Street opening permit. It shall be unlawful for any
person, firm or corporation to tunnel under or to make any excavation
in any street, alley or other public place in the City without first
having obtained a street opening permit from the City Engineering
Department. All permits will be issued in accordance with the provisions
of Title 23, Chapter 307, Subchapter 2 of the Maine Revised Statutes
Annotated.
A standard construction detail and instructions for
the contractor will be issued with the permit. All work shall conform
to the requirements of the standard detail and instructions to the
contractor.
Certain streets within the City of Bangor also require
a highway opening permit issued by the Maine Department of Transportation.
The Engineering Department will maintain a listing of such streets.
Sewer and storm drain connection permits. All new
or replacement sanitary sewer or storm drain connections to City mains
shall be subject to all of the regulations set forth hereinafter relative
to private utility connections, except that prior to the issuance
of said permit, the payment of any outstanding assessments for the
City sewer construction will be required in addition to the permit
fee.
The contractor shall perform any work requiring inspection
by the City during normal weekday working hours (7:30 a.m. to 5:00
p.m.), unless an emergency situation requires otherwise. The City
will bill the contractor for additional inspection costs for inspections
outside these hours in accordance with the fee schedule herein.
Prior to obtaining a street opening permit from the
City, the contractor shall provide the City with a dig-safe number.
The contractor will also be responsible for contacting utilities not
participating in the dig-safe program.
All work in connection with the excavation and backfill
of any opening in a public way shall be performed only by approved
contractors or by the forces of the particular utility concerned.
Adequate equipment shall be employed so as to expedite the completion
of the work, and proper construction methods shall be used, as hereinafter
described.
Contractors with a work history of two unsatisfactory
similar-type street opening or utility connection projects within
the previous 18 months, in the opinion of the City Engineer, or having
an outstanding balance related to a previous street opening permit,
will not be issued a street opening or utility connection permit.
All work in connection with street openings and utility
connections will be subject to the inspection and approval of the
City Engineer or their authorized representative. The City Engineer
will decide as to the adequacy of the materials to be used, extra
safety precautions which may be required to protect the public and
the scheduling of the work to be performed. No backfilling operations
shall be allowed prior to the examination of the work by the Engineer.
The contractor shall provide timely notification to
the City in order that inspection services can be scheduled for the
appropriate time. The permit form will contain the necessary instructions
to the contractor.
Utility companies will be required to obtain separate
permits for each street opening within accepted public rights-of-way.
The utility company shall be responsible for performing all backfill
operations, including the replacement of roadway gravel, temporary
patching of the surface, and the permanent surface pavement.
Private connections. A contractor representing any person, firm or corporation desiring to open any portion of a public way for the purpose of installing, repairing, replacing, examining or attempting to locate any private utility connection must first obtain a permit from the City Engineer. Prior to the issuance of said permit, the applicant shall pay to the City of Bangor an amount to cover the cost of inspection services in accordance with the schedule of charges contained herein. The applicant will be responsible for all work, including temporary pavement and the permanent paved surface. No backfilling shall be allowed without the prior examination of the work by the City Engineer's representative. Trenches backfilled without the Engineer's approval will be subject to the corrective work outlined in § 271-36A herein.
The amount to be paid for a street opening/utility connection permit will be based upon the Schedule of Fees adopted pursuant to Chapter 109, Fees, of this Code.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
The
City Engineer may waive the weekend work and after the fact permit
fees for utilities that open streets in cases of emergencies without
first obtaining a permit.
It shall be the duty of every person cutting or making
an excavation in or upon any public place to place and maintain barriers
and warning devices necessary for the safety of the general public.
The barriers and warning devices shall conform to the requirements
of the latest edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.
Appropriate measures shall be taken to assure that,
during the performance of the excavation work, traffic conditions
as normal as possible shall be maintained at all times so as to minimize
inconvenience to the occupants of the adjoining property and to the
general public. If it becomes necessary to close the street to traffic
to permit the work, prior approval of said closing shall be obtained
from the City Engineer. The contractor shall be responsible for notifying
the Bangor Police and Fire Departments concerning the closing.
