[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of Union 8-3-1983 by Ord. No. 72. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide minimum standards to safeguard
persons and to protect and to promote the public welfare by regulating
and controlling the design, construction, quality of materials, use,
location, maintenance and reclamation of grading, excavation and fill.
B.
The title of the chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Union
Township Grading Ordinance."
Wherever used in the chapter, the following words shall have
the meanings indicated:
Any permit required by the applicable ordinance or any amendment
thereto.[1]
The appointed Engineer of the Township.
Any act or the result of such act by which earth, sand, gravel,
rock or any other similar material is cut into, dug, quarried, uncovered,
removed, displaced, relocated or bulldozed, and shall include the
conditions resulting therefrom.
Any act or the result of such act by which earth, sand, gravel,
rock or any other material is deposited, placed, pushed, dumped, pulled,
transported or moved to a new location, and shall include the conditions
resulting therefrom.
The elevation of the existing ground surface at the location
of any proposed excavation or fill.
Excavation or fill, or any combination thereof, and shall
include the conditions resulting from any excavation or fill.
A natural person, partnership or corporation and their heirs,
successors and assigns.
A lot, tract or parcel of land or a series of lots, tracts
or parcels of land which are adjoining, where grading work is continuous
and performed at the same time.
The Township of Union.
The appointed Zoning Officer of the Township.
New grading, excavations and fills or changes, additions, repairs
or alterations made to existing excavations and fills shall conform
to the provisions of this chapter, except that this chapter shall
not apply to:
A.
Work when done by the Township, Washington County or the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, or authorized by the Township, Washington County
or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in a public street or alley or
in a Township park, playground or recreation area or on other municipal
property.
No person shall commence or perform any grading, excavation
or fill without first having obtained a grading permit from the Zoning
Officer and approval from the Engineer. A separate grading permit
shall be required for each site. One permit may cover the grading,
excavation and any fill made on the same site. A grading permit will
not be required, however, in any of the following situations, but
in all other respects the provisions of this chapter shall apply:
A.
No grading permit shall be required for any excavation which is to
be made which does not exceed 100 cubic yards in amount at any one
site and the cut slope does not exceed one vertical to two horizontal
and where the top of the cut face will be entirely inside a line three
feet from the property in which the excavation is to be made.
B.
No grading permit shall be required when a fill is to be made which
does not exceed 100 cubic yards in amount at any one site and the
slope does not exceed at any point three horizontal to one vertical
and the bottom line of the fill slope will be entirely inside a line
three feet from the property lines of the property on which the fill
is placed.
[Amended 8-24-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02]
C.
No grading permit will be required for any excavations and backfill
made below finished grade for basements or footers, home swimming
pools or activity for which an underground building permit has been
properly issued by the Township, and no grading permit shall be required
for the temporary stockpiling of the material from such excavation
on the same site; provided, however, that if the material from such
excavation is thereafter to be used for fill for which a grading permit
is required, such permit must be obtained prior to such use in accordance
with the requirements of this chapter. In addition, if excavated material
is stockpiled on a site for a period longer than 120 days, then a
permit shall be required when disposing of the fill material.
A.
Every applicant for a grading permit shall file a written application
with the Zoning Officer. Such application shall:
(1)
Describe the land on which the proposed work is to be done, by lot,
block, tract or street address or similar description which will readily
identify and definitely locate the proposed work.
(2)
Be accompanied by plans and specifications prepared at the expense
of the applicant by a registered engineer, including:
(a)
A contour map showing the present contours of the land and the
proposed contours of the land after completion of the proposed grading
and a plan showing cross sections of the proposed cut or fill at fifty-foot
intervals which show the method of benching both cut and/or fill.
However, under no circumstances shall there be fewer than three cross
sections for each site involved under said permit.
(b)
A plot plan showing the location of the grading, boundaries,
lot lines, neighboring streets or ways, buildings, trees with trunks
over eight inches in diameter, and sufficient dimensions and other
data to show the location of all work.
(c)
Description of the type and classification of soil. Where required
by the Engineer, a geotechnical investigation report will be prepared
and submitted by the applicant to the Township. The geotechnical investigation
report shall be prepared by a soils engineer approved by the Engineer.
(d)
Details and location of any proposed drainage structures and
pipes, walls and cribbing. Design calculations shall be provided where
required by the Engineer.
(e)
Nature of all fill material and such other information as the
Engineer may require to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
(3)
State the estimated dates for starting and completion of the grading
work.
(4)
State the purpose for which the grading application is filed. If the grading application is filed in the nature of site preparation for any permitted use or uses under Chapter 242, Subdivision and Land Development, or Chapter 280, Zoning, of the Code, such application must be accompanied by all the plans, documents, bonds and other requirements set forth in ordinances of the Township for such permitted use or uses.
