bituminous material hot mixed asphalt on those highways which
had been previously paved. In those instances where the highway surface
is gravel, the excavator shall grade and maintain a level travel surface.
B.
Use a current-year 12.5-millimeter (1/2 inch) Maine DOT approved
mix design pavement for the work.
C.
The contractor shall apply a coating of emulsified asphalt (tack)
immediately before paving all joints to the vertical face.
D.
Placed pavement depth shall be no less than five inches of compacted
pavement.
E.
Loose lift depths of 12.5-millimeter HMA pavement shall not exceed
two inches.
F.
Pavement compaction shall be accomplished using a vibratory roller
or plate compactor.
G.
Pavement shall not be placed on a wet paved surface or placed on
a paved surface while it is raining. Pavement may be placed on a gravel
subgrade surface in instances where the rainfall does not compromise
the temperature of the mix and there is o standing water on the gravel
surface.
Violations of this chapter may result in the imposition of any
one or more of the following provisions:
A.
Any person who causes an excavation in any highway, subject to this
chapter, without first obtaining a permit may be punished by a fine
of $500 as provided in 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452(3) for each
offense. Each day of each such violation shall constitute a separate
offense.
B.
Any person who causes an excavation of any highway, subject to this chapter, in violation of the requirements of §§ 132-13, 132-14, 132-15 and 132-16 of this chapter may be punished by a fine of $500 as provided in 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452(3) for each offense. Each day of each such violation shall constitute a separate offense.
C.
If the backfilling or repair of any excavation permitted in accordance with § 132-13 F of this chapter is improperly executed under this chapter and the permittee fails or refuses to correct such work after oral notification by the municipality, the municipality shall cause such work to be corrected. The permittee shall reimburse the municipality for 150% of the costs incurred by the municipality in undertaking such corrective work. The municipality shall not issue any excavation permits to any person who owes the municipality any sums under this section.
The Selectmen or their appointed representative shall enforce
this chapter. Once the Selectmen or their appointed representative
has determined that a violation of any provision of this chapter has
occurred, the Selectmen or their appointed representative may take
any one or more of the following actions:
A.
Refer the matter to the Town Attorney for legal action.
B.
Issue a stop-work and corrective action order.
C.
Take any corrective action necessary to remedy any defect or danger
created by the unauthorized or improperly executed excavation when
the permittee fails to correct such defect or danger upon notice from
the municipality.
In any enforcement action under this chapter brought in a court
of competent jurisdiction within this state in which the municipality
is the prevailing party, the municipality shall be entitled, in addition
to any equitable relief, to all costs and expenses incurred in the
enforcement action, including but not limited to reasonable attorneys'
fees, and such other relief as the court deems proper under 30-A M.R.S.A.
§ 4452.
In any project where any variation occurs outside of the scope
of this ordinance, the Selectmen or their appointed representative
shall review and add or change specifications necessary to meet the
variation of the project and list those on the permit application
before approval.