The work shall be conducted in such a manner so as
to prevent damage to adjacent property, and should such damage occur,
the property shall be restored to its original condition, as directed
by the City Engineer. The excavated materials shall be placed in a
location so as not to endanger those working in the trench, pedestrians
or users of the street.
It shall be the contractor's responsibility to comply
with the latest Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
requirements that may apply to the work.
Proper bracing or shoring shall be maintained to prevent
the collapse of adjoining grounds, and the excavation shall not have
anywhere below the surface any portion which extends beyond the opening
at the surface. Care shall be taken so as not to damage existing pipes,
cables or conduits in the making of such excavations or tunnels, and
notice shall be given to the persons maintaining any such pipes, cables
or conduits, or to the City department or officer charged with the
care thereof, which are or may be endangered or affected by the making
of any such excavation or tunnel before such pipes, cables or conduits
shall be disturbed. No unnecessary damage or injury shall be done
to any tree or shrub or to the roots thereof.
Whenever a permit has been issued for a street opening
or utility connection and the excavation has been made, the trench
or opening shall be backfilled in accordance with the details issued
with the permit.
Flowable fill will be required for backfill of cross
trenches and openings within the street zone of major streets, or
as conditions may require, as determined by the City Engineer when
the permit is issued.
Replace to twenty-one-inch depth, or match existing
base depth, whichever is greater, with gravel conforming to the latest
Maine Department of Transportation specification for gravel base.
The first six inches of fill over the structure or
pipe in the trench shall be compacted. The balance of the backfill
shall be placed in layers not exceeding 12 inches and thoroughly compacted.
All material excavated from the trench shall be replaced
in the trench, except for the amount which may be displaced by the
installation of gravel base.
Hot asphalt paving on rigid base. When an opening
is made on a street where the base is cement concrete, premixed base
of tar or asphalt or granite block on a concrete base, the base material
shall be cut back at least 12 inches beyond the edges of the trench
after the backfilling has been completed and before the new permanent
patch is placed. The City Engineer, at the time the permit is issued,
will specify whether the base is to be replaced with cement concrete
or a full depth structural bituminous concrete patch.
When cement concrete is to be used to replace
the excavated base material, all reinforcing steel encountered when
removing the cut back concrete shall not be cut off but retained and
used to tie in the reinforcing in the new concrete patch. Reinforcing
shall be furnished, in the area to be patched, to provide the equivalent
of No. 4 reinforcing bars on twelve-inch centers, each way. Where
granite block is encountered under the bituminous paving, these blocks
shall be removed and the area replaced with cement concrete in accordance
with the requirements of this section.
Cement concrete to be used shall be ready-mix
conforming to and placed in accordance with the Maine Department of
Transportation (MDOT) Standard Specifications for Highways and Bridges,
latest edition.
After the cement concrete has been placed and
before the permanent bituminous wearing surface (type C pavement)
is placed, the existing bituminous surface shall be cut back an additional
four inches on all sides with a pavement saw, and the cut edges of
the bituminous paving and all exposed cement concrete surfaces shall
be painted with an bituminous tack before the new bituminous paving
is placed. Bituminous paving shall be performed in accordance with
MDOT Standard Specifications for Highways and Bridges.
When a full depth bituminous concrete patch
is to replace the excavated concrete base, the concrete base shall
be cut back minimum of 12 inches beyond the edges of the trench after
backfilling has been completed and before the new bituminous base
is placed. The thickness of the bituminous concrete base shall be
minimum of six inches. The top surface of the bituminous concrete
base shall be finished to allow placement of three inches of bituminous
concrete wearing surface.
Bituminous concrete base shall be three-fourths-inch
(binder) pavement placed and compacted in two-inch layers in accordance
with the Maine Department of Transportation Standard Specifications
for Highways and Bridges, latest edition.