C.
Where, owing to special circumstances and conditions, compliance
with the provisions of this chapter would result in unnecessary hardship,
the Board of Supervisors may make such special reasonable exceptions
as will not be contrary to the public interest and may impose such
conditions as it deems necessary to adequately protect the public
interest.
A.
The Zoning Officer shall receive all applications and shall collect
all fees. The Zoning Officer shall transmit all applications to the
Engineer, who shall indicate his approval thereon. In the event of
disapproval, the Engineer shall specify the reasons therefor, a copy
of which shall be sent to the applicant.
B.
Before issuing a grading permit, the Zoning Officer shall collect
a permit fee, the amount of which shall be specified from time to
time by resolution of the Board of Supervisors of the Township.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original subsection 6.3, concerning escrow
account, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed
8-24-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02.
[Amended 8-24-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02; 2-27-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-03]
In addition to the escrow, an applicant may be required to provide
a performance bond as determined by the Engineer after review of the
application. The escrow will cover the Township's costs, Engineer's
review and inspection fees and must be maintained for the duration
of the grading permit. The bond shall inure to the benefit of the
Township and be conditioned upon the faithful performance to the satisfaction
of the Engineer of the work required under the terms and conditions
of the grading permit. In lieu of such bond, a cash deposit or certified
check in the same amount may be delivered to the Township Treasurer
for deposit.
Every grading permit shall expire by limitation and become null
and void if the work authorized by such permit has not been commenced
within three months or is not completed within one year from the date
of issue, provided that the Board of Supervisors, acting upon the
recommendation of the Engineer, may, if the permit holder presents
satisfactory evidence that unusual difficulties have prevented work
being started or completed within the specified time limits, grant
a reasonable extension of time; and provided, further, that the application
for the extension of time is made before the date of expiration of
the permit.
A.
Where in the opinion of the Engineer the work as proposed by the
applicant is likely to endanger any property or person or any street
or alley or create any condition hazardous to the public, he shall
recommend denial of the grading permit. In determining whether the
proposed work is likely to endanger property or streets or alleys
or create conditions hazardous to the public, the Engineer shall give
due consideration to any factors relevant to the proposed work, including
but not limited to:
B.
The Board of Supervisors of the Township shall hear appeals from the denial of applications for permits under this chapter or from determinations of the Zoning Officer, and the Board of Supervisors shall make its decision on such appeals in accordance with § 135-5C herein. The applicant shall have the right to appeal a denial of a permit application or a determination of the Zoning Officer to the Board of Supervisors within 30 days after such denial or determination. The Board of Supervisors shall hold a hearing within 30 days after the filing of such appeal and shall make a decision on such appeal within 45 days after such hearing, or after the last hearing if more than one. Any applicant or permit holder shall have the right to appeal to a court of competent jurisdiction from the decision of the Board of Supervisors of the Township. Such appeal shall be taken within 30 days after the mailing of such decision or determination by the Board of Supervisors.
A.
The Engineer shall, when requested by the permit holder, make the
inspections hereinafter required and shall either approve that portion
of the work which has been completed or notify the permit holder wherein
the same fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter. Where
it is found by inspection that the soil or other conditions are not
as stated or shown in the application, the Engineer may refuse to
approve further work until approval is obtained for a revised grading
plan conforming to existing conditions.
B.
Grading work plans, bearing the stamp of approval of the Engineer,
shall be maintained at the site during the progress of the grading
work and until the work has been finally approved.
C.
The permit holder shall notify the Engineer to obtain inspections
in accordance with the following schedule and at least 24 hours before
the inspection is to be made:
(1)
Initial inspection. When work on the excavation or fill is about
to be commenced.
(2)
Rough grading. When all rough grading has been completed.
(3)
Drainage facilities. When drainage facilities are to be installed
and before such facilities are backfilled.
(4)
Special structures. When excavations are complete for retaining crib
walls, etc., and when reinforcing steel is in place, and before concrete
is poured.
(5)
General completion final. When all work, including the installation
of all drainage and other structures, has been completed.
(6)
Site stabilization. When all final seeding, fertilizing and mulching
has been completed and the vegetation has stabilized the disturbed
areas.
A.
No excavation shall be made with a cut face steeper in slope than
one vertical to 1 1/2 horizontal, except under one or more of
the following conditions:
(1)
The excavation is located so that a line having a slope of one vertical
to 1 1/2 horizontal and passing in any portion of the cut face
will be entirely inside a line three feet inside the property lines
of the property on which the excavation is made. Approval by the Engineer
under this subsection is contingent upon receipt of a written statement
by a civil engineer or geologist licensed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
and experienced in soils engineering and geology to the effect that
such excavation will not result in injury to person or damage to property.
