A. 
Duties. It shall be the duty of the enforcement officer(s) to administer and enforce the provisions of this Part 1.
B. 
Appointment. The Town Board of the Town of Queensbury shall appoint the enforcement officer(s).
C. 
Duty of Director of Building and Code Enforcement. The Director of Building and Code Enforcement, or his/her designee, shall be the Enforcement Officer, and is referred to throughout this Part 1 as the "Enforcement Officer" or the "Director of Building and Code Enforcement." It shall be the duty of the Director of Building and Code Enforcement to inspect all facilities falling under the jurisdiction of this Part 1, including but not limited to all individual sewage disposal systems and all preexisting individual sewage disposal systems, and (s)he is hereby authorized to enter any parcel of property within the Town of Queensbury pursuant to this authority. Where practical, such inspections and entry shall be made after reasonable notice to the owner or occupant. If it is necessary to enter a structure to make an inspection, the owner must consent to the entry and the owner or owner's representative must be present when the entry and inspection is made. If the owner refuses to consent, the Enforcement Officer shall report to the Town Board and the Town Board may authorize Town Counsel to seek a court order authorizing the entry and inspection.
[Amended 5-24-1991 by L.L. No. 6-1991; 5-5-1997 by L.L. No. 4-1997]
D. 
In carrying out the provisions of this Article IV, the local Board of Health or the Enforcement Officer may engage the services of a qualified professional consultant for expert review and recommendation arising from the carrying out of the provisions of this Article IV, including but not limited to the review of plans, specifications and reports, attendance at inspections, dye tests, deep hole test pits, septic-related deep hole and percolation tests, system installation, and any other aspect of any matter contained in this Article IV, and any costs incurred in such review shall be paid to the Town by the owner of the property before any approval granted under this Article IV shall become effective or within 30 days of presentment of an invoice for same, whichever is sooner. Such costs shall not exceed $1,500 without prior written notice to the party to be charged with same.
[Added 7-2-2007 by L.L. No. 3-2007]
[Amended 5-24-1991 by L.L. No. 6-1991]
The original or a certified copy of all decisions, approvals, rulings and findings of any board under this Part 1 and of all permits and certificates issued pursuant to this Part 1 shall be retained in the files of the enforcement officer as a permanent public record. A copy shall be retained in the files of the Department of Building and Code Enforcement for the Town of Queensbury. (It is recommended that owners also retain a copy of the plan of the disposal system.)
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to construct, alter, repair or extend an individual sewage disposal system within the Town unless a disposal system building permit has been issued, except that minor repairs may be made without a permit.
B. 
Applications for disposal system building permits may be made only by the owner or lessee of the lot for which the system is proposed or his duly authorized agent or assigns, and applications shall be in writing, signed by the applicant in such form as determined by the enforcement officer. The appropriate fee posted in the Department of Building and Code Enforcement shall accompany the application for a sewage disposal system building permit. Applications shall be submitted to the enforcement officer or the Director of Building and Code Enforcement and shall include such information as the New York State Board of Health and the enforcement officer shall require, including the following:
[Amended 5-24-1991 by L.L. No. 6-1991]
(1) 
The name and address of the applicant.
(2) 
The specific location of the property on which the construction, alteration, repair or extension is proposed.
(3) 
A plan of the proposed disposal system, with substantiating data attesting to compliance with the minimum standards set forth in this Part 1.
(4) 
A sketch of the property showing the location of the proposed construction, alteration, repair or extension and including delineation of the property lines and sources of water supply for the property and adjoining properties.
(5) 
Evidence to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the enforcement officer that there is no public sewer available into which the sewage can be discharged from plumbing facilities on the proposed building site, or that it is impracticable to discharge sewage from on-site plumbing facilities into a sanitary sewer system.
(6) 
A percolation test for the site of a proposed facility. The percolation rate shall be determined by the methods described in the Waste Treatment Handbook - Individual Household Systems, New York State Department of Health.
(a) 
The enforcement officer may verify the results of such percolation tests and require all such information from the applicant necessary for such review; alternatively, the enforcement officer shall indicate the individual designated by the Board of Health to conduct this test.
(b) 
See Appendix F for suggested percolation testing techniques and a sample application.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix F is included at the end of this chapter.