After the bituminous base has been placed and
before the permanent bituminous wearing surface three-eights-inch
HMA is placed, the existing bituminous surface shall be cut back an
additional four inches on all sides with a pavement saw, and the cut
edges of the bituminous paving and all exposed bituminous base surfaces
shall be painted with bituminous tack before the new bituminous paving
is placed. Bituminous paving shall be performed in accordance with
MDOT Standard Specifications for Highways and Bridges.
When a street opening permit is issued on a street which has been constructed for heavy traffic and has a bituminous surface without a cement concrete base, the same amount of gravel shall be replaced in the trench as is removed when the excavation is made where this material exceeds the twenty-one-inch depth as specified in § 271-33C.
After the gravel base has been placed and before the
permanent bituminous wearing surface is placed, the existing bituminous
surface shall be cut back an additional 12 inches on all sides with
a pavement saw or milling machine, and the cut edges shall be painted
with bituminous tack before the new bituminous paving is placed. Bituminous
paving shall be performed in accordance with MDOT Standard Specifications
for Highways and Bridges.
The contractor to whom a street opening permit has been issued shall provide a temporary patch (coldpatch) of the street opening, generally within 24 hours after the trench has been backfilled and compacted according to the requirements contained in § 271-33C and D.
The temporary patch shall be made using premixed bituminous
material (coldpatch), which shall remain in place until the permanent
patch has been installed.
Within 30 calendar days from the date of trench backfill, but not later than November 1, the contractor shall provide permanent pavement replacement in accordance with § 271-34A or B and the detail sheet provided with the permit. For emergency winter work, the permanent trench repair must be completed by June 15.
Restoration of other areas. The contractor shall restore
all areas of disturbance, including stone curb, esplanades and gravel
surfaces, including shoulders, sodded areas, shrubbery fencing, ditches,
etc., to the condition prior to construction.
Warrantee. The contractor or utility shall correct
any deficiencies in the trench or pavement for a period of one year
from completion of the work authorized by this permit.
All work relative to connecting a building drain or
yard drain to a City main shall be performed by an approved contractor,
only under the direct supervision of the City Engineer or their authorized
representative.
If the City main is damaged or broken by the contractor,
then the damaged or broken section of main will be removed and replaced
at no cost to the City by the contractor under the supervision of
the City Engineer's representative.
Any tap to a public sewer or storm drain shall be
made and an approved connection device installed in the presence of
the City Engineer or their authorized representative.
Connections to manholes, wet wells or other structures
shall be prohibited unless approved by a representative of the City
Engineer. If approval is given, the structure must be cored and a
watertight boot installed at the location indicated by the City Engineer.
If any part of the work specified above relative to
repairing or filling the trenches or excavations shall be unskillfully
or improperly done, the City Engineer or their representative may
direct that the work be reexcavated and replaced in a proper manner
or that other corrective action shall be taken to properly repair
the trench and the pavement surface.
If the applicant does not repair the defective work
within 24 hours of notice, then the City Engineer will act to have
the work performed by the City, and the applicant shall pay a penalty
equal to the whole of said expense incurred by the City, with a surcharge
of 50%. No additional permits will be issued to the contractor until
this cost has been paid.
Thereafter, upon completion of the work and determination
of the cost thereof, the City Engineer shall issue no permit to the
applicant until they shall receive, in addition to the fees provided,
the amount of the penalty as by this section provided and determined.
Any person, firm or corporation who or which shall dig or make an excavation in any portion of the public way or make connection to a public sewer or storm drain without first obtaining a permit shall be required to pay an after the fact permit fee as prescribed in the Schedule of Fees adopted pursuant to Chapter 109, Fees, of this Code.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Additionally, any person, firm or corporation who
violates the provisions of this article may be punished, upon conviction,
by a fine of not less than $100 for each offense. Each day shall constitute
a separate offense. Such fine may be levied against the contractor.