[Adopted 2-11-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1]
No person shall open, excavate, tunnel under or replace the
pavement of any road under the jurisdiction or control of the Borough
without first securing a written road opening permit.
Written application for a road opening permit shall be submitted
to the Borough Clerk. The application shall contain the following
information: name and address of the applicant; name of the road where
the opening is to be made and the street number, if any, of the abutting
property; the Borough Tax Map block and lot numbers of the property
for the benefit of which the opening is to be made; the nature of
the surface in which the opening is to be made; the number of both
lineal and square feet of road surface reasonably estimated to be
required to be opened; the character and purpose of the work proposed;
the time when the work is to be commenced and completed; the names
and addresses of the persons or contractors to perform the work; a
statement that the applicant agrees to replace at his own cost and
expense the street, curb, gutter and sidewalk in the same state and
condition in all things as they were at the time of the commencement
of the work, within 48 hours after the commencement of same; and detailed
description of the traffic safety arrangements for the project. Each
application shall be accompanied by a set of plans (two copies) showing
the exact location and dimension of all proposed openings.
A.
No applicant shall be granted a permit to open any road unless the
applicant shall furnish a certificate of insurance from a responsible
insurance company authorized to do business in New Jersey, to be filed
with the Borough Clerk, showing that the applicant is adequately insured
against liability and property damage claims. The minimum amount of
such comprehensive public liability insurance shall be for $1,000,000
for each claim for bodily injury, $3,000,000 for multiple claims for
bodily injury arising from a single accident and $500,000 for property
damage for a single accident. Such insurance shall remain in full
force and effect throughout the effective period of the permit as
well as any authorized extensions thereof; all such insurance shall
carry an endorsement to the effect that the insurance company will
provide at least 10 days' written notice to the Borough prior to any
modification or policy cancellation. The Borough shall be named as
additional insured on all such insurance certificates or the certificate
shall contain adequate cross-indemnification provisions in favor of
the Borough. The certificate of insurance shall be in legal form satisfactory
to the Borough Attorney.
B.
In lieu of filing a certificate of insurance as provided herein,
a public utility or governmental agency may file with the Borough
Clerk a proper certification that it is qualified as a self-insurer
pursuant to law.
C.
Upon being granted a permit, the permittee agrees that the permittee
shall hold harmless and indemnify the Borough, its employees, agents
and representatives from and against all damage, harm, injury, death,
expense, cost, loss, claim, dispute, suit and attorney's fees resulting
from the negligence, acts and/or omissions of the permittee, its contractors,
subcontractors, employees, agents and/or representatives in connection
with or in the course of designing, planning, performing and concluding
the project in question.
Fees shall be paid when the application is made, as set forth in § 66-1.
A.
No permits shall be issued until the applicant has furnished a performance
guarantee in favor of the Borough in a form and an amount determined
to be sufficient by the Borough. The Borough may waive the requirements
of this section in the case of public utilities, upon the presentation
of satisfactory proof that it is capable of meeting any claims against
it up to the amount of the performance guarantee which would otherwise
be required. The performance guarantee shall be executed by the applicant
as principal and, when applicable, a surety company licensed to do
business in the State of New Jersey as surety, and shall be conditioned
as follows:
(1)
To indemnify and hold harmless the Borough from all loss, damage,
claim or expense, including expenses incurred in the defense of any
litigation arising out of injury to any person or property resulting
from any work done by the applicant under the permit.
(2)
To indemnify the Borough from any expense incurred in enforcing any
of the provisions of this article, including but not limited to reasonable
professional fees.
(3)
To indemnify any person who shall sustain personal injuries or damage
to his property as a result of any act or omission of the applicant,
his agents, employees or subcontractors, in the course of any work
done under the permit.
B.
The performance guarantee shall also be conditioned upon the applicant's
restoring the surface and foundation of the road in accord with Borough
specifications for which the permit is granted in a manner acceptable
to the Borough.
C.
One performance guarantee may be accepted to cover a number of excavations
by the same applicant.
D.
Performance guarantees or a portion thereof in an amount not less
than $500 shall remain in full force and continue in effect for a
period not to exceed 12 months after acceptance by the Borough, or
for such longer period as is determined by the Borough in order to
guarantee the restoring of the foundation and surface of the street.
E.
The permittee shall be responsible for and guarantee all such work
and replacement thereof against all defects of workmanship and materials
for a period of three years from the date of permanent replacement.
If a permittee shall fail to perform any corrective or restorative
work on demand of the Borough, the Borough may perform the work at
the cost and expense of the permittee.
Permits shall be issued by the Borough in accordance with the
provisions of this article and the regulations which the Borough Council
may establish by resolution. Each permit shall state the identity
and address of the applicant, the name of the street and the location
where the excavation or tunnel is to be made, the dimensions of the
opening and the period during which the permit shall be valid. The
original of each permit shall remain on file with the Borough Clerk.
