The purpose of this chapter is:
A. To provide minimum standards to
safeguard persons, protect property and promote the general welfare
by preventing excess erosion, hazardous rock and soil slippage, sediment
production and other soil and water management problems by regulating
and controlling the design, construction, quality of materials, use,
location, and maintenance of grading, excavations and fills.
B. To establish performance standards
which ensure land use practices respectful of the natural topography
and capabilities of the land.
C. To encourage maximum retention
of natural topography and vegetative features on hillsides.
D. To prevent earth flow and rockfall
landslides.
E. To encourage imaginative and innovative
site development and building design that adapts to and takes advantage
of the best use of the natural terrain.
This chapter concerns new grading, excavation and fills; and
changes, additions or alterations made in existing excavations, fills
and embankments, which shall conform to the provisions of this chapter.
The Prospect Borough Council shall designate the Code Enforcement
Officer or his authorized representative for review, approval and
granting of grading permits, and to make inspections of the grading
work.
An approved site plan, a building permit or both are prerequisite
to the granting of any grading permit.
A grading permit shall not be required for any of the following:
A. An excavation which does not exceed one foot in vertical depth at its deepest point measured from the natural ground surface and covers a surface area of less than 500 cubic yards, provided that the surfaces of such excavation do not have a slope at any point steeper than four horizontal to one vertical. However, this subsection shall not be deemed to nullify the application of this chapter, or any requirement for obtaining a grading permit, with respect to any fill made with material from such an excavation, unless otherwise excepted by Subsections
B and
C of this section.
B. A fill which does not exceed 20
cubic yards of material on any one site.
C. Fill which is not intended to
support structures and does not exceed one foot in vertical depth
at its deepest point measured from the natural ground surface and
does not cover an area of more than 500 square feet, provided that
the surface of such fills do not have a slope at any point steeper
than four horizontal to one vertical and does not obstruct a drainage
course.
D. An excavation below finished grade for basements and footings of a building, swimming pool or underground structure authorized by a building permit and an excavation of a driveway between a building site and the street. However, this subsection shall not be deemed to nullify the application of this chapter, or any requirement for obtaining a grading permit, with respect to any fill made with the material from such an excavation unless otherwise excused by Subsections
B and
C of this section.
E. Soil excavated under the authorization
of a properly issued building permit, which is temporarily stockpiled
on the same site as the excavation. If, however, excavated material
is stockpiled on a site for a period of longer than 120 days, then
a permit shall be necessary when disposing of the fill material.
F. A building site improved under authorization of a properly issued building permit where the maximum natural gradient between property lines or the maximum excavation or fill, exclusive of the situations referred to in Subsection
D above, do not exceed the grades or quantities set forth in the following table:
One-Family House Site Area of Lot
(square feet)
|
Maximum Gradient Without Permit
|
Maximum Excavation or Fill Without Permit
(cubic yards)
|
---|
Less than 10,000
|
20 in 100 feet
|
10
|
10,000 to 24,000
|
25 in 100 feet
|
20
|
24,000 to 44,000
|
25 in 100 feet
|
40
|
Over 44,000
|
30 in 100 feet
|
50
|
G. Exploratory excavations under
the direction of a soils engineer or engineering geologist.
H. Excavations for wells, tunnels,
public utilities or cemetery graves.
I. A permit shall not be required
for work performed by the Borough, or of contractors employed by the
Borough in a public street or alley, Borough park, playground or recreation
area or on other Borough property.
For the purpose of this chapter, certain terms and words are
herein defined:
ADMINISTRATOR
Code Enforcement Officer or his authorized representative.
APPLICANT
Any landowner or agent of a landowner who proposes to make
or causes to be made any excavation, fill or any combination thereof
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
ARCHITECT
A registered architect licensed as such in the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
BEDROCK
Natural rock layer, hard or soft, in place at ground surface
or beneath unconsolidated surficial deposits.
ENGINEER
A registered professional engineer in the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania, and knowledgeable in civil engineering.
ENGINEERING GEOLOGIST
A person who holds a degree in geology from an accredited
college or university and who has training and experience in the field
of engineering geology.
EROSION
The detachment and movement of soil or rock fragments by
water, wind, ice or gravity, including such processes as gravitational
creep.
EXCAVATION
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other similar
material is cut into, dug, quarried, uncovered, removed, displaced,
relocated or bulldozed and shall include the conditions resulting
therefrom.
EXCESSIVE SLOPE
Shall be defined as either of the following: those slopes
as identified on the soil group map as steep slopes of 25% or more;
or any virgin area where, in a one-hundred-foot horizontal distance,
the average slope exceeds 25%.
FILL AND EMBANKMENT
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other material
is deposited, placed, pushed, dumped, pulled, transported or moved
to a new location, including the condition resulting therefrom.
FLOODPLAIN
Areas designated by the Federal Emergency Management Administration
and other areas known to be subject to flooding.
GRADE
The elevation of the existing or proposed ground surface
at the location of any proposed excavation or fill.
GRADING
Excavation or fill, or any combination thereof, including
the conditions resulting from any excavation or fill.
GRADING PERMIT
Any permit required pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
GRADING, ENGINEERED
A grading operation in excess of 500 cubic yards and performed
in conformance with a grading plan prepared by a professional engineer.
GRADING, REGULAR
A grading operation of less than 500 cubic yards. Where the
site conditions warrant, the Code Enforcement Officer or his authorized
representative may require the submission of a report on the site
as prepared by professional engineer, soils engineer or engineering
geologist.
