The following words, when used in this Article,
shall have the meaning ascribed to them in this section, except in
those instances where the context clearly indicates otherwise:
Includes any natural person, partnership, firm, association,
corporation or organization of any kind.
Any public street, avenue, road, square, alley, highway or
other public place located in the Town of Wethersfield, and shall
include sidewalks and driveway aprons.
It shall be unlawful for any person to open
or to make any excavation of any kind in any of the streets in the
Town of Wethersfield without first securing a license and a permit
therefor, as hereinafter provided.
A.
All contractors excavating within Town streets shall
be licensed. The contractor applying for license shall furnish the
Town with a valid insurance certificate completed by his agent or
insurer for the minimum amount described as follows:
B.
The insurance shall cover the entire contract period
as well as the maintenance period, and in the event that the insurance
expires during this time, the contractor shall furnish the Town with
a renewal certificate at least 10 days prior to expiration.
C.
The property damage insurance shall specifically cover
damage to underground pipes and conduits damaged while using powered
or mechanized equipment to excavate in the public right- of-way.
D.
Before a license is granted, the applicant must file
with the Engineering Division a surety bond in the sum of not less
than $10,000 made on a form provided for that purpose. Said surety
bond may be cash or written by an indemnity or surety company authorized
to transact business in Connecticut and approved by the Town Manager
or his agent. Excavator's licenses are not transferable. Before any
permit shall be issued to open or excavate any street in the Town,
the applicant shall pay to the Town Engineer a permit fee in the amount
of $35 to cover the cost of inspection and other incidental services
in connection therewith. Any work performed without obtaining the
necessary permits and licenses as prescribed in this article shall
result in a doubling of the fees as contained in this section. Permits
shall be valid for a period of 30 days. If the estimated value of
the work exceeds $10,000 in the opinion of the Town Engineer, he may
require the contractor make application for multiple permits for the
various components of the work. The Town Engineer or his designated
representative may at any time cancel or suspend permits for just
cause.
Any person who desires to make any opening or
excavation in any of the streets in the Town of Wethersfield shall
make application to the Engineering Division, in writing, for that
purpose. Such an application shall be made upon blanks to be furnished
by the Town and shall contain the name of the applicant, the exact
location of the proposed opening or excavation, the approximate size
or depth thereof, the CALL BEFORE YOU DIG permit number and an agreement
on the part of the applicant that the work shall be done in full compliance
with all related ordinances of the Town and the laws of the State
of Connecticut and that the applicant shall hold the Town harmless
from and indemnify it against any and all actions, suits, demands,
payments, costs and charges for or by reason of the proposed opening
or excavation and all damages to persons or property resulting in
any manner therefrom or occurring in the prosecution of corrected
work or from any other related matter.
A.
Any person who opens or excavates any street in the
Town shall thoroughly and completely refill the opening or excavation,
puddling and ramming so as to prevent any settling thereafter; and
shall restore the surface to the same condition as it was before the
opening or excavation, and such restoration shall be in accordance
with the specifications of the Engineering Division of the Town of
Wethersfield for roadway standards of streets in the Town. The surface
shall conform to the proper grade and be of the same surface covering
as the part of the thoroughfare immediately adjoining the opening.
If, within five years after the restoration of the surface, defects
appear, the contractor shall repair the defect within 12 hours. If
the Town Engineer or his representative deems that an emergency exists,
repairs will be completed by the most expeditious means possible.
All repair costs shall be reimbursed to the Town or charged to the
excavator's surety bond.
B.
The backfill of trenches within the roadway limits
and paved areas shall be placed in layers not more than 12 inches
thick and shall be thoroughly compacted by tamping or other approved
means to the satisfaction of the Town Engineer or his designated agent.
