[Adopted 9-7-1999 by Ord. No. 965 (Ch. 21, Part 3, of the
1989 Code)]
Hereinafter, it shall be unlawful to open or excavate in any
street, alley, road, sidewalk or highway of the Borough or cause the
same to be done for the purpose of laying or re-laying, or repairing
any gas, water, sewer, oil and other piping; electric light, telephone,
television, telegraph, heating or other conduits, including the making
of house or service connections therewith; or for the purpose of erecting
or removing any poles, to which shall be or are attached telegraph,
telephone, television, electric light, street railway or guy wires,
or for any other purpose whatsoever, without first securing a permit
from the Borough in accordance with this article.
Any person or entity who shall desire to make any opening or
excavation in any of the Borough streets is required to file an application
with the Borough Secretary. The application shall be provided by the
Borough and shall include the name of the applicant, the exact location
of the proposed opening or excavation, and the approximate size or
depth thereof, the date or dates during which such opening is to be
permitted, and the date and time the opening is to be refilled and
resurfaced. The application shall contain an agreement on the part
of the applicant that the work shall be done in a careful and prudent
manner and in full compliance with the ordinances of the Borough and
the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the applicant shall
defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Borough of Wilmerding and
its agents, servants and employees 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 the work
connected therewith, or from any other matter, cause or thing relating
thereto. All applications for permits shall supply a plan or sketch
indicating the nature, location and dimensions of the proposed opening
for the installation of the new work or modifications. The plan shall
indicate the final location of any conduits, pipes, lines, connections
and property.
No person or entity shall open or excavate any street or alley
without first posting bond or security with the Borough with a trust
or surety company acceptable to the Borough as surety in the sum determined
by the schedule of fees, conditioned for the faithful performance
of the obligations of this article, and for any and all damages, claims,
demands, suits, costs and counsel fees occasioned or arising from
the opening, excavation or closing of said streets and alleys.
A.
Liability insurance. Prior to issuance of a permit, the applicant
shall provide the Borough of Wilmerding with a certificate of comprehensive
liability insurance for public liability and property damage with
limits of no less than $1,000,000 per accident, and issued by an insurance
company approved by the Borough of Wilmerding.
B.
Bond for restoration, repairs and payment of all engineering, inspection
and legal fees.
(1)
In addition to the requirements of Subsection A hereof, as a guarantee
of good faith in repairing or restoring the surface of any street,
road, alley or highway opened, and payment of all fees required by
this article, a bond of an approved surety company, deposit of cash
or certified check for such guarantee shall be made in the name of
the Borough and deposited with the Borough Manager, based upon the
following rates:
(2)
Such bond, deposit of cash or certified check so deposited with the
Borough Manager shall be turned over to the proper Borough authority
as Council may, by motion, direct and shall be retained for two years
from the date of the final restoration of the opening. In the event
the restoration of the surface of the excavated street, road, alley
or highway is deemed to be improper, faulty, defective or not done
at all, then, in any such case, the permittee shall be given 10 days'
written notice by the Borough to make such repair or restoration as
the Borough deems proper, and upon the failure of the permittee to
do so, the Borough may make such repair or restoration forthwith and
charge or deduct the cost of the same against the bond, deposit of
cash or certified check of the permittee. At the expiration of the
two years, the Borough shall return or refund to the permittee his
bond, deposit of cash or certified check, or any portion of the same
to which he is entitled.
Prior to the issuance of any permit to open or excavate and
prior to any work being done to open or excavate any street, alley,
right-of-way, roadway, sidewalk, walkway, path or any type of improved
or unimproved public property in the Borough of Wilmerding, the applicant
shall pay a permit fee in the amount fixed.
A.
At the time of applying for the permit, the applicant shall pay to
the Borough of Wilmerding a permit fee as follows:
B.
A separate permit application and accompanying fee shall be required
for each street, alley, road, highway, sidewalk or portion thereof
within which an opening or excavation is proposed.
C.
All permits shall expire in six months from the date of issuance,
unless extended by the Borough, in its sole discretion.
D.
All work under the authority of any permit shall be inspected by
the Borough Engineer and/or Inspector. All applicants shall be solely
responsible for all engineering, inspection and legal fees associated
with such inspection. All such bills received by the applicant shall
be due and payable within 30 days of the date of issuance. No applicant
shall be eligible for additional permits if a bill issued pursuant
to this section is overdue.
E.
