The issuance of a grading permit shall constitute an authorization to do only that work which is described or illustrated on the application for the permit, or in the plans and specifications approved by the city engineer. The work shall be done in accordance with any conditions imposed by the city engineer and in accordance with the requirements of this article. Conditions imposed by the city engineer shall be shown on the grading plans under the heading "General Notes."
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
It shall be the responsibility of the permittee to know the conditions and/or restrictions placed on the grading permit and as outlined in applicable sections of this chapter, and as continued on the approved report(s) and to insure that all contractors, subcontractors, employees, agents and consultants are also knowledgeable of the same, and insure that they carry out the proposed work in accordance with the approved plans and specifications and with the requirements of the permit and this chapter. The permittee shall also be responsible to maintain in an obvious and accessible location on the site, a copy of the permit and grading plans bearing the approval of the city engineer.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
Every person doing land development shall meet such qualifications as may be determined by the city engineer to be necessary to protect the public interest. The city engineer may require an application for qualification which shall contain all information necessary to determine the person's qualifications to do the land development.
B. 
All land development work shall be performed by a contractor licensed by the state to perform the types of work required by permit.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
All grading operations, including the warming up, repair, arrival, departure or running of trucks, earth moving equipment, construction equipment and any other associated grading equipment shall be limited to the period between seven a.m. to six p.m. each day, Monday through Friday. No earth moving or grading operations shall be conducted on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays recognized by the city without written permission of the city engineer.
B. 
No grading shall be allowed between October 15th and the following April 15th on any site when the city engineer determines that erosion, mud flow or sediment discharge from grading may adversely affect downstream properties, drainage courses, storm drains, streets, easements, or public or private facilities or improvements unless an erosion control system approved by the city engineer has been implemented on the site to the satisfaction of the city engineer.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
The city engineer has the authority to temporarily suspend all work on a grading project and suspend the permit by issuing a written stop work order if he or she determines that field conditions present an immediate hazard or danger to life or property; if the work being done is contrary to the approved plans or conditions thereof; if the work being done under a grading permit issued for a subdivision or zoning permit is contrary or conflicting with any approved changes and/or modifications made to the originally approved or conditionally approved tentative map or zoning permit subsequent to the issuance of the grading permit; if there is lack of supervision of the grading operation, lack of engineering control, lack of soil engineering control or lack of dust or air pollution control; if archaeological or paleontological artifacts or resources are discovered; or for any other reason which in the city engineer's opinion, presents a threat to the public safety or welfare immediately, or in the future, or which may cause unstable earth conditions. This temporary suspension shall continue in effect until the hazard or condition is corrected to the satisfaction of the city engineer.
B. 
It shall be the responsibility of the owner to furnish any additional information, investigations and reports necessary to resolve the stop work order conditions. The owner shall pay for all work associated with furnishing these items, as well as any additional staff time in resolving the stop work order conditions.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
If the civil engineer, soil engineer, engineering geologist, landscape architect, the testing agency, or the grading contractor of record are changed during the course of the work, the work shall be stopped until:
1. 
The owner submits a letter of notification verifying the change of the responsible professional; and
2. 
The new responsible professional submits in writing that he or she has reviewed all prior reports and/or plans (specified by date and title) and work performed by the prior responsible professional, and that the responsible professional concurs with the findings, conclusions and recommendations and is satisfied with the work performed. The responsible professional must state that he or she assumes all responsibility within his or her purview as of a specified date.
B. 
All exceptions to subsections (A)(1) and (2) of this section must be approved by the city engineer.
C. 
Where clearly indicated that the firm, not the individual professional, is the contracting party, the designated engineer, architect or geologist may be reassigned and another individual of comparable professional accreditation within the firm may assume responsibility, without complying with the requirements of subsections (A)(1) and (2) of this section.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
Preparation of Ground. The ground surface shall be prepared to receive fill by removing vegetation, noncomplying fill, topsoil and other unsuitable materials, and by scarifying to a depth of one foot to provide a bond with the new fill. Where existing slopes exceed five feet in height and/or are steeper than 5:1, the ground shall be prepared by benching into sound bedrock or other competent material as determined by the soil engineer and approved by the city engineer. The lowermost bench beneath the toe of a fill slope on natural ground shall be a minimum ten feet in width and at least one foot into dense formational materials. The ground surface below the toe of the fill shall be prepared for sheet flow runoff, or a paved drain shall be provided.