The materials used for backfill shall be subject to the inspection
and approval of the Town Engineer or his agent, and if, in his opinion,
the excavated material is unsuitable for backfill, the contractor
shall dispose of this unsuitable material and substitute approved
bank run gravel or other material in the amounts and proportions specified
by the Town Engineer. When the backfill has been completed within
12 inches of the finished pavement on the surface grade, the first
eight inches shall be filled and compacted using an approved grade
of processed stone and then covered with four inches of bituminous
concrete placed in two lifts, as shown on the standard drawings of
the Engineering Division. All trenches shall be covered with a suitable
bituminous patching material at the end of every workday.
D.
All other work in connection with openings in any
street, including excavation, protection, refilling and temporary
paving, shall be done by the applicant at his expense, and all such
work shall be subject to the provisions of this article and to the
supervision and approval of the Town Engineer.
The contractor shall notify the Police Department
and the Fire Department 24 hours in advance of making any excavation
which requires blocking more than 50% of the width of the street.
Police protection, if required, shall be at the expense of the contractor.
A.
No opening or excavation in any street shall extend
from the curbline into the highway a distance greater than one foot
beyond the center line of the street before being refilled and the
surface of the highway restored to a condition safe and convenient
for travel to the satisfaction of the Town Engineer.
B.
No more than 500 feet longitudinally shall be opened
in any street at any one time.
C.
The work of excavation shall be so conducted as not
to interfere with the water mains, sewers or their lateral connections
or any other subsurface utility until permission of the proper authorities
has been obtained.
D.
The contractor shall at all times at his own expense
preserve and protect from injury all adjoining property by providing
proper foundations and taking other measures suitable for the purpose.
The contractor shall, at his own expense, shore up and protect all
buildings, walls, fences, or other property likely to be damaged during
the progress of the excavation work and shall be responsible for all
damage to public or private property or highways resulting from his
operations.
E.
No tunneling to include pipe jacking and pneumatic
or vibratory boring or piercing tools shall be allowed without the
express approval of the Town Engineer and permission therefor endorsed
upon the permit. The backfilling of a tunnel excavation shall be made
only in the presence of the Town Engineer or an inspector designated
by him and shall be done only in a method approved by him.
F.
No contractor shall make a trench cut of over 48 inches
in width without first obtaining special permission from the Town
Engineer or his designated agent.
G.
On all streets, a temporary paving satisfactory to
the Town Engineer, thoroughly bound and compacted, shall be installed
flush with the surface of the adjoining paving at the end of each
work day.
H.
As the excavation work progresses, all streets shall
be thoroughly cleaned of all rubbish, excess earth, rock and other
debris. The contractor shall take necessary precautions to prevent
and avoid dust and to keep the streets clean each day. All cleanup
operations shall be accomplished at the expense of the contractor
and shall be carried out to the satisfaction of the Town Engineer.
I.
Each contractor shall conduct and carry out excavation work in such a manner as to avoid unnecessary inconvenience and annoyance to the general public and occupants of neighboring property and in strict compliance with the provisions of Chapter 105, Noise Control, of the Code of the Town of Wethersfield.
During the making of any street excavation,
every reasonable precaution shall be taken by the applicant to keep
the street in a safe and passable condition both day and night. Unless
emergency conditions exist, construction or maintenance operations
which will result in the narrowing or closing of the travel portion
of any arterial street will not be permitted prior to start of peak
hour traffic. Traffic-control devices must be set up prior to the
start of construction or maintenance operations and shall be properly
maintained during the time such special conditions exist. They shall
remain in place only as long as they are needed and shall be immediately
removed thereafter. Where operations are performed in stages, there
shall be in place only those devices that apply to the conditions
present during the stage in progress, and such devices shall be covered
or out of the view of traffic at times when they do not apply. Payments
to traffic flagmen or police where required by the Chief of Police
or the Town Engineer shall be the responsibility of the contractor.
The penalty for each violation or offense shall
be $100 and each and every twenty-four-hour period of failure or neglect
to comply with the provisions of this article shall be deemed a separate
offense or violations. Licensed contractors failing to obtain the
required permit shall also be subject to license suspension for a
period of not more than 90 days.