(7) 
Site data which might affect, or be affected by the proposed system, including but not limited to specifications regarding soil type, topography, depth or seasonal high groundwater, depth to impervious material, depth to bedrock or distance to surface bodies of water. The determination of depth to seasonal high groundwater shall be made in the months of March, April, May or June, within six weeks of the time that the frost leaves the ground. All determinations shall be accompanied by a detailed statement of the testing methods used as well as the basis for the determination. The enforcement officer shall determine whether or not an application is complete. (See Appendix F, for technique for determination of seasonal high groundwater.[2])
[2]
Editor's Note: Appendix F is included at the end of this chapter.
C. 
The enforcement officer shall have the authority to require certification or retesting to verify information submitted as part of the application.
D. 
The enforcement officer may conduct such investigations, examinations, tests and site evaluations as he deems necessary to verify information contained in an application for a sewage disposal building permit, and the applicant or owner of land on which the system is proposed shall grant the administrator or his agents permission to enter on his land for these purposes.
E. 
The enforcement officer shall not issue a disposal building permit unless all pertinent site data has been submitted, verified and certified as required by Part 1; all permit fees have been paid; and the enforcement officer has determined that the alteration, repair or construction as proposed in the application complies with all the specifications contained in this Part 1.
F. 
The enforcement officer may disapprove an application for a disposal system building permit if he determines that:
(1) 
The individual sewage disposal system, as proposed, will not conform to the requirements or specifications of this Part 1.
(2) 
The applicant has failed to supply all data necessary to make a determination as to whether or not such individual sewage disposal system conforms to the requirements or specifications of this Part 1 and has failed to supply such information for 60 days after a written request for such additional information has been mailed.
(3) 
The applicant has failed to pay all necessary fees and has failed to make such payment for 60 days after notice of such nonpayment has been mailed.
G. 
The enforcement officer may, by written notice, order all further work stopped on any individual sewage disposal system which is being constructed or installed in violation of this Part 1.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any unauthorized person to cover or utilize any individual sewage disposal system unless a disposal system use certificate has been issued therefor.
B. 
It shall be the duty of the holder of the disposal system building permit to notify the enforcement officer when the installation is ready for inspection. The inspection shall be made as soon thereafter as practical by the enforcement officer. The enforcement officer may also make inspections during construction to ensure that the system is being installed in accordance with the application and this Part 1. Any part of any installation which has been covered prior to final approval shall be uncovered upon order of the enforcement officer.
C. 
A disposal system use certificate shall not be granted until the enforcement officer has determined that the individual sewage disposal system has been installed in compliance with the application and this Part 1. The enforcement officer may make such a determination only after he has made an on-site investigation of the system or received a certification from the individual designing and installing the system that the system conforms to the specifications as set forth in the application and this Part 1. The enforcement officer may withhold a determination until after an on-site investigation has been completed, notwithstanding that the system has been certified as properly installed and designed.
The local Board of Health may vary or adapt the strict application of any of the requirements of this Part 1 in the case whereby such strict application would result in unnecessary hardship that would deprive the owner of the reasonable use of the land involved.
A. 
No variance in the strict application of any provision of this Part 1 shall be granted by the local Board of Health unless it shall find all of the following:
(1) 
That there are special circumstances or conditions, fully described in the findings of the local Board of Health, applying to such land, and that such circumstances or conditions are such that strict application of the provisions of this Part 1 would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of such land.
(2) 
That the variance would not be materially detrimental to the purposes and objectives of this Part 1 or to other adjoining properties, or otherwise conflict with the purpose or objectives of any plan or policy of the Town.
(3) 
That, for reasons fully set forth in the findings of the local Board of Health, the granting of the variance is necessary for the reasonable use of the land and, that the variance, as granted by the local Board of Health, is the minimum variance which would alleviate the specific unnecessary hardship found by the local Board of Health to affect the applicant.
B. 
In granting any variance, the local Board of Health shall prescribe and attach any reasonable conditions that it deems to be necessary or desirable.
Variances may be instituted by filing an application with the local Board of Health, using forms supplied by the local Board of Health, which shall include all information reasonably considered by the Board as necessary to make its findings under § 136-18 above, including, among other things, the legal description of property for which the variance is sought, a map showing the property and all properties within a radius of 500 feet of the exterior boundaries thereof, plans and elevations necessary to fully describe the conditions for which a variance is sought and all other information reasonably considered necessary by the local Board of Health for an understanding of the conditions of the property for which the variance is sought and the relationship thereof to surrounding properties.
A. 
