[Amended 6-26-2002 by L.L. No. 6-2002]
Pursuant to § 130, Subdivision 6,
of the Town Law of the State of New York and in addition to all requirements
of the Highway Law of the State of New York, the following requirements
are hereby enacted.
No person, firm, association, corporation or
municipality, except officials and employees of the Town of LaGrange
in the conduct of their official duties or contractors employed by
the Town of LaGrange, shall dig, excavate or tunnel under any public
street, highway, sidewalk or other public place or shall permit, allow
or participate in digging, excavating or tunneling under any such
public street, highway, sidewalk or public place in said Town of LaGrange
without first having been granted a permit to do so as hereinafter
provided.
[Amended 7-22-2009 by L.L. No. 2-2009]
A. All applications
for permits hereunder shall be in writing, in duplicate, on such forms
as shall be provided by the Town and shall be approved, in writing,
by the Town Highway Superintendent and filed with the Town Clerk.
B. A sketch
of the proposed work shall be submitted, in duplicate, with each permit
application for approval by the Town Highway Superintendent. The sketch
shall show a plan view of the existing conditions at the site of the
proposed work and the proposed work, together with all necessary dimensions,
details and specifications.
C. The amount
of the permit fee shall be set forth on the prevailing fee schedule
adopted by resolution of the Town Board and as such schedule is modified
from time to time by resolution of the Town Board.
A. All such permits under this Part 4 shall be granted
pursuant to a resolution to that effect adopted by the Town Board
at a regular or special meeting thereof and shall be issued pursuant
to such resolution by the Town Clerk, who shall deliver such permit
to the applicant before any such excavating or tunneling shall be
started.
B. In cases of emergency, a temporary written permit
may be granted by the Town Highway Superintendent, who shall report
the granting and issuance of such temporary emergency permit and the
reason for granting the same to the Town Board at its next regular
meeting. An emergency within the meaning of this Part 4 shall include
only the location and repair of water or gas leaks or other dangerous
and wasteful conditions, but shall not include any condition of which
the time element alone shall be the grounds thereof. Any public service
corporation which has a bond filed, as herein required, may proceed
to excavate, locate and repair any leak or other dangerous condition
upon discovery without waiting for such emergency permit, but shall
apply for and receive such emergency permit before refilling such
excavation and in all other ways shall comply with the requirements
herein set forth.
Whenever a permit shall have been issued hereunder,
the applicant shall properly barricade such excavation, shall place
and maintain standard windproof lights and such signs and warning
devices so as to properly protect the public and shall erect and maintain
such other warnings or devices as the Town Highway Superintendent
may require. Upon the applicant's failure to do so, the Town Highway
Superintendent may install, as the agent of such applicant, such warnings
and lights as he deems necessary, and the costs thereof shall be paid
by the applicant and shall be collectible under the bond of such applicant
or by civil action therefor, but the installation of such warning
by the Town Highway Superintendent shall not increase the Town's liability
therefor.
Every such excavation for which a permit shall have been issued hereunder shall be backfilled in compacted layers of clean, well-graded run-of-bank gravel in a good and workmanlike manner and shall be adequately resurfaced with surfacing similar to the surrounding surfacing, and such work shall be completed within the time specified in such permit. All such work shall conform to the requirements of §
199-26, as applicable.
Whenever it appears from the application that
a permanently improved or paved highway, street, sidewalk or other
public place shall be taken up, broken or damaged in any way by reason
of the excavation or tunneling to be performed under such permit,
the applicant shall reimburse the Town for the cost of making the
necessary repairs thereto or of the replacement thereof. The Town
Highway Superintendent and Town Engineer shall estimate the cost thereof
in advance and report such estimates to the Town Board, who may require
a cash deposit in advance of the issuance of the permit of such estimated
amount. When the work shall have been completed, any unexpended balance
of such deposit shall be refunded to the depositor and such applicant
shall be liable for any additional amount which such work may cost,
if such deposit shall be inadequate. If no such deposit be required
and the Town Highway Superintendent shall be required to perform any
services or work or furnish any materials in refilling such excavations
or resurfacing any such public street, highway, sidewalk or other
public place, the expense thereof shall be a charge against the applicant,
and if the Town Highway Superintendent fails, neglects or is unable
to recover such amount so expended within 60 days, he shall report
the same to the Town Board who shall maintain an action against the
applicant under the bond or policy or otherwise. If any paving, sidewalk,
curb or gutter settles or sinks after or by reason of such excavation
or removal of any highway surface, drain ditch, drain pipe, curb,
gutter, sidewalk or other property belonging to the Town or of any
special district thereof and which may have been damaged or broken
by reason of such excavation, the cost of repairing or replacing the
same shall be a charge against the applicant and collectible as hereinbefore
and hereinafter provided.
