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Town of Smithfield, RI
Providence County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (9) Index
[Adopted 7-24-1934; amended 6-5-1956; 9-8-1980 (Ch. 20, Art. II, of the 1985 Code of Ordinances)]
The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
CONTRACTOR
Any person, firm, corporation or general contractor awarded a contract to perform certain work for the Town of Smithfield and the Smithfield Sewer Authority. The contractor shall comply with all provisions of this article except cases where contract documents specifically require approved progress schedules and a complete coverage performance bond. In such cases, the contractor shall be regulated by contract documents and §§ 312-2 through 312-8 and §§ 312-20 through 312-25 of this article shall be waived.
DIRECTOR
The Director of Public Works, his duly authorized representative or the person in charge of contract work.
PERMITTEE
Any person, firm or corporation granted a permit.
At least one working day before any work under this article is commenced, except in cases of emergency, a permittee shall give notice of the time of commencement of the work to the Director.
After any work under this article has been started, the work shall be diligently and continuously prosecuted by the permittee until completed.
If, after work has been started under this article, the permittee delays beyond the period stated in the permit for completion of the work, the Director shall have authority upon written notice to the permittee to complete the work or any portion thereof. The actual cost of such work performed by the Town, plus 20% as an overhead charge, shall be paid by the permittee or withheld from the deposit posted by him.
Notice of completion shall be filed by the permittee with the Director the same day, after completion of the work.
All work done by the permittee shall be inspected and approved by the Town prior to refund of deposit. No refunds will be made by the Sewer Authority.
If at any time during the performance of the work an emergency should arise, the Town shall have the right to use all or any part of the area occupied by the permittee under his permit.
During the period of a permit issued under this article, the permittee shall be permitted to occupy such portions of streets, alleys and other public places as allowed by the ordinances of the Town and as shown on the plans, or as permitted by the Director. A reasonable amount of tools, materials and equipment for construction purposes may be stored in such space, but not more than is necessary to avoid delays in construction. Excavated and waste materials shall be piled or stacked in such a way as not to interfere with spaces that may be designated to be left free and unobstructed, nor inconvenience occupants of adjoining property.
Whenever any utility is to be exposed and the exact location and depth is unknown, the utility company shall be notified and excavation shall not be commenced until a representative of the utility company is present to aid in location of said utility. It shall be the duty of the utility company under this section to have a representative at the location where the work is being done within 24 hours of notice to him by the contractor.
A. 
Upon notice from the Director or his authorized representative, immediate repairs shall be made of any injury or damage in any portion of the street which occurs as a result of the work done, including any and all damage to the street which would not have occurred had such work not been done, and which, in the opinion of the Director or his authorized representative, constitutes a public hazard. In the event such repairs are not made within 24 hours after notice, the Director is hereby authorized to make such repairs and charge all costs plus 20% overhead.
B. 
The restoration or repair(s) of a street or public highway also pertains to any person working on a section of ground that requires vehicles to enter and leave a particular section of street of highway which causes a deterioration or damage(s) to the road surface. Such person will be responsible to restore the damaged or disturbed area(s) to the satisfaction of the Director or his authorized representative.
C. 
The company or individual causing the impairment is required to provide the Director with a written notice that the section of street or highway that is damaged will be corrected after the work has been completed. The repairs are to be completed immediately if the condition of the street or highway is deemed an emergency, or said company or individual shall begin restoring the damaged area(s) within a seventy-two-hour period after the completion of the work.
A. 
Pavement shall be replaced with standard type pavement as indicated on the permit or as shown on the plans. Curbs, gutters, sidewalks, sewers, drains, structures, street signs and all other improvements damaged, disturbed or removed during the progress of the work shall be restored or replaced in as good condition as existed prior to commencement of work in accordance with standard specifications of the Town and to the satisfaction of the Director.
B. 
The edges of all pavements shall be properly trimmed and squared, and all loose material shall be removed before pavement is placed.
Adequate and proper measures shall be taken to locate the existence of any public utility and to protect the Town's public utility against damage. The permittee or contractor shall be held liable for any damages to utilities or works as shown on the plans or indicated on the permit and shall reimburse the Town for any loss of revenue and cost of repair or replacement.
The permittee or contractor shall be responsible for all claims and liabilities arising out of work performed or arising out of failure to perform the obligations with respect to street maintenance. The permittee or contractor shall agree to defend, indemnify, save and hold harmless the Town, its officers and employees from and against any and all law suits, claims or actions brought by any person for or on account of any bodily injuries, disease or illness or damage to persons, including death and/or property damage, sustained or arising in the construction of the work performed or in consequence of failure to perform the obligations with respect to street maintenance.
