Corte Madera Municipal Code Ch. 12.04 General Provisions

For the purpose of this title, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed to them as follows:

(1) "Director" means the public works director of the town or his authorized agent;

(2) "Encroach" or "encroachment" means going over, upon or under or using any right-of-way or watercourse in such a manner as to prevent, obstruct, alter or interfere with its normal use and includes, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the performance thereon of any of the following acts:

(A) excavating, filling or disturbing the right-of-way or watercourse,

(B) erecting or maintaining a flag, banner, decoration, post, sign, pole, fence, guardrail, wall, loading platform, mailbox, pipe, conduit, wire, or other structure on, over or under a right-of-way or water course,

(C) planting any tree, shrub, grass or other growing thing or removing, cutting or trimming any tree within a right-of-way or watercourse,

(D) placing or leaving on a right-of-way or watercourse any rubbish, brush, earth or other material of any nature whatsoever,

(E) constructing, placing or maintaining on, over, under or within a right-of-way any pathway, sidewalk, driveway, curb, gutter, paving or other surface or subsurface drainage structure or facility, or any pipe, conduit, wire or cable,

(F) traveling on the right-of-way, without a permit, by any vehicle or combination of vehicles or objects of dimension, weight or other characteristic prohibited by law,

(G) lighting or building a fire,

(H) constructing, placing, planting or maintaining any structure, embankment, excavation, tree or other object adjacent to a right-of-way or watercourse which causes or is likely to cause an encroachment;

(3) "Permittee" means any person, firm, corporation, or public agency that proposes to do work or encroach upon a right-of-way or watercourse as defined in (10) and has been issued a permit for such encroachment by the director;

(4) "Private contract" means a contract between two or more parties for the installation, construction, revision, operation or creation of an encroachment to which contract the town is not a party;

(5) "Public agency" means any city, county, public corporation or public district established through due process of law;

(6) "Public street" means the full width of the right-of-way of any street, whether or not maintained by any public agency, except streets forming part of the State Highway System which is:

(A) laid out or constructed as such by the town,

(B) laid out or constructed by others and dedicated to or acquired by the town,

(C) made a town street as part of the subdivision of real property pursuant to the conditions of Title 17, or

(D) subject to public use in any other legally recognized manner;

(7) "Public utility" means private corporations authorized by law to establish and/or maintain any works or facilities in, under or over any public street. This division shall not limit the power and duties vested in the Public Utilities Commission of the state, and in the event of any conflict, the Public Utilities Commission's rules shall govern;

(8) "Right-of-way" means the full width of land, irrespective of the current use, which by deed, conveyance, agreement, easement, dedication, usage or process of law is reserved for or dedicated to the general public for street, highway, alley, public utility, or pedestrian walkway purposes;

(9) "Town" means the town of Corte Madera, a municipal corporation;

(10) "Watercourse" means a channel for the carrying of storm water, including both natural and artificial channels, and whether or not dedicated to or maintained by any public agency.

(Ord. 469 § 1, 1967)

This title shall not apply to officers or employees of the town acting in the discharge of their official duties, or to any work being performed by any person, firm, or corporation pursuant to a contract with the town, nor shall it apply to work being performed by public utilities and their contractors and agents within rights-of-way or easements vested in said public utilities at locations other than within public rights-of-way.

(Ord. 469 § 2, 1967)

All permits granted pursuant to this title shall be subject to the right of the town and any person or persons entitled thereto, to use any part of a public right-of-way for any purpose for which it may be lawfully used, and no part of a right-of-way may be unduly obstructed at any time.

(Ord. 469 § 3, 1967)

No person shall encroach or cause to be made any encroachment of any nature whatever within, upon, over or under the limits of any right-of-way or watercourse without having first obtained a permit as required by this title. The director of public works or his or her designee may establish special conditions for blanket encroachment permits to be issued on an annual basis to any public utility or agency that may need to encroach upon the town's right-of-way or waterway in order to perform emergency or minor repair work to that entity's facilities during the period in which the permit is in effect. (Ord. 469 § 4, 1967)

(Ord. No. 915, § 2, 10-20-2009)

The following encroachments are specifically prohibited and no applications will be accepted nor permits issued therefor:

(1) Construction or maintenance of a loading dock on or in a right-of-way;

(2) Erection or maintenance of a post, pole, column or structure for the support of advertising signs;