All work performed under such permit shall be
performed as expeditiously as possible and all excavations shall be
refilled as soon as possible and within the time limit for which such
permit shall have been issued. In the event any excavation shall remain
unnecessarily open or is allowed to remain open after the expiration
of said permit, the Town Highway Superintendent shall cause such excavation
to be filled and report the cost thereof to the Town Board, who shall
recover said amount from the applicant as provided herein.
In the event any permit shall be revoked, the
excavation shall be immediately refilled by the applicant under the
direction of the Town Highway Superintendent, whether the contemplated
work is completed or not, and upon the failure or neglect of the applicant
to comply with such order to refill such excavation, proceedings as
though such permit had expired shall be had as herein set forth.
Every permit granted to this Part 4 shall be
granted subject to all of the terms and conditions set forth herein
and subject to such additional terms and conditions which the Town
Board may specify in the particular case.
A permit, as provided for by this Part 4, shall
be required to replace, change, alter, raise, lower or cut a curb,
sidewalk or gutter and shall be granted under all the terms and conditions
of this Part 4 applying to other excavations, except that where such
specified work is to be performed within one working day and completed
within said day, the Town Board may, upon the written recommendation
of the Town Highway Superintendent, grant such permit without requiring
a bond therefor, but such exception shall not apply to excavations
of more than six inches in depth below the surrounding surface nor
where such excavations are made between the gutter and curblines of
any street or highway nor where barricades may be required to protect
the public. No permit shall be required of a public service corporation
to erect poles, provided that such corporation has previously filed
the bond as herein required.
A. The applicant shall file with the Town Clerk proof
of liability insurance policy providing the following limits of liability
with the Town of LaGrange named as additional insured:
(1) Bodily injury liability: $1,000,000 for each person
and $2,000,000 for each occurrence.
(2) Property damage liability: $500,000 for each occurrence.
B. Each such liability insurance policy shall be endorsed
to eliminate exclusion of underground damage from coverage and also
to include the Town Board in property damage coverage.
C. Such general liability insurance coverage shall also
provide that the Town of LaGrange and its officers, agents and employees
shall be indemnified and defended against any and all lawsuits by
reason of the issuance of said permit or by reason of the performance
of the work for which said permit was granted and issued, including
all costs and expenses made or incurred by said Town and its officers,
agents and employees in defending any action brought against said
Town by reason thereof, and also guaranteeing the faithful performance
by the applicant of all of the terms and conditions of such permit
and of the ordinance with amendments regulating excavations in and
under public street, highways, sidewalks and other public places in
the Town of LaGrange, Dutchess County, New York.
D. Such public liability insurance policies provided
to the Town pursuant to this chapter shall further provide that the
limits of liability will not be reduced or any coverages eliminated
without a minimum of 30 days' written notice to the Town, through
the Town Clerk, by the principal insurer.
E. Every bond or policy so filed shall be submitted for
approval by the Town Attorney. In the event that the bonding or insurance
company shall fail or be liquidated prior to the final disposition
of any action maintained against said Town of LaGrange, the applicant
shall be primarily liable and shall continue to indemnify said Town,
and the acceptance and approval of such bond or policy shall not release
the applicant from such liability. Every such bond or policy shall
specifically provide indemnity and protection to the Town for a period
of one year after the completion of the work performed under such
permit.
The failure to comply with any lawful order of the Town Highway superintendent or the Town Board hereunder or the violation of this Part
4 or any part thereof shall be a misdemeanor and a first offense shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $350.00 or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or both, and subsequent offense shall be punishable in accordance with Town Law § 268. The applicant shall be liable to the Town for all loss or expense incurred by reason of such failure to comply with or violation of such order or this or any part thereof.
Nothing herein shall be construed to invalidate
or void any ordinance of any water or sewer district in said Town
of LaGrange, but the two shall be read together, and whichever shall
require the greater protection shall be complied with.
All moneys expended from the highway funds of
the Town shall, when recovered as herein provided, be credited to
the item of the highway fund from which such expenditure was made,
but all penalties recovered hereunder shall be credited to the general
fund of the Town.