[Adopted 12-3-2007 by Ord. No. 5-2007[1] (Ch. 114, Art. III, of the 1985 Code)]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Art. III,
Excavations in Streets, adopted 4-5-1965 by Ord. No. 2-1965, as amended.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to make
any opening or excavation in or under any street, alley, thoroughfare
or sidewalk within the municipal limits of the Borough of Spring Grove,
unless and until a permit has been secured from the Borough Manager
or Zoning Officer. The Borough Council shall have the authority to
prohibit any work being done without a proper permit or contrary to
the terms of this article. The permit shall contain a statement that
the permitee agrees to the terms of this article.
B.
The applicant for any such work to be done hereunder shall file a
written application, as provided by the Borough. Such application
shall set forth the name and address of the applicant, the purpose
for which the work is to be done, a description of the work to be
done, including the location of the work with reference to adjoining
streets, the dimensions and depth of the work to be completed and
such other information as the Borough Manager, Secretary or Zoning
Officer may require.
C.
Emergency services may be performed prior to the issuance of an approved
street opening permit. All emergency work must be applied for and
under permit within 48 hours of said repair.
Work for which a permit has been issued pursuant to this article
shall commence within 10 days after the issuance of the permit therefor.
If not so commenced, the permit shall automatically terminate. Unless
otherwise indicated in the permit, every permit issued hereunder shall
expire 30 days after issuance of said permit. If the permittee shall
be unable to complete the work within the specified time, he shall,
prior to the expiration of the permit, present in writing to the Borough
a request for an extension of time, setting forth therein the reasons
for the requested extension. An extension of time may be granted to
complete the work at the discretion of the Borough.
The fees and charges set forth below are hereby imposed, and
the amount of the same may be modified by resolution of the Borough
Council, adopted from time to time.
A.
A permit fee is hereby imposed in the amount of $100 per permit with
each cut requiring a separate permit. The permit shall allow the permittee
to close portions of the Borough's street for a period not to exceed
three days per opening, or as required, upon written receipt of a
request by the Borough Manager.
[Amended 12-5-2011 by Res. No. 8-2011]
B.
An inspection fee is hereby imposed for work completed, the amount
of which shall be in the amount of $75 per inspection. Each permit
shall require at least one inspection. The permittee shall notify
the Borough Manager a minimum of 72 hours in advance of final restoration
to schedule an appointment to have a representative of the Borough
inspect the excavation prior to final restoration and covering.
[Amended 12-5-2011 by Res. No. 8-2011]
C.
A degradation fee is hereby imposed at the rate of no less than $25
per square yard calculated by actual measurement of the area involved
in the completed work.
[Amended 12-5-2011 by Res. No. 8-2011]
D.
Such other fees as may be deemed necessary by Borough Council for
administration of this article.
A.
Prior to issuance of a permit, the permittee shall post with the
Borough security, in a form acceptable to the Borough, conditioned
upon the proper restoration of the surface and completion of the work
in accordance with this article. The Borough shall be named as the
beneficiary of such security. The amount of the required restoration
bond or other security shall be established at the rate of no less
than $30 per square yard for the area to be restored. The following
are acceptable forms of security:
(1)
An individual or blanket bond executed by the applicant and naming
the Borough as oblige.
(2)
An irrevocable letter of credit signed by a bank officer naming the
Borough as sole beneficiary, to be honored upon presentment.
(3)
An escrow account.
(4)
Cash deposit, of which the Borough will hold for a period of time
not to exceed six months.
B.
Liability insurance is required and shall be maintained in the minimum
coverage of $500,000. A certificate of insurance must be filed with
the Borough before work may begin.
The permittee shall be responsible for any damage done to any
public or private property caused by or during the prosecution of
the work, including but not limited to that damage caused to any utility
or by damage caused by reason of the breaking of any water pipes,
sewer pipes, gas pipes, electric conduit or other utility. As required
by the Pennsylvania One-Call Act,[1] the permittee shall inform itself as to the existence
and location of all underground utilities prior to the commencement
of work and protect the same against damage.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 73 P.S. § 176 et seq.
