[Adopted 12-11-1984 by Ord. No. 1449]
The purpose of this article is to:
A. 
Provide minimum standards to safeguard persons, to protect property and promote public welfare by regulating and controlling the construction, quality of materials, maintenance and administrative procedures for the permitting, installation and connection of building sewers to the public sewers within the Borough of McKees Rocks.
B. 
Prohibit the connection of storm sewers, site drainage, building foundation drains, and roof drains to building sanitary sewers.
[Added 7-8-2003 by Ord. No. 1634]
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the meaning of the terms used within this article shall be as follows:
BOROUGH
The Borough of McKees Rocks.
BUILDING SEWER
The conduit which conveys wastewater from any property, dwelling, commercial business, industrial complex or institution beginning five feet outside the inner face of the building wall and extending to and including the point of connection to the public sewer or place of disposal.
PERSON
Any natural person, association, partnership, school district, authority, hospital, charitable institution, firm or corporation. The singular shall include the plural and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.
PUBLIC SEWER
The common conduit which conveys wastewater and is controlled by the Borough or other governmental agency.
STORM SEWER
The conduit which conveys stormwater, site drainage, building foundation drains, and roof drains from any property, residential or commercial dwellings, or industrial complex from the site or building extending to the connection with the public storm sewer or combination sewer.
[Added 7-8-2003 by Ord. No. 1634]
SECRETARY
The qualified and duly appointed individual designated from time to time by the Council of McKees Rocks.
SEWAGE
The wastewater generated from a residence, commercial business, industrial complex or institution.
A. 
Every property in the Borough adjoining or abutting any street, alley or right-of-way in which a public storm sewer or combination sewer is now or shall hereafter be located, shall have its storm sewers separately connected from a point beginning at the building or site drainage collection to the public storm sewer or combination sewer. After the effective date of this article, all new construction shall discharge surface water and/or roof drainage water separately into the public storm or combination sewer. No existing property or building shall discharge into the sewer system, without a separate connection any stormwater surface water or roof drainage water in excess of that presently discharging into the system. Any existing building or property, which replaces its existing plumbing system, shall be required to separate the storm and sanitary flows to the point of connection with the public sewer.
[Amended 7-8-2003 by Ord. No. 1634]
B. 
If the owner of any property, after 45 days' notice from the Borough should fail to connect any such property to the public sewer, the Borough may make such connection and may collect the costs incurred for such work from the owner by action of a municipal claim as is provided for by law.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
C. 
No unauthorized person shall make or cause to be made any connections with opening into, use alteration or disturbance of any public sewer or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining a written permit from the Borough Secretary.
D. 
Any person desiring to make any installation, connection or alteration of a building sewer shall, in any case, make application on a special permit application form furnished by the Borough. The permit application shall be supplemented by any plans, specifications, or other information considered pertinent in the judgement of the Borough Secretary and/or the Borough Engineer. A permit and inspection fee of $400 shall be paid to the Borough at the time the application is filed.
E. 
Where it is necessary that any excavation be made within any street, right-of-way, or alley owned by the Borough, the applicant shall obtain a street opening permit to excavate in the street, alley, or right-of-way in accordance with the Borough ordinance(s) regulating the same.
F. 
All costs and expenses incidental to the installation and connection of the building sewer shall be borne by the owner(s). The owner(s) shall indemnify the Borough from any loss or damage to any person or property that be attributed to the installation of the building sewer.
G. 
All excavations for building sewer installations shall be adequately guarded with barricades and lights so as to protect the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks and other public property, which is disturbed during the course of the work, shall be restored in a manner satisfactory to the Borough.
H. 
Any applicant under this article shall give notice to the Borough Secretary of at least three working days prior to the construction, excavation or alteration of any public or building sewer in order that the Superintendent of Public Works and/or the Borough Engineer or their authorized representatives can schedule, inspect and supervise any such work.
I. 
All building sewers shall be at least six-inch internal diameter and shall be installed in strict accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations and the requirements of the Borough Engineer. The slope of the pipe, unless otherwise approved by the Borough Engineer, shall be not less than 1/4 inch per foot. In all cases of the bottom quadrant of the entire length of the pipe shall be uniformly supported by a gravel bed of at least four inches. The materials used and construction procedures followed for the installation of any building sewer shall be in full accordance with the requirements of the Allegheny County Plumbing Code and/or other applicable municipal, county or state requirements and any additions, revisions or deletions hereinafter set forth.
J. 
It shall be the responsibility of the person making application under this article for the construction and installation of the building sewer(s) to the point of connection to the public sewer.
K. 
After the installation and before covering of the building sewer and/or tap-in to the public sewer, it shall be the responsibility of the person making application under this article to have such work inspected by the Allegheny County Health Department, Division of Plumbing. Said applicant shall obtain from the County Plumbing Inspector a certificate of inspection and shall display such certificate to the Borough's Superintendent of Public Works, Borough Engineer, and/or any of their authorized representatives.
L. 
It shall be the responsibility of any property owner within the Borough to maintain and protect from damage the building sewer from their premises to and including the point of connection to the public sewer. If it is found that, in the judgment of the Borough Engineer, that due to such damage or lack of maintenance that such conditions exist that would endanger public property, health, safety, or welfare, the Borough may, without notice to the owner, undertake such repairs and/or maintenance of such building sewer and collect the costs incurred for such work from the owner by action of a municipal claim as provided for by law.
M. 
No privy, vault, cesspools, septic tanks or similar receptacles for human excrement shall at any time, now or hereafter, be maintained upon any premises within the Borough where public sewers are accessible.
N. 
Old building sewers may be used in connection with new buildings only when they are found by examination and tested by the Superintendent of Public Works or the Borough Engineer and/or either of their duly appointed representatives to be sound, adequately sized and adapt to the particular installation and meet the requirements of this article.
The Superintendent of Public Works and the Borough Engineer and/or either of their duly appointed representatives bearing proper credentials shall be permitted to enter upon all properties for the purpose of inspection, observation, measurement, sampling and testing relating to the enforcement of the provisions of this article.
A. 
Any person found to be violating any provision of this article shall (except as herein noted otherwise) be served with written notice stating the nature of the violation and providing a reasonable time limit for the satisfactory correction thereof. The offender shall, within the period of time stated in such notice, permanently cease all violations.
B. 
Any person who shall continue any violation beyond the time limit provided for in § 542-33A shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000, plus court costs and reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the Borough in the enforcement proceedings. Upon judgment against any person by summary conviction, or by proceedings by summons on default of the payment of the fine or penalty imposed and the costs, the defendant may be sentenced and committed to the Borough correctional facility for a period not exceeding 10 days or to the county correctional facility for a period not exceeding 30 days. Each day that such violation exists shall constitute a separate offense, and each section of this article that is violated shall also constitute a separate offense. In addition to or in lieu of enforcement under this section, the Borough may enforce this article in equity in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
C. 
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall become liable to the Borough for any expense, loss, or damage occasioned the Borough by reason of such violation.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this article is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not effect the validity of the remaining portions of this article.
Any ordinance or part of ordinances in conflict with the provisions of this article are hereby repealed to the extent of such conflict.