A. 
All work under this article shall be performed in a neat and workmanlike manner and so programmed as to cause the minimum of interference with traffic and inconvenience to the public. Access shall be provided to all boxes, fire hydrants, water gate valves, manholes and other public service structures and property as may be required for emergency use. Public service structures or property shall not be removed or relocated without proper coordination with the properly constituted authorities charged with their control and maintenance. The working area shall be confined so as not to obstruct roadways and walks unnecessarily. Temporary roadways, driveways and walks for vehicles and pedestrians shall be constructed where required.
B. 
Any monument of granite, concrete, iron or other lasting material set for the purpose of locating or preserving the lines of any street or property subdivision or a precise survey reference point within the Town shall not be removed or disturbed or caused to be removed or disturbed without first obtaining permission in writing from the Director. Permission shall be granted upon the condition that the person applying therefor shall cause to be replaced at his expense, by the Director, the monument so removed or disturbed. A contractor shall not be held responsible for monuments not shown on the construction plans.
A. 
Where excavations or trenches are made in exposed concrete surfaces (concrete, driveways, sidewalk and pavement), a power-driven concrete saw shall be used to cut deep enough to permit complete breakage of the concrete without ragged edges.
B. 
Concrete surfaces and pavements disfigured or damaged shall be replaced and repaired so that they will have a smooth and uniform appearance.
All trenches and excavations shall be backfilled in the following manner unless otherwise specified in contract documents:
A. 
The trench or excavation shall be filled to not less than one foot above the top of the pipe or other utility facility with fine material selected from the excavation, free from stones and lumps and of such character as to be readily compacted around and under the pipe or other utility facility, or with an imported fine granular material wherever material from the excavation is not suitable. The backfill material shall be thoroughly compacted around the pipe or other utility. Above the resultant level of this first operation, the trench or excavation shall be backfilled in uniform layers with earth from the trench excavation or with imported material to 12 inches below the subgrade of the curb, gutter, pavement, sidewalk or driveway to be replaced or to the surface if no improvement replacement is indicated. The use of water in this stage of the backfill operation will not be permitted if the soil will not readily drain and/or if the adjacent street may become damaged or the paving is unduly delayed. If the material from the excavation will not give the required relative compaction, an imported granular material that will give said relative compaction shall be used, and the unstable material shall be removed from the site. Excess water must be evaporated before the next layer of earth or paving is placed. If any improvement replacement is indicated below, the subgrade of the improvement to be replaced shall be filled in six-inch layers, measured before compaction, with selected imported granular material of such character as to readily compact by sprinkling with water if too dry to tamp and thoroughly compact by power-driven equipment. All work shall be done in a manner as to obtain a relative compaction throughout the entire depth of the backfill of not less than that which exists adjacent to the excavation.
B. 
If the excavation is below any existing utility the trench shall be hand backfilled and compacted to not less than 95% maximum density at optimum moisture content below, around and to a depth of 12 inches over said utility.
A. 
During the performance of the work the permittee or contractor shall provide and maintain such fences, barricades, red lights, flares, warning and directional signals, flagmen and watchmen that are necessary for the safety of the general public.
B. 
It shall be the duty of the permittee or contractor to place barricades and fences prior to commencement of work at the end of such work or excavation and at such places as may be necessary for complete safety and traffic routing and to maintain same during performance of the work. All barricades, fences and warning and directional signals shall be lighted from sunset to sunrise each day.
C. 
The permittee or contractor shall obey and enforce all lawful safety orders and rules of the Town and shall secure such necessary traffic control officers as shall be called for on state roads and on any other Town road as may be determined necessary by the Smithfield Police Department.
A. 
All barricades and warning and directional signs shall be substantial in character, with the barricades painted yellow, and warning and directional signs painted black and white. Barricades shall be constructed in such a manner that the bottom of the sign is not less than 2 1/2 feet nor more than seven feet above the grade of the street. A minimum of two flares or lights per barricade shall be maintained from sunset to sunrise.
B. 
When during the performance of the work it becomes necessary to close a street, a "road closed" sign accompanied by a "detour" sign with directional traffic arrows shall be maintained at the intersection approaches to the street. Lettering on signs shall be four inches high and the arrow two inches thick.
C. 
"No parking" signs shall be placed the evening prior to commencement of work and shall be equally spaced at the rate of four per block on each side of the street. Lettering on signs shall be three inches high. The sign shall show the hours of the day in which parking is restricted.
D. 