B. 
Where fill is to be placed over an existing cut slope, the bench under the toe of the new fill shall be at least fifteen feet wide and shall meet the approval of the soil engineer and/or engineering geologist as a suitable foundation for fill.
C. 
Expansive Soils. Whenever expansive soils are encountered within three feet of the finish grade of any area intended or designed as a location for a building, the permittee shall cause expansive soil to be removed to a minimum depth of three feet below finish grade and replace with properly compacted, nonexpansive soil.
D. 
Fill Material. Any organic material shall not be permitted in fills.
E. 
Except as outlined in subsection F of this section, no rock or similar irreducible materials with a maximum dimension greater than eight inches shall be buried or placed in fills.
F. 
Unless the engineer properly devises a method of placement, continuously inspects placement and approves the soil stability and competency, the following conditions shall also apply:
1. 
Prior to issuance of the grading permit, potential rock disposal area(s) shall be delineated on the grading plan;
2. 
Rock sizes greater than eight inches in maximum dimension shall be at least six feet or more below grade, measured vertically, and ten feet measured horizontally from slope faces, and shall be two feet or more below the bottom of any utility pipeline;
3. 
When the design of the development or covenants and restrictions provide assurance that no structure or utilities will be placed on a precisely definable area, these dimensions may be reduced with the approval of the city engineer;
4. 
Rocks greater than eight inches shall be placed so as to be completely surrounded by soils; nesting of rocks will not be permitted.
G. 
All fill slopes shall be overfilled to a distance from finished slope face that will allow compaction equipment to operate freely within the zone of the finished slope, and then cut back to the finish grade to expose the compacted core. Alternate methods may be employed by the grading contractor subject to approval by the soil engineer and city engineer. In such instances, the grading contractor shall provide detailed specifications for the method of placement and compaction of the soil within a distance of an equipment width from the slope face.
H. 
Buttress/Stabilization Fills. Recommendations for buttress fills or stabilization fills by the soil engineer shall be accompanied by a report by the soils engineer or certified engineering geologist setting forth the soil or geologic factors necessitating the buttress/stabilization fill, stability calculations based on both static and pseudostatic conditions (pseudostatic loads need not normally be analyzed when bedding planes are flatter than twelve degrees from the horizontal), laboratory test data upon which the calculations are based, the buttress/stabilization fill, a scaled section of the buttress/stabilization fill and recommendations with details of subdrain requirements.
I. 
Utility Line Backfill. Backfills for on-site utility line trenches, such as water, sewer, gas and electrical services shall be compacted and tested in accordance with Section 18.08.780(D) of this chapter. Alternate materials and methods may be used for utility line backfills provided that the material specification and method of placement are recommended by the soil engineer and approved by the city engineer prior to back-filling.
J. 
The final utility line backfill report shall include a statement of compliance by the soil engineer that the tested backfill is suitable for the intended use.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
At any stage of grading work, whether an approved grading plan, or a grading permit is required, if the city engineer determines that authorized grading is likely to endanger any public or private property or result in the deposition of debris on any public way or interfere with any existing drainage course, the city engineer may specify and require reasonable safety precautions to avoid the danger. The permittee may be responsible for removing excess soil and debris deposited upon adjacent and downstream public or private property resulting from his or her grading operations. Soil and debris shall be removed and damage to adjacent and downstream property repaired as directed by the city engineer. Erosion and siltation control shall require temporary or permanent siltation basins, energy dissipaters, or other measures as field conditions warrant, whether or not such measures are a part of approved plans. Cost associated with any work outlined in this section shall be incurred by the permittee.
B. 
No off-site work will be required when, in the opinion of the city engineer, the permittee has properly implemented and maintained erosion control measures in accordance with the city's BMP Manual and the deposition of soil and debris or erosion on adjacent properties is the direct or indirect result of actions of the downstream property owner.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
During grading operations, the contractor and property owner shall take all necessary measures to eliminate any hazard resulting from the work to the public in its normal use of public property or right-of-way. Any fences or barricades installed shall be approved by the city engineer and shall be properly constructed and maintained. They shall separate the public from the hazard as long as the hazard exists.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
The following provisions of this section shall apply unless provision is made by a secured agreement pursuant to land development work done in conjunction with the authorized subdivision of property.
