[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Clementon 11-12-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-19. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The requirements set forth herein shall apply for the development of all lots within the Borough of Clementon, whether for residential or commercial purposes.
The developer of a tract of land in the Borough must provide grading plans for each lot that involves grading or disturbing of land area of more than 500 square feet. The grading plans shall contain all the information required below in the grading plan checklist, which shall be made available to all applicants in the form that follows. The developer must submit a completed grading plan checklist with the application for development.
The following shall be the grading plan checklist. The applicant must complete this checklist and supply the required information.
BOROUGH OF CLEMENTON GRADING PLAN CHECKLIST
In accordance with Borough Ordinance No. 2024-19, any development projects within the Borough which involve grading or disturbing of land area of more than 500 square feet shall require a review of a grading plan. Applications shall be accompanied by a grading plan, submitted in triplicate, conforming to the standards contained within.
Applicants will be notified if their grading plan submission is found deficient and will be requested to provide additional information within 30 working days. If additional information is not submitted within this time period, the application will be considered incomplete and will be denied by the Zoning Officer.
GRADING PLAN CHECKLIST
1.
Must have a title block indicating the address of the site, lot and block designation and be titled "GRADING PLAN." The title block must contain the name, address, and telephone number of the preparer. The plan must also contain the name and address of the applicant.
2.
Must be signed and sealed (embossed) by a land surveyor, professional engineer or architect licensed in the State of New Jersey. See plan signature requirements at end of checklist.
3.
Must have note on the plan specifying the vertical datum year. If an assumed datum is used, a conversion equation must be indicated on the plan.
4.
Must be legible and of sufficient scale and quality to be reproducible.
5.
Property lines, easements, and setbacks must have bearings and dimensions of property lines, width and purpose of the easements and building setback lines in accordance with the Zoning Ordinance.[1] Also, abutting properties must be identified by lot and block numbers.
6.
Right-of-way improvements must be shown on the plan, including width of right-of-way and cartway, location of existing/proposed curb, driveway aprons and sidewalks along the frontage of the property as well as adjacent properties.
7.
Pertinent information related to the existing/proposed site improvements such as elevation of center line of roadway, top of curb and gutter, sidewalk and driveway apron shall be shown on the grading plan. Where no curb exists, pavement edge elevation should be provided.
8.
All work to be performed within the Borough right-of-way will require the appropriate municipal right-of-way opening permits. The Clementon Borough Department of Public Works shall be notified 48 hours in advance of any construction activity.
9.
Must include contour lines at one-foot intervals and spot elevations of high and low points within property and 10 feet beyond property lines. Contour lines must clearly show existing characteristics of topography such as existence of lawn swales, ditches, ridgelines and general pattern of drainage flow. Where grade changes and fill are involved, proposed conditions must be superimposed.
10.
Must show lot layout, including all structures and other site improvements, with overall dimensions of structures, offset distances from property lines and location of driveways, fences, pools, decks, retaining walls, etc.
11.
Drainage for the total site shall be positive. Lawn areas with gradients of at least 2% shall be sloped away from building foundations. Grassed lawn swales, with a desirable slope of 2% but in no case less than 1.5%, shall direct surface runoff toward the frontage road or other defined drainage paths. Grading shall not impact adjacent properties by diversion of surface runoff.
12.
Proposed drainage patterns shall be denoted with flow arrows. Spot elevations shall be provided along major drainage paths.
13.
Slopes shall not be steeper than three horizontal to one vertical. Slopes shall be well rounded at top and bottom to reduce the possibility of erosion. Steeper grade changes shall be confined by retaining structures or other acceptable methods. Terracing is permitted.
14.
Top of an excavation and/or toe of slope of a fill section shall not be closer than five feet to an adjoining property line or structure.
15.
Proposed grading shall not extend beyond the property lines unless the written consent of the adjacent owner is obtained through a temporary construction easement.
16.
Driveways shall not have a slope greater than 10% Where site conditions require a greater slope, a design waiver may be requested.
New Structure or Addition
17.
The lot shall be graded to direct surface runoff toward the frontage road or other defined drainage paths. Where it is intended to slope the lot toward the frontage road, finish floor of the proposed dwelling shall be set at an elevation to allow for a minimum slope of 2% to the maximum pavement gutter elevation occurring along the frontage of the lot. Finish grades at the foundation perimeter shall be a minimum of 21 inches below the first floor elevation.
18.