At all times during the prosecution of work under the permit,
the permitee shall provide and maintain proper and adequate guard,
barriers and lights to prevent accidents, and shall assume all risks
and be liable for all costs, claims, expenses, and damages by reason
of the openings and the excavations and by reason of any failure to
properly fill the hole or trench or of any failure to maintain the
disturbed surface in a safe condition. Maintenance and protection
of traffic during any work under the permit shall be in accordance
with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Transportation,
Publication 203, "Work Zone Traffic Control" (67 Pa. Code, Chapter
203), dated April 1, 1994, or the most current version thereof.
The permittee shall take appropriate measures to assure that
during the performance of the work, traffic conditions, as close to
normal as practicable, shall be maintained at all times so as to cause
as little inconvenience as possible to the occupant of the abutting
property and to the general public, provided that the Borough may
permit the closing of streets to all traffic for a period of time
prescribed by it if, in its opinion, it is necessary. The permittee
shall route and control traffic, including its own vehicles, as directed
by the Police Department serving the Borough. The following steps
shall be taken before any highway may be closed or restricted to traffic:
A.
At least 48 hours prior to rerouting of traffic, the permittee shall
notify the applicable Fire Department, Police Department, school district
and Borough Public Works Department of any street proposed to be closed.
B.
Upon completion of construction work, the permittee shall notify
the Borough, the Police Department, Fire Department and school district
before traffic is moved back to its normal flow so that any necessary
adjustments may be made.
C.
In all cases, flagmen shall be furnished by the permittee at its
own expense. Through traffic shall be maintained without the aid of
detours, if possible. In instances in which this would not be feasible,
the Borough shall designate detours, which must be appropriately signed
and posted by the permittee at the permittee's expense. The Borough
shall maintain roadway surfaces of existing highways designated as
detours without expense to the permittee, but in case there are no
existing highways the permittee shall construct all detours at its
expense and in conformity with the specifications of the Borough Engineer.
The permittee shall be responsible for any damage caused to any street
by the operation of its equipment.
All work shall be in conformance with the Borough specifications,
which may be amended by the Borough Council from time to time.
Restoration of excavations shall be completed as provided herein:
A.
Temporary restoration. It shall be the duty of any person, firm or
corporation causing an opening or excavation to be made to thoroughly
and completely backfill the same (see Figure 1).[1] The permittee will temporarily pave the opening immediately
after backfill is complete, and shall maintain said filled opening
for a period not to exceed six months, by which time the opening shall
be permanently restored. At all times, the permittee is responsible
for providing a smooth-riding surface over the trench or opening,
and shall make required repairs as directed by the Borough or its
representative. The maximum length of unsurfaced trench shall not
exceed 100 feet at any time.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said figure is included as an attachment to this chapter.
B.
Permanent restoration.
(1)
All streets or public ways are to be restored permanently with a
minimum of six inches of bituminous concrete base course and 1.5 inches
of ID-2 bituminous wearing course (see Figure 1).[2]
[2]
Editor's Note: Said figure is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(2)
All edges must be sawed in a suitable manner and are to be coated
with hot AC-20 asphalt cement or an approved emulsion prior to placing
the ID-2. After the wearing surface has been placed and thoroughly
compacted, the cut or surface where old and new meet will again be
sealed with AC-20 asphalt cement or an approved emulsion.
C.
Additional restoration requirements. If the permittee opens any roadway
pavement having a bituminous concrete surface, whether to install
a new facility or to modify an existing facility, the permittee shall
comply with the following requirements:
(1)
When a longitudinal opening longer than 10 feet and wider than three
feet is made in the roadway pavement, the permittee shall overlay
the entire traffic lane in which the opening was made, for the entire
length of the roadway that was opened, as directed by the Borough.
(2)
When two or more transverse trench openings are made in the roadway
pavement less than 30 feet apart, the permittee may be required to
overlay all traffic lanes in which the openings were made, for the
entire length of roadway between such opening, as directed by the
Borough.
