It shall be unlawful to deface, damage, destroy or cause destruction
or deterioration or to open or dig into, in any way, any street, alley,
sidewalk, curb, gutter, public property or other public way within
the City of Lewes.
All maintenance and repair of streets, alleys, sidewalks, curbs,
gutters, public property or other public ways within the City of Lewes
shall be under the supervision of the City of Lewes, and the City
Manager is hereby authorized to enforce such ordinance provision.
Work to be done on streets, sidewalks or other public property shall
comply with specifications of the City and/or the Board of Public
Works (see details in Attachment 1 to this chapter). All work shall
meet current City specifications and ordinances. All traffic control
and safety shall be coordinated with the Lewes Police Department;
any work on the following streets, or any other street designated
by the Building Department, shall meet the requirements of the Delaware
Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), current edition,
as agreed upon with the Lewes Police Department and City Building
Department: American Legion Road, Anglers Road, Coleman Avenue, 4th
Street (Savannah Road to New Road), Devries Circle, Franklin Avenue
(Kings Highway to Schley Avenue), Gills Neck Road, Market Street (3rd
Street to Front Street), Monroe Avenue (Kings Highway to Freeman Highway),
Mulberry Street (3rd Street to 2nd Street), Schley Avenue, Second
Street, Sussex Drive, and 3rd Street. Any person, firm, or corporation,
after obtaining the required permit from the City Building Department,
must contact the Building Department at least 72 hours in advance
of any excavation authorized within that permit such that site inspection
of the excavation can be coordinated.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to dig into, open or excavate in or under the bed of any street, road, highway, lane, alley or sidewalk, curb, gutter, public property or other public way in the City of Lewes for the purpose of placing, erecting, laying or repairing therein or thereunder any poles, pipes, mains, wires or conduits, or for any other purpose, without first obtaining a permit therefor from the City of Lewes Building Department; provided, however, that no permit shall be required in the case of an extreme emergency which requires the immediate digging into, opening or excavating in order to preserve life or property. In the event of such an extreme emergency at any time the City Office is closed, prior to any digging, opening or excavating, the Lewes Police shall be contacted, who in turn shall notify the proper City Officials. All required reports and permits, required under an emergency condition shall be obtained from the Building Department on the next regular business day. At the time of such permit application, the person, firm or corporation shall be required to explain, in writing, the cause or nature of the emergency and shall state the name of the street and location where such opening or excavation has been made; provide a drawing indicating the purpose, depth and width of the opening or excavation; the traffic control measures for streets listed in §
167-4; and the date when the opening or excavation shall be completed. At the time of such permit application, a bond or cash, as hereinafter required, shall be posted, except for persons, firms or corporations which have applied for and received a license to practice plumbing within the corporate limits of the City of Lewes.
Any person, firm or corporation desiring to dig into, open or
excavate in or under any such street, road, highway, lane, alley or
sidewalk, street, road, highway, lane, alley or sidewalk, for any
such purpose as hereinbefore set forth shall first make written application
to the Building Department for a permit for such work, stating in
such application the name of the street and the location where such
an opening or excavation is to be made; provide a drawing indicating
the purpose, depth and width of the opening or excavation; and the
date when the work will be commenced and the date when it will be
completed. Application approval is contingent upon receipt of a good
and sufficient bond or cash as specified in the fee schedule maintained
by the City of Lewes, conditioned that the person, firm or corporation
that will do such digging into, opening or excavating will faithfully
observe all the laws pertaining to such digging into, opening or excavating
and further conditioned that the City of Lewes, its agents, servants,
employees, officers and independent contractors, shall be indemnified
and saved harmless from all claims arising from accidents and damage
of any character whatsoever caused by the negligence of such person,
firm or corporation engaged in the digging into, opening or excavating
of any street, as hereinbefore required, or by any unfaithful act;
inadequate work done either by such person, firm or corporation or
their agents, servants, employees or independent contractors and that
such person, firm or corporation will maintain in a safe condition
for a period of one year all such openings or excavations and, further,
that all dirt and other material excavated will be replaced in a good
condition pursuant to the ordinances of the City of Lewes. The Building
Department, upon receipt of the application and the bond, as hereinbefore
set forth, and the nonrefundable fee as specified in the fee schedule
maintained by the City of Lewes, shall then issue a permit for such
opening or excavation, subject to the terms and conditions of this
section, and conditioned upon being satisfied that it is to be made
in a proper location and for a proper purpose; provided, however,
that a person, firm or corporation engaged in the business of plumbing
within the corporate limits of the City of Lewes who has furnished
the Mayor and Council of Lewes with a good and sufficient bond pursuant
to the provisions of the Plumbing Code of the City of Lewes shall
not be required to furnish a bond pursuant to the provisions of this
section.
Street patching standards for the City of Lewes shall be as
shown on Attachment 1 - Drawing numbers 10 through 15 and 1000 through
1100, attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference.
The requirement for a permit fee and bond shall not be applicable
to work performed by employees of the Board of Public Works under
direction of the General Manager or his designated representative.