Banning Municipal Code Ch. 18.18 Grading Inspection

All grading operations for which a permit is issued pursuant to the provisions of this ordinance shall be subject to inspection by the city engineer or his or her representative.

(Ord. No. 1388, § 4, 7-14-09)

A. Civil Engineer. It shall be the responsibility of the civil engineer who prepared the grading plans to incorporate the applicable recommendations from the geotechnical engineer and engineering geologist and to incorporate any city engineer approved alternatives into the grading plan.

1. The civil engineer shall be responsible for establishing line and grade for the grading and drainage improvements and shall act as the coordinating agent in the event the need arises for liaison between the other professionals, the contractor and the city engineer.

2. The civil engineer shall be responsible for the preparation of plan revision, and upon completion of the work, the submission of as-graded drawings incorporating all changes and/or additions made during construction.

3. Prior to issuance of building permits for any given lot or lots, the civil engineer shall be responsible for submitting a pad certification letter stating line and grade as evidence that the grading activity has been completed within standard tolerances in accordance with the approved plans and that all embankments and cut slopes and pad sizes are as shown on the approved plans.

B. Geotechnical Engineer. The geotechnical engineer's area of responsibility shall include, but not be limited to, performing the preliminary geotechnical engineering investigation and preparing the preliminary geotechnical engineering report, determining the suitability of soils during grading, providing compaction inspection and testing, and preparing the final geotechnical engineering report.

C. Engineering Geologist. The engineering geologist's area of responsibility shall include, but not be limited to, professional inspection and approval of the stability of cut slopes with respect to geological matters, and the need for subdrains or other groundwater drainage devices. He shall report his findings to the geotechnical engineer for engineering analysis.

D. Landscape Architect. The landscape architect shall incorporate applicable recommendations from the geotechnical engineering reports into the landscape and irrigation plans. The landscape architect shall also prepare plan revisions, to be approved by the city engineer, and shall submit as-graded drawings incorporating all changes and/or additions made during construction.

1. All ground cover shall provide one hundred percent coverage within nine months of planting, or additional landscaping shall be required in order to meet this standard.

(Ord. No. 1388, § 4, 7-14-09)

If the civil engineer, engineer of record, the geotechnical engineer, the engineering geologist, or the grading contractor of record is changed during the course of the work, the project shall be stopped until:

1. The permittee submits a letter of notification verifying the change of the responsible professional; and

2. The new responsible professional submits in writing that he has reviewed all prior reports and/or plans (specified by date and title) and work performed by the responsible professional party, and that he concurs with the findings, conclusions and recommendations, and is satisfied with the work performed. He or she must state that they assume all responsibility within his or her purview as of a specified date. All exceptions shall be justified to the satisfaction of the city engineer.

Exception: Where clearly indicated that the firm, not the individual engineer and/or geologist, is the contracting party, the designated engineer or geologist may be reassigned and another engineer and/or geologist within the firm may assume responsibility.

(Ord. No. 1388, § 4, 7-14-09)

If, in the course of fulfilling their responsibility under this division, the engineer of record, the geotechnical engineer, the engineering geologist, or the testing agency finds that the work is not being performed in accordance with approved plans, specifications, or this ordinance, the discrepancies shall be reported immediately in writing to the grading contractor, the permittee and the city engineer. Recommendations for corrective measures shall be submitted for approval to the city engineer.

(Ord. No. 1388, § 4, 7-14-09)

The city engineer may establish special inspection requirements in accordance with Chapter 17, "structural tests and special inspections", of the California Building Code, as amended, for special cases involving grading or paving related operations. Special cases may apply to work where, in the opinion of the city engineer, it is necessary to supplement the resources or expertise available for inspection.

(Ord. No. 1388, § 4, 7-14-09)

A. The provisions of Section 114, "stop work order", of Appendix Chapter 1 "Administration" of the California Building Code, as amended, shall apply to all grading work. Whenever the city engineer or his or her representative determines that any work does not comply with the terms and conditions of the permit, or that the work is being done improperly or in a hazardous manner, he or she may order the work stopped by notice in writing served on any persons engaged in doing or causing such work to be done, and any such persons shall stop conducting such work until authorized by the city engineer to proceed with the work.

B. Whenever any work on which inspections are required is covered or concealed by additional work without first having been inspected, the city engineer may require that such work be exposed for examination. Such work may be subject to additional inspection fees in accordance with Section 18.24.040(D), "grading permit and inspection fee" of this ordinance.

C. If the city inspector finds the soil or other conditions not as stated in the approved plans and geotechnical reports or in additional information which was required for issuance of the grading permit, he may issue a stop work order until a revised grading plan has been approved by the city engineer.

D. If, during the course of any clearing, grubbing or grading operations, discovery is made of items of archaeological or paleontological interest, the permittee shall immediately cease operation in the area of discovery and notify the city inspector. Discoveries that may be encountered include, but are not limited to, dwelling sites, stone implements or other artifacts, animal bones, and fossils. The permittee shall obtain the services of a qualified archeologist or paleontologist to investigate the site and assess the significance of the find. Under no circumstances shall anyone remove or disturb any artifacts or remains. Work shall be resumed in the area of discovery at the direction of the city engineer.

E. Work may resume and the stop order shall be rescinded upon the city engineer's determination that conditions have changed, corrections have been made, or the causes or actions which required a stop order have been remedied or alleviated to his or her satisfaction.

(Ord. No. 1388, § 4, 7-14-09)