(2)
The material in the excavation made is sufficiently stable to sustain
a slope of steeper than one vertical to 1 1/2 horizontal, and
a written statement of a civil engineer or geologist licensed by the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and experienced in soils engineering
and geology to that effect is submitted to the Engineer and approved
by him. The statement shall state that the site has been inspected
and that the deviation from the slope specified above will not result
in injury to persons or damage to property.
(3)
A retaining wall or other approved support designed by a registered
engineer, licensed in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and approved
by the Engineer, is provided to support the face of the excavation
and to prevent injury to persons or damage to property.
B.
The Engineer may require an excavation to be made with a cut face
flatter in slope than one vertical to 1 1/2 horizontal if he
finds that the material in which the excavation is to be made is unusually
subject to erosion or if other conditions exist which make such flatter
cut slope necessary for stability and safety.
C.
Excavations shall not extend below the angle of repose or natural
slope of the soil under the nearest point of any footing or foundation
of any building or structure unless such footing or foundation is
first properly underpinned or protected against settlement.
D.
Before commencing any excavation which may in any way affect an adjoining
property or structures thereon, the person making or causing the excavation
to be made shall notify, in writing, the owners of the adjacent property
or buildings not less than 30 days before such excavation is to be
made that the proposed excavation is to be started. Adjoining properties
and structures shall be protected as provided in the Township Building
Code as is then on file in the office of the Zoning Officer and/or
as required by the Engineer.[1]
A.
No fill shall be made in the Township which creates a slope steeper
than one vertical to two horizontal, except under one or more of the
following conditions:
(1)
The fill, in the opinion of the Engineer, is located so that settlement,
sliding or erosion of the fill material will not result in property
damage or be a hazard to adjoining property, streets, ways or buildings.
(2)
A written statement from a civil engineer, licensed by the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania and experienced in soils engineering, certifying that
he has inspected the site and that the proposed deviation from the
standard specified slopes will not endanger any property or result
in personal hazard or property damage, is submitted to and approved
by the Engineer.
B.
In issuing permits, the Township, on the advice and recommendation
of the Engineer, may impose conditions requiring that a fill be constructed
with an exposed surface flatter than 2 1/2 horizontal to one
vertical if the Engineer advises that, under the particular circumstances
involved, such flatter surface is necessary for stability and for
the safety of persons and property.
C.
Whenever a fill is to be made of materials other than clean soil
or earth, the grading permit shall be subject to the following additional
limitations and requirements:
(1)
The fill shall be completed within a reasonable length of time as
determined by the Engineer and so specified on the grading permit.
(2)
Clean soil or earth shall be placed over the top and exposed surfaces
of the fill to a depth sufficient to effectively conceal all materials
used in the fill other than clean soil or earth. If the filling operation
is intermittent, the Engineer may require that the top and exposed
surfaces of the fill be so covered and seeded at the completion of
each lift.
(3)
No fill of any kind shall be placed over trees, stumps or other materials
which would create a nuisance or be susceptible to attracting rodents,
termites or other pests.
A.
All fills shall be compacted to provide stability of fill material
and to prevent undesirable settlement or slippage.
B.
The fill shall be installed in a series of layers, each not exceeding
12 inches in thickness, and each layer shall be compacted by passing
a sheep's-foot roller or other approved equipment across the layer
in a minimum of four passes as the layer is spread.
C.
Pieces of rock or boulders having a thickness of more than six inches
or a cross-sectional area in any plane of more than 1 1/2 square
feet shall not be permitted in fills.
D.
No fill material that will support combustion shall be permitted.
E.
Where fills are placed on any existing slope greater than 5%, the
toe of the fill shall be prepared by cutting a bench 10 feet wide
on a reverse slope of one vertical to 10 horizontal.
F.
For fills higher than 10 feet above the toe of the proposed slope,
there shall be constructed benches at eight-foot intervals measured
vertically from the base of the fill. Said benches shall be six feet
in width and shall have a floor cut to a reverse slope of one vertical
to six horizontal.
G.
The Engineer, with the approval of the Board of Supervisors, may
require tests or additional information if, in his opinion, the conditions
or materials of the fill are such that the additional information
is necessary.
B.
Excavations cut at the normal one vertical to 1 1/2 horizontal
and deeper than 10 feet from the top of the cut shall have six-foot-wide
benches installed at ten-foot intervals measured from the top. Said
benches shall have reverse floor slopes of one vertical to six horizontal.
C.
Excavations cut at slopes in excess of the normal set forth in Subsection B above and deeper than 10 feet from the top of the cut shall have similar benches installed at eight-foot intervals measured from the top.
D.
All drainage provisions shall be of such design as to carry surface
water to the nearest practical street storm drain, storm sewer or
natural watercourse, as approved by the Engineer as a safe place to
deposit and receive such waters.
E.