Every permit shall expire at the end of the period of time which
shall be stated in the permit. If the permittee shall be unable to
complete the work within the specified time, the permittee shall,
before expiration of the permit, present, in writing, to the Borough
Clerk a request for an extension of time, setting forth therein the
reasons for the requested extension. If the Borough determines such
an extension is necessary and not contrary to the public interest,
the permittee may be granted additional time for the completion of
the work.
Without limitation, the Borough may refuse the issuance of a
permit if such refusal is in the interest of public safety, public
convenience or public health.
All permits issued under this article shall be subject to the
following requirements:
A.
All excavations shall be kept properly barricaded at all times and
during the hours of darkness shall be provided with proper warning
lights. This requirement shall not excuse the permittee from taking
any other precaution reasonably necessary for the protection of persons
or property.
B.
All work shall be done in such a manner as to cause a minimum of
interference with travel on the street affected. No street shall be
closed to traffic unless the closing is approved by the Borough. The
Borough Clerk shall be informed of all street closings at least 24
hours in advance, except where the work is of an emergency nature,
in which case notice shall be given to the Borough Clerk when work
commences.
C.
Upon application by the permittee, the Borough may extend the time
limit during which the permit shall be valid.
D.
All refuse and material shall be removed within 48 hours.
E.
All excavations shall be completely backfilled by the permittee,
and shall be compacted by tamping or other suitable means by the permittee
in a manner prescribed by the Borough. Where the Borough determines
that the excavated material is unsuitable for backfill, the permittee
shall backfill the excavation with sand, soft coal, cinders or other
suitable material which shall be placed in layers not exceeding six
inches in depth and thoroughly compacted in the manner prescribed
by the Borough. Upon completion of the work, the permittee shall remove
any excess material and leave the premises in a clean condition. If
the Borough determines that any backfilled excavation has settled
or caved in, it shall so notify the permittee who shall promptly continue
backfilling until the Borough determines that settlement is complete.
F.
If tunneling operations are required, the tunnel shall be backfilled
in accordance with the requirements of the Borough or Borough Engineer.
G.
If blasting is required to be done in the course of any excavation,
it shall be done in strict compliance with all applicable state laws
and regulations.
H.
If the work is not completed within the time specified in the permit
or any extension granted by the Borough, or is not performed in accordance
with the requirements set forth in this article and otherwise by the
Borough, then the Borough may have the work completed and the surface
of the street restored. The cost of completing the work and restoring
the street shall be charged to the permittee and may be deducted from
the deposit and/or recovered by an action in any court of competent
jurisdiction.
In all cases, the permittee shall restore the surface of the
street in accordance with the following requirements:
A.
No permittee shall commence the restoration of any street foundation
or surface until the Borough has determined that settlement of the
subsurface is complete and the area properly prepared for restoration.
During the settlement period, the permittee shall keep the trench
filled to the level of pavement.
B.
The permittee shall be required to replace the permanent pavement when ordered to do so by the Borough within a period of six months following the completion of construction, should any additional settlement occur. If the permittee does not replace the permanent pavement to the satisfaction of the Borough, the permittee shall be required to pay the Borough the cost of making said repair, but not less than $50 for each time such repair is made. If payment to the Borough is not made at the time of repair by the Borough, the Borough may satisfy payment plus any additional fees through the provisions of § 117-16.
C.
The street surface shall be restored so as to extend six inches beyond
the excavation on all sides.
D.
The street surface shall be restored to the satisfaction of the Borough.
A.
Transferability. Every permit shall apply only to the person to whom
it is issued and shall not be transferable.
B.
Commencement of work. Work under a permit shall commence within 45
days from the date of issuance of the permit. If work is not commenced
within that time, the permit shall automatically terminate, unless
extended, in writing, by the Borough Clerk.
C.
Possession of permit. A copy of the permit, together with a copy
of the plan endorsed with the approval of the Borough, shall be kept
in possession of the person actually performing the work and shall
be exhibited on demand for the Borough and its representatives and
agents.
D.
Revocation of permit. The Borough may revoke a permit for any of
the following reasons:
(1)
Violation of any provision of this section or any other applicable
rules, regulations, laws or ordinances.
(2)
Violation of any condition of the permit issued.
(3)
Carrying on work under the permit in a manner which endangers life
or property, or which creates any condition which is unhealthy, unsanitary
or declared by any provision of this Code to constitute a nuisance.
E.
Modification of permit conditions. In a special case the Council
may, by resolution, impose special conditions to which the issuance
of the permit may be subject, or may decide that any provision of
this article shall not apply or shall be altered.
Road excavations required under contracts with the Borough and/or
performed by municipal departments are exempt from the requirements
of this article.
A.
Liability for damages. Any person violating a provision of this article
which results in damage to or obstruction of any public road, gutter,
storm drain, ditch, basin, inlet or culvert shall be responsible for
all expenses incurred by the Borough in repairing such damage or removing
the construction, in addition to the penalties herein provided.