A. 
A property owner shall pay the city for all costs of placing, repairing, replacing or maintaining a city-owned facility within a public right-of-way when the city facility has been damaged or has failed as a result of the construction or existence of the owner's land development work during the progress of such work;
B. 
The costs of placing, replacing or maintaining the city-owned facility shall include the cost of obtaining an alternate easement if necessary;
C. 
The city engineer shall notify the property owner of such damage or failure as set forth in the provisions of this section. The city may withhold certification of the completion of a building or other permitted work where a notice has been issued.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
Notwithstanding the minimum standards set forth in this chapter, the permittee shall be responsible for the prevention of damage to adjacent property and no person shall excavate on land so close to the property line as to endanger any adjoining public street, sidewalk, alley or other public or private property without supporting and protecting such property from settling, cracking or other damage which might result.
B. 
In addition, each adjacent property owner is entitled to the lateral and adjacent support which his or her land receives from the adjoining land, subject to the right of the property owner of the adjoining land to make proper and usual excavations on the same for purposes of construction or improvement, under the following conditions:
1. 
Any owner of land or his or her lessee intending to permit or to make an excavation greater than ten feet in depth within ten feet of his or her property lines shall give reasonable notice to the owner or owners of land abutting the property lines affected by such excavation, stating the depth for which such excavation is intended to be made and when the excavation will begin;
2. 
In making any excavation, reasonable care and skill shall be used and reasonable precautions taken to ensure that the soil of adjoining property will not cave in or settle to the detriment of any building or other structure which may be thereon;
3. 
No land development work shall be approved which physically prevents the use of existing legal or physical and usable (in the opinion of the city engineer) access to any parcel.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
The owner of any property on which a fill or excavation has been made pursuant to a grading permit granted under the provisions of this chapter, or any other person or agent in control of such property shall maintain in good condition and repair all retaining walls, cribbing, drainage structures or means, temporary or permanent BMPs, and other protective devices pursuant to Chapter 8.48 or the BMP Manual, or as determined by the city engineer, and planting shown in the approved plans and specifications or in the as-graded drawings or as required by the grading permit. Facilities dedicated for use by the public and accepted for such use by a public agency are excepted.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
A. 
During grading operations the permittee shall be responsible for the prevention of damage to any public utilities or services.
B. 
The responsibility applies within the limits of grading and along any routes of travel of equipment.
C. 
Before starting any excavation work the permittee shall be responsible to contact Underground Service Alert, Incorporated and coordinate the proposed excavation with all interested utility companies, districts and agencies.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
The California Vehicle Code and this chapter forbid the placing, dumping or depositing of soil and rocks on the public streets or any portion of the public right-of-way. All vehicles engaged in hauling materials under the permit provisions of this chapter shall refrain from depositing soil or debris on the public streets by any means, including, but not limited to, spillage from the bed of a truck or other vehicle and debris collected on the wheels of the haul vehicle. The city engineer may require a cash deposit to insure the cleanup of public streets.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
The contractor/permittee conducting any earth moving operation under this chapter shall be responsible for controlling dust created by its grading operations or activities at all times.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
The permittee conducting any earth-moving operation under this chapter which requires vehicles to haul earth materials on any public street shall be responsible for the complete removal of such materials (soil, mud or other material) from the street, if spilled, dumped or deposited on a public street. If the permittee fails to completely remove such spillage, the city engineer may order the necessary removal work. The permittee and the surety shall be firmly bound under a continuing obligation for payment of all costs incurred or expended by the city pursuant to Sections 18.08.500 and 18.08.530.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
All existing survey monuments shall be shown on the grading plan. Evidence indicating that arrangements have been made for the preservation and/or relocation of existing monuments shall be submitted to the city engineer prior to issuance of a grading permit.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)
If any archaeological or paleontological resources are discovered during grading operations, such operations shall cease immediately and the permittee shall notify the city engineer of the discovery. Grading operations shall not recommence until the permittee has received written authority from the city engineer to do so.
(Ord. 371 § 1, 2008; Ord. 428 § 1, 2015)