"One-way" signs shall be placed at each intersection of the street affected. The sign shall have three-inch white letters reading "One-Way" on a four-inch black arrow mounted on a white background.
A. 
Sufficient safety equipment shall be located on the job before any work is commenced.
B. 
The Police and Fire Departments shall be notified before work is commenced of any street closure, parking restrictions, rerouting of traffic or other restrictions which interferes with the normal use of the street.
C. 
Detours shall be planned and coordinated with the Police Department to allow for a smooth flow of traffic at all times.
D. 
Progress or work schedules shall be so arranged as to provide an access to all lots either from the street or the alley.
E. 
No street or intersection shall be closed in the performance of the work when a traffic restriction or street closure is already in effect on an adjacent parallel street, except in emergencies or by special authorization of the Director. Special authorization under this section may be granted by the Director during construction through approval of a progress schedule submitted by a contractor in compliance with the contract documents.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to make, or cause or permit to be made, any excavation on or under the surface of any public street, alley, sidewalk or other public place for the installation, repair or removal of any pipe, conduit, duct or tunnel or for any other purpose, without first obtaining a written permit from the Director to make such excavation, and making a deposit as determined by the Director or as stated in this division to cover the cost of inspection and of restoring such public street, alley, sidewalk or other public place to its original condition, together with the incidental expenses in connection therewith.
B. 
Before a permit is issued, the applicant shall:
(1) 
Make application for the permit on a form furnished by the Director. The application shall contain such information as the Director may require and be made in duplicate and filed with him for processing; and
(2) 
Submit to the Director plans and profiles in duplicate showing work to be done, location, limits of work and location of pavements.
C. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to make, or to cause or permit to be made, any excavation, or to install or maintain, or cause or permit to be installed or maintained, any tank, pipe, conduit, duct or tunnel on or under the surface of any public street, alley, sidewalk or other public place at any location other than that described in the application and shown on the plans filed by such person, as required by the provisions of this article.
D. 
The provisions of this article shall not relieve the permittee of the obligations imposed by other pertinent Smithfield ordinances. After installation is completed, the pipe, conduits, vaults, ducts, tunnels or other underground installation shall be the responsibility of the property owner for all maintenance, repairs, damages, replacement or removal in said public street or alley.
A. 
The application for a permit shall be approved and signed by the Director.
B. 
Permits shall be secured at least one working day before the work is commenced, except in cases of emergency. Permits shall not be transferable or assigned.
C. 
The permit shall provide a time limit within which the work shall be completed, and work shall commence within 10 days after application is approved.
D. 
Unless an extension of time is granted by the Director, the permit shall be void if the work is not commenced and completed within the date specified.
[Amended 10-16-2001]
A. 
When an application for a permit as provided in § 312-20A is made and approved, the applicant shall make a nonrefundable general deposit in the sum of $300 and a special deposit of $5 per square foot for any asphalt or concrete paving, curbing and gutters and sidewalks that are to be replaced. Special deposits are to be refunded upon completion of the work subject to the approval by the Director of Public Works or his authorized agent.
(1) 
The contractor who is to open such road must sign the permit and is solely responsible for all fees associated with such permit. The contractor is also responsible to maintain said road opening until such time that the work is approved by the Director of Public Works or his authorized agent.
B. 
No deposit will be required by any public utility of any city, public utility district, public corporation or political subdivision which is authorized by law to establish or maintain any works or facilities in, under or over any public street, alley or right-of-way.
C. 
Whenever any person desires to install or repair a tank or tanks for storage of gasoline or oil under the surface of any public street, alley, sidewalk or other public place, a general deposit or bond of $500 shall be deposited with the Town to be held by the Town for the period that the tank remains under the surface. This section shall not relieve said person from the obligation of complying with other provisions of Smithfield ordinances.
D. 
Any person who receives a building permit from the Building Official to construct, install, repair or remove any structure shall obtain a permit and make the required deposit as provided herein, if during the progress of work it is necessary to excavate within any public street, alley, sidewalk or other public place.
Any permit granted under this article may be revoked by the Director for noncompliance with any of the provisions of this article.
Any public utility possessing a franchise to install, operate, maintain or use facilities in the streets, although deriving its rights to occupy such streets from the franchise, shall nevertheless procure a permit as provided in this article.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent any person from maintaining any pipe or conduit in any public street, alley or public place by virtue of any law, ordinance or permit, or from making such excavations as may be necessary for the preservation of life or property when such necessity arises. When an emergency excavation has been commenced, the person making said excavation shall secure a permit therefor on the next working day.