If an applicant secures a permit for work to be performed in an area
where a parking meter stall or stalls will be unavailable for public
use, the applicant shall be required to make restitution to the Borough
in the full amount of lost parking meter revenue based on one-hundred-percent
occupancy of the parking meter stall or stalls.
Permits shall be issued only to persons furnishing public utility
services or the owner or owners of the real property adjoining the
location where such opening or excavation is to be made.
A permit may be issued to the applicant after all the requirements
therefor have been filled. If the application is disapproved, written
notice of disapproval together with the reasons therefor shall be
given to the applicant.
If a permit is required under the provisions of this article,
then a copy of the permit, attested by the proper Borough officer,
shall be kept at all times on the job during the continuance of operations
by those performing the work, otherwise the work may be stopped at
the direction of the police or other officers of the Borough until
such a permit is produced.
A.
No opening or excavation in any street shall exceed from the curbline
into the highway a distance greater than one foot beyond the center
line of the street before being backfilled and the surface of the
highway restored to a safe passable condition.
B.
No more than 500 feet longitudinally shall be opened or excavated
in any street at any time.
C.
The excavation work shall not interfere with the water mains, sewers
or their connections with the houses or any other subsurface lines
or constructions until permission is obtained from the proper authorities
in connection with such subsurface lines or constructions.
D.
No tunneling shall be allowed without the approval of the Borough
of Wilmerding. The permission to tunnel must be endorsed upon the
permit. The backfilling of a tunnel excavation shall be made only
in the presence of the Borough's Inspector and shall be done
only in a method approved by the Inspector.
E.
All opening or excavations shall be backfilled promptly with modified
2B limestone and thoroughly compacted in layers. Each layer shall
not exceed four inches in depth.
F.
A temporary paving of cold-patch premix, thoroughly bound and compacted,
shall be installed flush with the surface of the adjoining paving
and maintained for a period of 90 days.
G.
On concrete base streets, the base shall be replaced with concrete
and the minimum size of the opening or excavation shall be 16 square
feet.
H.
All restored surfaces must be at least 12 inches wider on each side
than the excavated trench with a minimum depth of eight inches and
in all cases at least 25% thicker than the surface removed.
I.
No new water, sewer, steam or gas main or electric, telephone or
other utility line shall hereafter be laid or constructed, and no
such existing main or line shall be extended in any of the streets
of the Borough until the plan therefor shall have been first filed
with the Borough Inspector and the exact location of such main or
line approved by him. The Borough Inspector shall not approve the
locating of any such main or line at a depth of less than 30 inches
from the surface of the street unless he shall be convinced that locating
the same at a depth of more than 30 inches from the surface is impossible
or impractical.
K.
All other work in connection with openings in any street, including
excavation, protection, refilling and temporary paving, shall be done
by or for the person to whom or which the permit has been issued at
his or its expense, and all such work shall be subject to the provisions
of this article and to the supervision and approval of the Borough
Inspector, provided that the designated official may, if he deems
it necessary to the proper performance of the work, require that cutting
of the surface of streets and the backfilling of all excavations therein
shall be done by the Borough, in which event the applicant shall pay
the actual cost of the work performed by the Borough.
L.
All street surfaces shall be saw cut.
A.
Any permittee under this article and those operating with and under
him shall at all times be required to adequately support the surface
of the highway under which they are tunneling, the use of which highway
is permitted by the public, and to take all precautions necessary
to prevent injury or damage to the public. If in the opinion of the
Borough it becomes necessary for the safety of the public to have
open trench excavation in lieu of tunneling on openings or excavations
at approximately right angles to the center line of the street or
highway, then the same shall be required of the permittee and those
operating with and under him. The Borough Engineer may add requirements
necessary for the public safety. During the making of any excavation,
every necessary and reasonable precaution shall be taken by the applicant
and those operating with and under him to keep the roadway in a safe
and passable condition both by day and by night.
B.
Any and every opening or excavation in an unimproved roadway shall
be carefully refilled with modified 2B limestone and thoroughly compacted,
and the roadway shall be restored to as good a condition as originally.
In the case of excavations in improved roadways, the earth removed
shall be replaced with modified 2A limestone and thoroughly compacted,
and then the brick, concrete, bituminous or other hard surface shall
be replaced with the same type of material in as good a condition
as possible. The applicant shall notify the Borough Inspector when
the opening or excavation is ready for backfilling and before any
backfilling is done, when backfilling work is completed, when temporary
paving has been installed and when the street has been permanently
restored so that inspections may be made.