(3) Installation or maintenance of underground tanks, vaults or elevators, except that underground vaults may be permitted as a part of facilities owned or operated by public utilities and public agencies;

(4) Erection, installation or maintenance of posts, poles or columns for the purpose of carrying lights intended primarily for lighting of abutting private property;

(5) Installation or maintenance of signs bearing flashing or moving lights, except for temporary warning signs, barricades or flashers required for protection of the public during construction operations;

(6) Construction or placement of any fill, wall, pipe, column, pole, fence, tree, shrub, or any other thing which would constrict and reduce the capacity of any watercourse to carry stormwater;

(7) Construction, maintenance or repair of any fence in excess of three and one-half feet in height within a public right-of-way;

(8) Planting or maintenance of any hedge in excess of three and one-half feet in height within a public street right-of-way;

[(9)]

Construction, maintenance or repair of parking space within a public street right-of-way unless an encroachment permit is granted pursuant to Section 12.04.055, or unless such space is readily available for use by the public in general.

(Ord. 715 § 2(A), 1983: Ord. 703 § 1, 1981; Ord. 469 § 5, 1967)

(a) An application for an encroachment permit for private parking facilities shall be filed with the planning department on the prescribed form and shall be accompanied by the required fee and all supporting materials listed on the form.

(b) The town council, after a public hearing held in accord with the provisions of Section 18.36.100, may approve or conditionally approve an encroachment permit for private parking facilities if, on the basis of the application and evidence submitted, the council makes all the following findings:

(1) The public right-of-way which would be used for the private parking facility is contiguous to the front property line, side property line on a corner lot, or rear property line on a double-frontage lot, of the property which would be benefited by the construction of the proposed facilities, and does not extend beyond the side property lines of the property benefiting.

(2) There is no feasible location on the benefiting property to construct the proposed private parking facilities. For the purposes of this section, "feasible" means capable of being accomplished in a successful manner within a reasonable time, taking into account environmental, engineering and architectural factors.

(3) No more than two spaces will be constructed wholly or partially within the public right-of-way, and no other use will be located within the right-of-way.

(4) No other parking facilities on the benefiting property have been or will be converted to another use.

(5) The private parking facility will not impede sight distance within the right-of-way, has adequate backup room, will not block pedestrian or bicycle access, and otherwise will not adversely affect traffic safety or the public health, safety or welfare, cause other adverse traffic effects, or be injurious to other property in the vicinity.

(6) The area proposed for the private parking facility is not now being used by the public for parking or for any other purpose, and there is no feasible public use for the portion of the right-of-way to be occupied by the facility.

(7) The private parking facility will not cut off any parcel from any utility service and will not adversely affect any drainage facilities.

(c) An encroachment permit for a private parking facility may be revoked, may be granted for a limited time period, may be granted subject to such conditions as the council may prescribe, or may be denied.

(d) An encroachment permit for a private parking facility shall lapse and become null and void one year following the date on which the approval became effective unless, prior to the expiration of one year, a building permit is issued and construction is commenced and diligently pursued toward completion on the site which was the subject of the application.

(e) An encroachment permit for a private parking facility shall be revoked by the town council if any conditions are not complied with, or if the facility is used for any purpose except the parking of vehicles, provided that the council shall first hold a public hearing on the revocation.

(f) The town council may prescribe and from time to time amend a schedule of charges or rents payable as a condition to an encroachment permit for a private parking facility.

(Ord. 714 § 2(B), 1983)

This title shall not prevent any person from maintaining any pipe or conduit lawfully on or under any public street, or from making excavation, as may be necessary for the preservation of life or property or the restoration of public utility service when an urgent necessity therefor arises during the hours the offices of the town are closed, except that the person making an emergency use or encroachment on a public street shall apply for a permit therefor within one calendar day after the offices of the town are again opened. Any person requiring an emergency use or encroachment shall simultaneously notify the public works department. During hours that the town offices are closed, notification shall be given to the police department.

When traffic conditions, the safety or convenience of the traveling public or the public interest require that encroachment work be performed as emergency work, the director of public works shall have full power to order, at the time the permit is granted, that a crew of men and adequate facilities be employed by the permittee twenty-four hours a day to the end that such encroachment work may be completed as soon as possible.

(Ord. 469 § 6, 1967)