HAZARD
Any danger or potential danger to life, limb or health, or
any adverse effect or potential adverse effect to the safety, use
or stability of property, waterways, public ways, structures, utilities
and storm sewers, including stream pollution.
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
A landscape architect licensed as such in the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
LANDSLIDE-PRONE SOILS
Those soil formations whose characteristics are classified
as being landslide-prone or otherwise sensitive in the Soil Survey
of Butler County.
PERMIT HOLDER
Any landowner, agent of said landowner, or tenant with the
permission of said landowner who has been granted a grading permit
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
RETAINING WALL
A structure composed of concrete, steel or other approved
building material constructed for the purpose of supporting a cut
or filled embankment which would otherwise not comply with the requirements
of standards set forth in this chapter, and which is more than two
feet in height as measured on the exposed vertical surface of the
wall.
SITE
A lot, tract or parcel of land, but may be a series of lots,
tracts or parcels of land which are adjoining and with respect to
which grading work is to be continuous and performed at the same time.
SLOPE
The angle of the existing or proposed ground surface plane
to the horizontal expressed as the ratio of the horizontal to the
vertical, or in percentage of slope (rise or fall per 100 feet).
SOIL SURVEY
The Soil Survey of Butler County, Pennsylvania, as prepared
by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
SOILS ENGINEER
A registered professional engineer in the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania having training and experience in soils engineering.
SOLID WASTE
Any and all parts or combination of ashes, garbage, refuse,
radioactive material, combustible demolition materials and industrial
wastes such as food processing wastes, wood, plastic, metal scrap,
and other such materials whose disposal is regulated by the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection.
STORMWATER MANAGEMENT
The control of surface water runoff as regulated by Chapter
257, Stormwater Management, of the Code of the Borough of Prospect.
SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE
The Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance, as amended, being Chapter
268 of the Code of the Borough of Prospect.
ZONING ORDINANCE
The Zoning Ordinance, as amended, being Chapter
310 of the Code of the Borough of Prospect.
Unless otherwise expressly stated, the terms and words shall,
for the purpose of this chapter, have the meaning herein indicated.
Words used in the singular number include the plural, and words in
the plural include the singular; words in the masculine gender include
the feminine and neuter, and the word "building" includes the word
"structure," and the word "structure" includes the word "building."
In the event that the applicant will move or grade an area of more than 50,000 square feet, or grade more than 10,000 cubic yards, then a formal agreement will be prepared by the applicant at his own cost and expense, and must be approved as to form by the Borough Solicitor. Said agreement may be a part of, and incorporated in, a developer's agreement as required by Chapter
268, Subdivision and Land Development, of the Code of the Borough of Prospect.
Every grading permit shall expire and become null and void if
the work authorized by said permit has not been commenced within 90
days or is not completed within one year from the date of issue, provided
that the Code Enforcement Officer or his authorized representative
may, if the permit holder presents satisfactory evidence that unusual
difficulties have prevented work from being started or completed within
the specified time limits, grant a reasonable extension of time, and
provided further, that the application for the extension of time is
made before the date of expiration of the permit.
Any physical changes from the original plan uncovered in the
site during the construction, such as surface water drainage, soil
and bedrock dislocations, alteration of groundwater discharge or any
other natural or man-made modification which would tend to undermine
the basis upon which the permit was issued, must be immediately reported
to the Code Enforcement Officer or his authorized representative by
the permit holder. If the circumstances dictate, the Code Enforcement
Officer or his authorized representative shall revoke the permit or
otherwise modify the conditions upon which the permit was initially
issued.
If, upon final inspection of the site for which a permit has
been issued, it is found that the work is authorized by the grading
permit has been satisfactorily completed in accordance with the requirements
of this chapter, a grading certificate of completion covering such
work and stating that the work is approved, shall be issued to the
permit holder by the Code Enforcement Officer or his authorized representative.
The following working conditions will apply to all grading sites:
A. Dust control. During grading
operations, acceptable measures for dust control will be exercised.
B. Protection of public facilities.
All public utilities and roadways shall be protected in the design
of and during the grading operation. Construction equipment shall
not be operated on public roads without the placement of protective
mats. Aggregate driveway or roadway surfaces shall be provided to
prevent tracking of dirt and mud onto the public roadways.
C. Cleanup. All soil washed or carried
onto public streets during grading operations shall be cleaned up
as it accumulates. The owner of the property being graded shall be
responsible to protect and clean up lower properties of silt and debris
which have washed down into the lower properties as a result of the
grading work on higher property.
D. Workdays. None of the work or
activity covered by a grading permit shall be conducted on a Sunday
or legal holidays without the approval from the Code Enforcement Officer
or his authorized representative.
E. Work hours. All of the work and
activity covered by a grading permit shall be conducted between the
hours of 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., prevailing times, unless these time
limits are extended, excused or otherwise modified by the Code Enforcement
Officer or his authorized representative.
All grading work within designated or known floodplains shall conform to the requirements and standards of Chapter
152, Floodplain Management, of the Code of the Borough of Prospect.
In case any work is performed by any person in violation of
any of the provisions of this chapter, the proper officers of the
Borough in addition to other remedies, may institute, in the name
of the Borough, an appropriate action or proceeding, whether by legal
process or otherwise, to prevent such unlawful work and to restrain
or abate such violation.