The Engineer shall require such drainage structures or pipes to be
constructed or installed as may be necessary to prevent erosion damage
and to satisfactorily carry off accumulated surface waters.
F.
Constructed benches in fills or cuts at the top of slopes shall have
horizontal gradients of at least 2% for the purpose of carrying off
surface waters.
G.
The planting of sod, shrubs or other vegetation on slopes to prevent
erosion may be required where the condition of the grading is such
that planting is necessary to protect against erosion, in the opinion
of the Engineer.
A.
The owner of any property on which an excavation or fill has been
made shall maintain in good condition and repair the excavation or
fill permitted and also all retaining walls, cribbing, drainage structures,
fences, ground cover and any other protective devices as may be a
part of the permit requirement.
B.
If at any time subsequent to the completion of the grading work the
cut face or fill slope shall evidence signs of deterioration, erosion
or other evidence which might be detrimental to the properties above
or below the grading site, the Board of Supervisors, upon the recommendation
of the Engineer, may direct the property owner to take whatever remedial
steps are deemed necessary to restore the grading area to a safe condition
and to do so within a reasonable period of time.
C.
If after such notification the property owner has not made the necessary
repairs within the allotted time, the Board of Supervisors may direct
Township employees to make the required repairs, and the costs thereof
shall be borne by the property owner by a lien filed as provided by
law.
A.
The top or bottom edge of slopes shall be at least three feet from
adjacent property lines or street right-of-way lines to permit the
normal rounding of the edge without encroaching on the abutting property
or street.
B.
At the top of all cut or fill slopes which are in excess of 1 1/2
horizontal to one vertical and six or more feet in total height, a
fence not less than four feet in height and of a design meeting Township
standards shall be erected.
C.
The owner of the property being graded shall take all precautions
necessary to prevent the erosion of materials from the grading operation
onto properties of others. Said owner shall also be responsible for
the removal of silt, debris or other materials which wash onto other
properties as a result of the grading work on the said owner's
property.
D.
To prevent the denuding of the landscape, wherever practicable, large
trees and other natural features constituting important physical,
aesthetic and economic assets to existing or impending development
work shall be preserved.
E.
Dust control plan. In addition to the information required as part of the grading application (§ 135-5), applicants must also provide a dust control plan that includes the following:
[Added 2-27-2017 by Ord.
No. 2017-03]
F.
At all times the grading and excavation operations are taking place,
the applicant must remain in compliance with the provisions of the
Township's Dust Control Ordinance (Ordinance No. 2017-02[1]). Failure to comply may result in the revocation of the
grading permit until said violations are remedied.
[Added 2-27-2017 by Ord.
No. 2017-03]
G.
At all times the grading and excavation operations are taking place, the applicant must remain in compliance with the general performance standard provisions found in § 280-104, specifically including but not limited to Subsections D through L dealing with noise, vibrations, erosion, etc.
[Added 2-27-2017 by Ord.
No. 2017-03]
A.
No person shall carry out, construct, enlarge, alter, repair or maintain
any grading, excavation or fill or cause or permit the same to be
done contrary to or in violation of any provision of this chapter.
B.
When written notice of violation of any of the provisions of this
chapter has been served by the Zoning Officer or any other person,
such violation shall be discontinued immediately.
[Amended 8-24-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02]
C.
Any person who violates or permits a violation of this chapter shall,
upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought before a Magisterial
District Judge under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure,
be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable by a fine of
not more than $1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default of payment
thereof, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment for a term
not exceeding 90 days. Each day or portion thereof that such violation
continues or is permitted to continue shall constitute a separate
offense, and each section of this chapter that is violated shall also
constitute a separate offense.
D.
Performance bond. In the event a permit is revoked prior to the completion
of the grading activities, a performance bond must be provided by
the applicant/operator before the grading permit will be reinstated.
The performance bond will be in an amount to be determined by the
Township Engineer. The amount of the bond shall be based upon the
remaining activities and costs associated with the abatement/remedy
operations required. The bond shall inure to the benefit of the Township
and be conditioned upon the faithful performance to the satisfaction
of the Engineer of the work required under the terms and conditions
of the grading permit. In lieu of such bond, a cash deposit or certified
check in the same amount may be delivered to the Township Treasurer
for deposit.
[Added 2-27-2017 by Ord.
No. 2017-03]
In case any work is performed by any person in violation of
any of the provisions of this chapter, the Board of Supervisors of
the Township, in addition to other remedies, may institute in the
name of the Township any appropriate action or proceeding, whether
by legal process or otherwise, to prevent such unlawful work and to
restrain or abate such violation.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to relieve an applicant
of the responsibility of complying with all applicable regulations
of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and/or
other commonwealth agencies, including but no limited to acquiring
any and all permits required by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental
Protection and/or other commonwealth agencies.
