Blue Lake Municipal Code Ch. 12.08 Encroachments

A. It is unlawful for any person to erect, maintain, or fail to remove, upon notification in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, any encroachment as defined herein situated within any City right-of-way.

B. The regulations enacted by this chapter are adopted pursuant to the Streets and Highways Code of the State of California. "City" herein refers to the City of Blue Lake, California. Construction specifications shall be Blue Lake standard specifications as may be amended from time to time. If there are none that are applicable then construction specifications shall be Cal Trans standard specifications as may be amended from time to time.

"Department"

refers to the Department of Public Works.

"Director"

refers to the Director of Public Works, or any person designated by him or her.

"Commercial driveway"

refers to any driveway that is not a "residential driveway" as defined in this chapter.

"Encroachment"

includes any excavation structure or object of any kind or character, temporary or permanent, made, placed or allowed to enter, grow or encroach upon, over or under any City right-of-way within the City maintained street system.

"Facility"

means any structure or object of any kind or character which is or may be lawfully constructed, left, placed or maintained in, upon, along, across, under or over any City right-of-way.

"Fence"

means any obstruction of whatever material or composition which is designed, intended, or used to protect, defend or obscure the interior property of the owner thereof from the view, trespass, or passage of others upon that property.

"Permittee"

is any person who has been issued an encroachment permit by the Director.

"Public streets"

refers to the full width of the right-of-way including the surfaced or traveled portion, shoulders and drainage areas of any road, street, land or alley dedicated to, reserved for, or used by the general public when accepted as and declared to be a part of the public street system.

"Residential driveway"

refers to any driveway serving any property which is used solely as a private residence of one, two, or three single-family dwelling units including duplexes, triplexes, farms or ranches which are not used as retail outlets.

"Right-of-way"

means all land or interest therein which by deed, conveyance, agreement, easement, dedication, usage or process of law is reserved for or dedicated to the use of the general public for road or highway purposes.

"Sidewalk"

refers to the portion of a public street or right-of-way, other than that part used for vehicular traffic, and set apart by curbs, barriers, markings or other delineation for pedestrian travel.

"Specifications"

refers to the current California Department of Transportation (CAL-TRANS) standard specifications pertaining to construction, and/or any specifications of the City required herein or imposed as a condition of any encroachment permit.

"Tree"

means any growing plant exceeding 10 feet in height, whether growing singly or as a hedge.

"Utility"

means a private company and/or corporation or municipal department engaged in providing a particular service to the general public.

A. Act Requiring Permit—Emergency Work.

1. No person or representative of any utility company, public corporation, county, city, political subdivision, governmental unit, or their contractors shall make or cause to be made any encroachment as defined in this chapter without first obtaining from the Director a permit to do so.

2. Any agency, public or private, may perform emergency maintenance without first securing an encroachment permit, provided the Director is notified prior to starting work. "Emergency" as used in this chapter means any unforeseen maintenance requiring immediate action to prevent injury to persons or property. When City offices are closed, notice shall be given to the Sheriff's Office in Eureka and the California Highway Patrol Office at Sunnybrae. The agency shall then apply for a permit within one day after the offices of the Department are first opened subsequent to the making of the encroachment.

B. Application. An application for a permit or special permit required by this chapter shall be made in writing to the Director of Public Works on a form provided by the Department. Such application shall be accompanied by plans sufficient to show the scope of the proposed encroachment and a filing fee as shown on the City's current fee schedule. Such plans may be waived in writing by the Director whenever he or she determines that the nature and scope of the proposed encroachment does not require plans.

C. Permit Terms. Any permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall provide that the permittee will pay the entire expense of replacing the roadway in as good condition as existed before conducting work under the permit and shall include such other conditions deemed necessary by the Director for the protection of the public or the public street.

D. Term of Permit—Beginning of Work or Use. The permittee shall begin the work or use authorized by a permit issued pursuant to this chapter within 30 calendar days from the date of issuance, unless a different period is stated in the permit. If the work or use is not begun within 30 calendar days, or within the time stated in the permit, then the permit shall become void unless, before its expiration date, the time for beginning has been extended in writing by the Director.

E. Term of Permit—Completion of Work. The permittee shall complete the work or use authorized by a permit within the time specified in the permit. If at any time the Director finds that delay in beginning, prosecuting, or completing the work or use is due to lack of diligence by the permittee, he or she may cancel the permit and have the right-of-way restored to its former condition. The permittee shall reimburse the City for all expenses incurred by the City in restoring the right-of-way.

