[Adopted as Sec. 15-3 of the 1976 Revised
General Ordinances]
The following shall constitute the minimum standards
and specifications for the improvement of streets or roads in the
Township of West Milford, in the County of Passaic, before building
permits are issued, as provided for in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-35 and 40:55D-76:[1]
A.
Acceptable right-of-way width.
(1)
The minimum width of any acceptable right-of-way shall
be 33 feet. However, if an applicant desires to build a building on
a street with a defined right-of-way, according to the tax maps, of
less than 33 feet, he may be permitted to do so, provided he provides
for and dedicates a reserve strip to the Township. The width of the
reserve strip shall be 1/2 of the amount required to bring the right-of-way
to 33 feet. The applicant shall also be required to establish concrete
monuments at the property corners that intersect with the proposed
road right-of-way, whenever irregular rights-of-way are so developed.
Locations of monuments are to be shown on the site plan to be submitted
for review in accordance with the zoning or building codes of the
Township. Where a building permit is required for a building on a
private street, and the applicant owns to the center line of such
street, he shall be required to provide for and dedicate to the Township
a reserve strip along his frontage from the center line of such street
to the desired right-of-way line. In every instance, when a building
permit is requested for a building to front on a private road, it
shall be the responsibility of the applicant to prove to the engineering
and building departments the road ownership. It shall not become the
Township responsibility to perform maintenance on reserve strips of
property; rather it will be the objective of the Township to exercise
the right of ownership whenever it deems it in the best interest of
the public to do so.
(2)
When a comprehensive improvement to an existing roadway
is proposed, variations to these standards may be recommended by the
Township Engineer, and accepted by the Township Council.
B.
Minimum condition of road base.
(1)
Storm drainage must be provided for in accordance
with the requirements of the Township Engineer, including the provision
of any necessary easements; this item of construction is essential
and may not be eliminated without the written authorization of the
Township Engineer with reasons for such authorization indicated.
(2)
The subgrade of the street shall be shaped and brought
to a firm, unyielding surface by rolling the entire area with a three-wheel
power roller weighing not less than 10 tons. Roads shall have a parabolic
cross section with a cross slope of 1/4 to 3/8 inch per foot. Prior
to shaping and rolling, all topsoil shall be stripped from the proposed
subgrade. After rolling, all soft and spongy places shall be excavated
and refilled solidly with subbase consisting of suitable earth, quarry
processed stone or sand as directed by the Township Engineer. All
evident loose rock or boulders shall be removed or broken off 12 inches
below the subgrade surface. All stumps shall be removed in their entirety.
Subgrade shall not be prepared during freezing weather, or when frozen,
or when it is unstable due to excessive moisture. Roads with an average
annual daily traffic of less than 100 vehicles of which less than
five are single-unit trucks must have a minimum application of a surface
treatment or a slurry seal. The surface treatment shall include a
prime coat application at a rate of 1/4 gallon per square yard, immediately
followed with a cover material of three-eighths-inch or one-quarter-inch
stone at a rate of 25 pounds per square yard, properly rolled. After
24 hours, a seal coat application shall be made using a tack coat
at a rate of 1/10 gallon per square yard, immediately followed with
a cover material of three-eighths- or one-quarter-inch stone at a
rate of 10 pounds per square yard, properly rolled. All materials
used shall be compatible with one another. An alternate method shall
be a slurry seal. However, traffic must be kept off the roadway for
at least 24 hours after the slurry seal has been applied. Slurry seals
consist of a wet mix of thin grout of slurry consistency. They are
composed of emulsified asphalt and fine aggregate. The slurry mix
is generally spread over the pavement with a long, bottomless, box-like
drag device. Slurry machines are designed especially for slurry seal
mixing and application work. For roads with an average annual daily
traffic of more than 100 vehicles or of more than five single-unit
trucks, a minimum of three inches compacted thickness of hot mix bituminous
concrete, Mix No. 4, shall be laid on the completed subgrade and properly
rolled. All work with bituminous materials shall take place only when
the atmosphere temperature is above 50° F. and when the weather
conditions are otherwise favorable in the opinion of the Township
Engineer. No bituminous and/or bitumen concrete shall be applied unless
the Township Engineer has been given a minimum of 24 hours' notification.
C.
Width of pavement. Road surface shall be improved
in accordance with above standards to a minimum width of 20 feet.
D.
Maximum allowable road grade. The maximum allowable
road grade shall be 15%. However, for any grades greater than 10%,
curbing must be provided.
E.
Curb. Curb may be bituminous concrete curb or white/grey
concrete vertical curb. Curb must be provided when either of the following
conditions exist:
(1)
The grade of roadway is more than 10%.
(2)
The finished roadway elevation is higher than the
adjoining property.
(3)
When, in the opinion of the Township Engineer, it
is necessary to provide lateral support for the pavement, thereby
alleviating the possibility of edge cracking occurring along the roadway.
[Amended 12-5-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-030]
Where the enforcement of the provisions of the
statute above cited or the implementation of this article would entail
practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship, or where the circumstances
of the case do not require the structure to be related to a street,
the applicant for a building permit shall have the right of appeal
as provided for in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10, 40:55D-36 and 40:55D-76.
Where there shall be any conflict between the provisions of this article and Article II, Street Acceptances, of this chapter, in the acceptance of private roads as public thoroughfares, or in a road improvement program, financed on the assessment basis, the provisions of Article II, Street Acceptances, and the provisions in the road improvement program shall govern.
[Amended 12-5-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-030]
Since the thrust of this article and the implementation
of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-35 and 40:55D-76 is to assure adequate access to
every structure for emergency vehicles necessary to protect health
and safety by requiring lots to front on specified kinds of streets,
as above described, suitably improved or their improvements guaranteed,
before permits may issue, it is understood that the right of the Township
Council or the Township to the acceptance or to the permanent improvement
of any road or roads, whether public or private, by assessment to
the property owners on the basis of benefits derived shall not be
precluded by this article.