Within 30 days of receipt by the local Board of Health of a completed application for a variance from the provisions of this Part 1, the local Board of Health shall give notice by publication in an official newspaper of the Town of a public hearing to be held on the variance application, which public hearing shall be held not less than five days nor more than 30 days after the publication of said notice. In addition to the publication of the notice of public hearing, at least 10 days prior to said public hearing, the enforcement officer shall mail notices of said public hearing to all owners of properties located within 500 feet of the property for which the variance is sought. For purposes of said notice by mail, the owners of properties within 500 feet shall be determined from the latest completed assessment roll of the Town of Queensbury, and the notices shall be mailed to said owners at the addresses set forth on said roll.
B. 
Within 30 days of the closing of the public hearing, the local Board of Health shall grant, grant with condition or deny the variance applied for. The decision of the local Board of Health shall be in writing and shall contain each of the findings specified in § 136-18 above.
C. 
The enforcement officer shall notify the Adirondack Park Agency by certified mail of any variance grant involving lands located within the Adirondack Park. Any variance granted or granted with conditions shall not be effective until 30 days after such notice to the Adirondack Park Agency. If within such thirty-day period, the Agency determines that such action involves the provisions of the Land Use and Development Plan as approved in the Local Land Use Program, including any shoreline restriction, and that such was not predicated upon an appropriate statutory basis of unnecessary hardship, the Agency may reverse the determination of the local Board of Health in granting the variance.
D. 
As part of any determination granting a variance involving lands within the Adirondack Park, the local Board of Health shall direct the enforcement officer to issue any appropriate permit in conformity with its determination and shall state a time by which the permit shall be issued, in conformity with this Part 1 and the terms and conditions of the variance granted.
E. 
The Board of Health may refer any variance application to a qualified professional consultant for expert review and recommendation, and any costs incurred in such review shall be paid to the Town by the applicant before any variance granted shall be effective.
[Added 11-29-2004 by L.L. No. 11-2004]
Persons adversely affected by an action, omission, decision or rule by the enforcement officer may appeal such actions or inactions only to the local Board of Health, which Board shall render a decision regarding the appeal only after holding a hearing on the matter.
Unless otherwise stated, all petitions, applications and appeals provided for in this Part 1 shall be made on forms prescribed by the enforcement officer. Completed forms shall be accompanied by whatever further information, plans or specifications as may be required by such forms.
Fees shall be paid upon the submission of applications provided for by the terms of this Part 1.
A. 
The enforcement officer shall notify the Adirondack Park Agency by mail of appeal actions. Any application approved or approved with conditions shall not be effective until 30 days after such notice to the Agency. If within such thirty-day period, the Agency determines that such action involves the provisions of the Land Use and Development Plan as approved in the local Land Use Program, including any shoreline restriction, and was not based upon the appropriate statutory basis, the Agency may reverse the enforcement officer's action.
B. 
As part of any decision, the Board shall direct the enforcement officer to issue any appropriate permit in conformity with its ruling and shall state a time by which the permit shall be issued, in conformity with this Part 1.
A. 
The filing of an application for a disposal system building permit represents permission by the applicant for the enforcement officer and/or other designated person to conduct such examinations, tests and other inspections of the disposal system site. However, entrance upon the applicant's property where practicable, shall be made only after reasonable prior notice to the applicant.
B. 
The enforcement officer or his/her designee may inspect any individual sewage disposal system, including preexisting individual sewage disposal systems, to ensure that it is being maintained in proper working order. It shall be unlawful for the owner or occupant of the property to deny such enforcement officer access to the property at reasonable times for the purpose of making such inspections. Where practical, inspections shall be made only after reasonable notice to the owner or occupant, and 24 hours' notice shall be given where practical. Where the enforcement officer determines that a system is not being maintained in compliance with this Part 1, (s)he may order that use of the system cease and/or that the defects be corrected and/or the misuse abated within a reasonable time. If the prescribed action is not taken within the time fixed by the enforcement officer, in addition to any other remedies provided by law, (s)he may revoke the use permit, if any, for the system.
[Amended 5-5-1997 by L.L. No. 4-1997]
A. 
Any permit issued pursuant to this Part 1 shall expire within 60 days from the date of issuance thereof unless extension has been applied for by the applicant at the Department of Building and Code Enforcement.
[Amended 5-24-1991 by L.L. No. 6-1991]
B. 
Unless otherwise provided for in the permit, all permits shall expire within two years of issuance. Once a permit expires, and the disposal system is not completed, a new permit application is required.