C.
Any permitted opening or excavation shall be protected by a suitable
barricade during the daylight and a barricade with lights at night,
so long as the excavations remains open.
D.
All permits granted herewith are granted under and subject to the
condition that the person to whom the same is issued shall indemnify,
save and keep harmless the Borough and its agents, servants and employees
from any loss in damages or otherwise which may or shall be occasioned
at any time by the said excavation or by any leak, explosion or other
injury from any pipe, apparatus, conduit or any other matter placed
in the said excavation.
E.
Contractor shall be responsible for vehicular and pedestrian safety
and shall have sufficient traffic control devices and personnel available
and on scene for this purpose.
In the event that any work performed by or for a permit holder
shall, in the opinion of the Borough Inspector, be unsatisfactory
and the same shall not be corrected in accordance with his instructions
within the time fixed by him, or in the event that the work for which
the permit was granted is not completed within the time fixed by the
Borough Inspector, the Borough of Wilmerding may proceed to correct
such unsatisfactory work to complete any such work not completed and
charge the cost thereof, plus 10%, to the applicant.
In the case of any leak, explosion or other accident in any
subsurface pipe, line, construction or apparatus, it shall be lawful
for the person owning or responsible for such pipe, line, construction
or apparatus to commence an excavation to remedy such condition before
securing a permit, provided that application for a permit shall be
made immediately and not later than the next business day thereafter
and that all other provisions of this article are fully complied with.
If any such emergency condition shall not be immediately attended
to by the owner or person responsible for such emergency, then the
Borough, after such notice as it shall deem necessary under the circumstances
of the particular case, shall proceed to do the work made necessary
by such emergency and charge the same on the basis of cost plus 10%
to such owner or person.
The permittee or its contractors do not have the right to cut,
remove or destroy trees or shrubbery within the legal right-of-way
except under specifications, regulations and conditions as the Borough
may prescribe.
If at any time in the future the roadway is widened, reconstructed
or the alignment or grades are changed, the permittee further agrees
to change or relocate all or any part of the structures covered by
this permit which interfere with the improvement of the roadway at
its own cost and expense.
Payment for all work done by the Borough under the provisions
hereof shall be made by the person made liable therefor under the
provisions hereof within 30 days after a bill therefor is sent to
such person by the Borough. Upon failure to pay such charges within
such time, the same shall be collectible by the Borough by an action
in assumpsit or in the manner provided by law for the collection of
municipal claims.
Any person who shall open or excavate any street in the Borough
shall thoroughly and completely refill the opening or excavation in
such a manner as to prevent any settling thereafter and shall restore
the surface to the same condition as it was before the opening or
excavation in such a manner as to prevent any settling thereafter,
and such restoration shall be in accordance with the specifications
of the Department of Transportation of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
which are hereby adopted as specifications of the Borough for restoration
of surfaces of streets in the Borough; as restored, 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 two years after the restoration of the surface as herein provided
defects shall appear therein, the applicant shall reimburse the Borough
for the cost of all necessary repairs to the permanent paving, plus
10%.
A.
The Borough Inspector shall give timely notice to all persons owning
property abutting on any street within the Borough about to be paved
or improved and to all public utility companies operating in the Borough,
and all such persons and utility companies shall make all water, gas
or sewer connections, as well as any repairs thereto which would necessitate
excavation of the said street, within 30 days from the giving of such
notice, unless such time is extended in writing for cause shown by
the Borough Inspector. New paving shall not be opened or excavated
for a period of five years after the completion thereof, except in
case of emergency, the existence of which emergency and the necessity
for the opening or excavating of such paving to be determined by the
Borough Inspector. If it is sought to excavate upon or open a street
within five years after the completion of the paving, the applicant
shall make written application to the Borough Council, and a permit
for such opening shall be issued only after express approval of the
Borough Council.
B.
Any street which is opened within two years of repaving shall be
resurfaced for its entire width for a distance of no less than 15
feet beyond such opening. Any street which is opened more than two
years and up to five years of repaving shall have the entire lane
in which the opening is made resurfaced for a distance of no less
than 10 feet beyond such opening.
Any person, firm or corporation, whether as principal, agent
or employee, violating or assisting in the violation of any of the
provisions of this article shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to
pay a fine of not more than $600 plus costs and, in default of payment
of said fine and costs, to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 30
days. Every day that a violation of this article continues shall constitute
a separate offense.