(3)
When five or more square-type openings have been made by the same
permittee in the roadway pavement less than 50 feet apart, the permittee
may be required to overlay all traffic lanes in which the openings
were made, for the entire length of roadway covering such openings.
(4)
When two or more square-type openings are made within 10 feet of
each other, the Borough may require the permittee to connect all holes
and treat such as one opening.
(5)
Where disturbed lanes adjacent to undisturbed lanes are overlayed,
the edge of the disturbed lane shall be saw cut to a depth of 1.5
inches for the length of the opening and the detached material removed,
in order to insure a smooth joint. A full-width overlay may be performed
instead of saw cutting and stripping the disturbed lane or lanes.
D.
Cleanup. Streets and alleys shall be kept free of mud, dust and aggregate
material at all times. Sweeping shall occur when at the completion
of work.
A.
If the work in opening or in filling does not conform to the requirements
of this article or is not completed by the permitee as required hereby,
the Borough may cause the same to be done in the manner the Borough
deems to be proper. The total cost including but not limited to repairs,
labor, materials, equipment rental and all other proper charges for
the completion of such work, plus an administrative cost of 10% of
the total cost, plus an additional 20% thereof to cover future repairs
caused by the excavation, shall be charged to and promptly paid within
30 days of an invoice for such charges by the permittee. Any amounts
not paid when due shall bear interest at the rate of 6% per annum.
This charge shall also be a claim under the bond as specified above.
Nothing contained herein shall require the Borough to complete the
work of any permit and nothing contained herein shall relieve the
permittee of its obligations under this article.
B.
No permit shall be issued to any person, firm or corporation in default
under this section until any invoices issued hereunder are paid in
full, and no further permit shall be granted to any person, firm or
corporation unless and until the openings or excavations already caused
by them have been properly filled as aforesaid, in a safe condition
and at the proper grade, as determined at the sole discretion of the
Borough.
In no case shall any opening or excavation made by any person,
firm or corporation be considered in the charge or the care of the
Borough, or any officer or person employed by the Borough, and no
officer or employee is authorized to, in any way, take or assume any
jurisdiction over any such opening or excavation.
Permitees shall maintain accurate drawings, plans and profiles
showing current and abandoned installations. Corrected maps shall
be filed with the Borough within 30 days after the new installations,
changes or replacements are made.
Each permittee shall conduct and carry out the excavation work
in such manner as to avoid unnecessary inconvenience and annoyance
to the general public and occupants of neighboring property. The permittee
shall take appropriate measures to reduce, to the fullest extent practicable,
in the performance of the excavation work, noise, dust and unsightly
debris and, during the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., shall not
use, except with the express written permission of the Borough or
in case of emergency as herein otherwise provided, any tool, appliance
or equipment producing noise of sufficient volume to disturb the sleep
or repose of occupants of the neighboring property.
It is the intention of the Borough Council that each section
or portion of any section of this article shall be a separate provision
and all shall be independent of all other provisions herein, and it
is further the intention of the Borough Council that if any section
or portion of any section shall be declared to be unconstitutional,
invalid, illegal, or unenforceable by any court of competent jurisdiction,
such decision shall not affect the validity of any of the remaining
sections or parts thereof of this article. It is hereby declared as
a legislative intent that this article would have been enacted had
such unconstitutional, invalid, illegal or unenforceable provision
not have been included herein.
This article shall not be construed as imposing upon the Borough
or any official or employee any liability or responsibility for damages
to any person injured by the performance of any work for which a permit
is issued hereunder; nor shall the Borough or any official or employee
thereof be deemed to have assumed any such liability or responsibility
by reason of inspections authorized hereunder, the issuance of any
permit or the approval of any work.
Any permit issued under this article may be revoked by the Borough
after notice for violation of any condition of the permit or violation
of any provision of this article or any other applicable ordinance
or law relating to the work.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall
be determined guilty and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined
in an amount not exceeding $1,000 or, in default of the payment thereof,
be imprisoned in the county jail for a period not exceeding 30 days.
Each day such violation is committed or permitted to continue shall
constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable as such hereunder.