F. Permit Transferable. A permit may be transferred, providing the permittee informs the transferee in writing of any unfinished work required by the original permit, and the transferee agrees in writing to accept the terms of the permit and to complete the work required. A copy of the transfer agreement shall be delivered to the Department. Until the Department is notified of a transfer, the permittee of record in the Department may be held liable for costs and damages in connection with the permit and may be held responsible for completion of the work specified in the permit.

G. Encroachment Changes. No changes shall be made in the location, dimensions, character, or duration of the encroachment or the use granted by the permit, except on written authorization by the Director.

H. Relocation or Removal of Encroachment. Any permit shall be issued to a permittee with the understanding that if the future improvement of the public street necessitates the relocation or removal of such encroachment, the permittee will relocate or remove the same at no expense to the City. In that event the City shall give the permittee, by mail or actual service, its written demand specifying that the encroachment must be removed from the public street or, if to be relocated within the public street, the place of the relocation. The Director shall specify the public street, the place of the relocation. The Director shall specify the time within which the removal or relocation must be completed.

I. Action for Removal Expense. The department may remove, or cause to be removed, any encroachment upon the failure of the owner to comply with a notice or demand of the Department under the provisions of subsection H of this section, and shall have an action to recover the expense of the removal, costs and expenses of suit and reasonable attorney fees and, in addition thereto, the sum of $10.00 for each day the encroachment remains after the expiration of the time specified in the notice.

J. Abatement of Unauthorized Encroachments.. If the owner, occupant or person in possession of any unauthorized encroachment, or person causing or suffering the encroachment to exist, or any agent thereof disputes or denies the existence of the encroachment, or refuses to remove or permit the removal of the encroachment, the City may commence in any court of competent jurisdiction an action to abate the encroachment as a public nuisance. If judgment is recovered by the City, it may, in addition to having the encroachment adjudged a nuisance and abated, recover $10.00 for each day the encroachment remains after the service of notice in the manner provided in subsection H of this section and may also recover its costs, expenses, and reasonable attorney fees incurred in the action.

K. Special Permits.

1. A special permit may be issued which allows the holder thereof to accomplish the replacing or repairing of any facility within the public street or right-of-way and tree trimming for overhead utilities without necessity for obtaining a permit for each such encroachment activity.

2. Utility poles, wires, cables and other related appurtenances thereto may be installed under the provisions of a special permit; except that no facilities other than overhead wires and cables shall be placed within the traveled portion of any public street or right-of-way.

3. Any excavations performed under the authority of a special permit shall not exceed four feet in width and 25 feet in length. The following organizations are eligible to apply for a special permit:

a. Any organization having facilities situated in the City of Blue Lake that is regulated by the Public Utilities Commission of the State of California.

b. City of Blue Lake.

c. The County of Humboldt.

d. A special district organized under the laws of the State of California and having facilities situated in the City of Blue Lake.

e. A utility organized under the laws of the State of California.

L. Limitation of Activity. All activities within the right-of-way under the terms of a special permit shall be done in conformance with the requirements of this chapter applicable to all permits. Any activity done in violation of the requirements shall be grounds for immediate revocation of the special permit by the Director. Any special permit, shall be subject to such conditions as the Director finds necessary for the protection of the public or the public street.

A. Protection of Utilities. The permittee shall inform him or herself as to the existence and location of all surface or underground facilities existing in the area where the encroachment will occur and shall be fully responsible for protection of the facilities from damage caused by his or her activity. Permittee shall provide and install suitable safeguards approved by owner, to support, sustain and protect the facilities which in any way may be affected or damaged by the activities of the permittee. All damage to facilities shall be reported promptly to the agency or owner thereof. No such damage shall be repaired by the permittee unless the facility owner authorizes the repair. Any relocation of an existing facility shall be done only by or under the immediate supervision of the facility owner. The cost of moving existing facilities shall be determined by negotiation between the permittee and the facility owner.

B. Hold Harmless Clause. The permittee shall agree to indemnify and hold harmless the City, each of its officers and employees, from any liability or responsibility for accident, loss or damage to persons or property arising by reason of the work done by the permittee, or his/her agent, his/her employees or representatives.

C. Defective Work and Materials. Upon order of the Director, any work or materials which do not conform to the permit plans, if any, and the City or State standard specifications, shall be removed and replaced by the permittee so as to conform to the permit plans, if any, and the City or State standard specifications, except as otherwise provided for in this chapter.