Elevations of first floor and garage, as well as finished grades at all building openings and corners, must be shown.
19.
Location of existing/proposed utility service connections (sanitary and water) must be shown. Cleanout vent for sanitary lateral should be shown in the park strip between the curb and sidewalk, if it exists. Otherwise, the vent shall be shown within six feet of the right-of-way line, also must show proposed invert of cleanout.
Swimming Pools and Ornamental Ponds
20.
The lot shall be graded to direct surface runoff toward the frontage road or other defined drainage paths. Finish deck elevations shall be set above the natural grade occurring on the lot to prevent surface water from flowing into the pool or pond.
21.
Plan must have pertinent information related to elevations of the existing/proposed site improvements such as proposed pool deck, finish floor of the dwelling, finished grades at all building openings and corners, top of curb and gutter, sidewalk and driveway.
22.
Plan must show limits of fill and land disturbance. In no case shall fill be placed so as to interrupt existing drainage patterns or within five feet of the property line. In no case shall fill be placed within an easement.
23.
Swimming pools and ponds shall be considered impervious surfaces. In no case shall an in-ground pool or concrete surface surrounding an in-ground pool or an aboveground pool or pool decking be placed within an easement. The grading plan shall ensure that the proposed swimming pool will not cause an increase in runoff to adjacent property owners.
Soil Erosion and Sediment Control
24.
All disturbed land within or adjacent to the work area, which is the result of the contractor's operation, shall be stabilized in accordance with the Standards for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control in New Jersey. All grading and soil stabilization shall be completed within 30 days from the issuance of the permit. A note to this effect shall be added to the plan.
25.
Stockpiling of material and debris within the right-of-way area is not permitted. The roadway shall be swept clean of all earth and debris at all times.
26.
Any retaining structures which must retain more than four feet of material, or for rip-rap bank protection which is steeper than three horizontal to one vertical, must have calculations prepared by a licensed professional engineer certifying the stability of the structure.
27.
Details of all proposed site improvements such as landscape or retaining structures, drainage facilities, etc., shall be submitted with and become part of this application. All proposed site improvements, which are subject to building codes, shall be submitted for review to determine compliance with applicable standards.
As-Built Plan
28.
Following completion of all grading and drainage work, the applicant must submit two copies of an as-built survey, prepared by a New Jersey licensed surveyor, with final grades, and request a final inspection. If any discrepancy exists between the grading plan and actual construction, the developer will be required to perform any necessary site work to correct the deficiency. All as-built site work must be done in conformity with the approved grading plans.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 33 U.S.C. § 1344.
A. 
The Borough Engineer shall be responsible for the review and approval of grading plans.
B. 
After receipt of the as-built survey, the Borough Engineer shall inspect the final grade. No certificate of occupancy shall be issued by the Borough until the Borough Engineer issues a written compliance letter to the Zoning Officer that grading has been completed per the approved grading plan.
C. 
All grading work shall be completed within 180 calendar days from the issuance of the building permit.
The person to whom this chapter applies must pay the following fees to the for application, review and inspection of the site:
A. 
Application fee: $35.
B. 
Review fee. An engineering fee in the amount of $500 shall be paid at the time of submission of a grading plan review (per lot) for the payment of the Borough Engineer's grading plan review.
C. 
Inspection fee. An inspection fee of $250 per lot shall be submitted by the applicant to be utilized for the payment of the Borough Engineer's inspection of the site in accordance with this chapter.
D. 
Reinspection fee. A reinspection fee of $150 shall be paid to the Borough of Clementon for any reinspection of a grading plan in the event the initial inspection shall reveal errors/omissions and construction not in accordance with the approved plan(s). Each reinspection shall be charged a $150 reinspection fee.
E. 
Stormwater management system review/inspection fees. A fee of $500 per individual grading plan shall be submitted by the applicant to be utilized for the payment of the Borough Engineer's review and inspection of any stormwater management system. The applicant must contact the Borough Engineer's office for inspection of the installation of the stormwater management systems during construction of same. Forty-eight-hour notice is required.
F. 
Stormwater management system, reinspection fee. A fee of $150 shall be paid to the Borough Engineer for any reinspection of the construction of the stormwater management system in the event that initial inspection shall reveal errors/omissions and construction not in accordance with the approved plan and Borough regulations. Each reinspection shall be charged a $150 reinspection fee.
G. 
All fees paid under this chapter shall be paid to Clementon Borough.