D. Default of Permittee. By applying for and obtaining a permit pursuant to this chapter, the permittee agrees that, if the permittee fails to comply with the terms of the permit or to perform or complete the work according to the plans, if any, the City or State standard specifications, or fails to comply with any provisions of this chapter, the City may elect to perform and complete the work by any method the Director deems appropriate. The permittee shall reimburse the City for the full cost, at the then current Associated General Contractor's Cost Schedule for the work, of performing and completing the work according to the permit. Reimbursement to City shall be made within 30 days of the date of the statement sent to permittee.

E. Protection of Traffic. The permittee, in the conduct of the work or use or maintenance of an encroachment authorized by a permit issued under this chapter, shall provide, erect, or maintain lights, barriers, warning lights, and other safeguards necessary to protect the traveling public. If at any time the Director finds that suitable safeguards are not being provided, the City may take whatever steps it deems necessary to establish suitable safeguards or may cancel the permit and restore the right-of-way to its former condition, all at the expense of the permittee.

F. Minimum Interference with Traffic. All work shall be planned and carried out so that there will be the least possible inconvenience to the traveling public. Permittee is authorized to place flaggers to stop and warn traffic for necessary protection to public safety, but traffic shall not be unreasonably delayed. Complete closure of the road shall not be permitted unless authorized in writing by the Director.

A. Excavation.

1. The excavation of all trenches running parallel to the existing pavement shall be conducted on only one side of the pavement at a time and shall not exceed 800 feet in length at any one time, and no excavation shall be started on the opposite side until the trench first excavated has been filled, compacted, and surfaced as required herein or as specified in the permit.

2. This restriction is not intended to prohibit the excavations as may be required for boring a pipe, conduit or other object beneath a public street or right-of-way.

B. Backfill. Backfill in all trenches shall be made by mechanical tamping unless otherwise provided by permit conditions. Backfill material shall be free from stones or lumps exceeding three inches in greatest diameter, vegetable matter or other unsatisfactory material. Backfill material shall be placed to the subgrade of the pavement in lifts consistent with the type of soil involved and the degree of consolidation specified by the Department of Public Works. Such backfill shall be done in a manner that will permit the restoration of the surface to a density condition no less than that existing prior to excavation unless otherwise specified. Director will require soil tests to be furnished to the Department by a recognized soils testing laboratory or registered professional engineer specializing in soil mechanics, when, in the Director's opinion, backfill for any excavation is not being adequately compacted. In such cases resurfacing will not be permitted unless the tests show that the upper two feet of backfill material has been compacted to a relative compaction of not less than 90%. All expense of the tests shall be borne by the permittee. It shall be the responsibility of the permittee to properly maintain refilled trenches in perpetuity.

C. Failures, Settlements. In determining proper maintenance, the following criteria shall be used to define a failure:

1. In the traveled way, a depression of one-fourth inch per two feet of trench width below the average of the sides of the uncut portion.

2. Along the outside edge of the shoulder section, a minimum of four feet from edge of traveled way of an unsurfaced road, a depression of three-fourths of an inch below the average of the side of the uncut portion.

D. Repavement of Trenches.

1. Minimum restoration of the traveled way shall consist of placing 10 inches of Class 2 aggregate base material and three inches of asphalt concrete pavement over all excavations. Restoration shall begin after approval of the backfill compaction by the authorized City representative. All materials and methods employed shall conform to the most current issue of the standard CALTRANS specifications. Prior to placing asphalt concrete surfacing, the existing pavement longitudinally along both sides of the trench shall be cut in a neat line six inches back from the outside edges of the trench and removed, in order to provide a key.

2. Paved restoration surfacing from the trench higher than one-fourth of an inch per two feet of trench width above the edge of the existing surfacing shall be deemed improper backfilling and shall be reconstructed to the tolerance specified above.

3. The above mentioned tolerance need not be adhered to for temporary work which will have a duration of less than 30 calendar days, provided that at no time shall the temporary surfacing exceed twice the above-mentioned tolerances.

4. Where the existing traveled way does not have an oiled surface, asphalt concrete surfacing may not be required.

E. Temporary Surfacing. When the Director determines that a satisfactory permanent repavement of an excavation area or trench cannot be made within 30 calendar days, he or she may require a temporary pavement consisting of two inches of cold plant mix surfacing over the excavation area or trench. The temporary cold mix surfacing shall not exceed twice the tolerances as set forth in subsection D of this section for determining improper backfill. The permittee shall be responsible for placing, maintaining, and removing temporary pavement.

Every person, whether principal, agent, employee or otherwise, violating or causing or permitting the violation of any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.