Martinez Municipal Code Ch. 12.30 Street Frontage Improvements

It is declared to be the policy of the City that curbs, gutters, driveways, sidewalks, and street pavement be installed along the street line or lines as a condition to building permit approval.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

The provisions of this chapter are minimum requirements and wherever any ordinance or resolution or determination of the City requires additional improvements of a higher degree or grade, that ordinance or determination shall control.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

As used in this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the indicated meanings:

A.

"Person"

means any person, individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.

B.

"Sidewalks and curbs"

shall include concrete sidewalks, parkways, concrete curb and gutter, concrete driveways, and structural pavement section to the centerline of the street all in accordance with adopted City standards and constructed in accordance with applicable standard specifications of the City of Martinez.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

This chapter shall be administered by the City Engineer.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

A. Any person who applies for a building permit to construct or cause to be constructed any building or dwelling in the City, and any person who applies for a building permit for the purpose of making improvements to an existing building or dwelling where such improvements have a value in excess of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00), shall construct sidewalks and curbs in accordance with the City specifications, along all street frontage adjoining the property upon which such building or dwelling is proposed to be constructed or improved, unless adequate sidewalks and curbs already exist.

B. Whether or not adequate sidewalks and curbs already exist shall be determined in each instance by the City Engineer, and an endorsement to that effect shall be made upon each building permit at the time it is issued.

C. In determining whether or not an improvement to an existing building or dwelling has a value in excess of $25,000.00, the value of all improvements made to the subject property within the three years immediately preceding the date of the application for the relevant building permit shall be aggregated, and is said aggregation, plus the value of the work for which the relevant permit is sought, exceeds $25,000.00, the provisions of this chapter shall apply.

D. Only to the extent that at the time application is made for the relevant permit there already exist adequate sidewalks or curbs shall the person applying for the permit be relieved of the requirements specified in Section 12.30.050(A). That is, if only adequate sidewalks exist, the applicant shall nevertheless be required to install, at his/her cost, curbs, gutters, parkways, driveways, and street pavement (unless said requirements are otherwise waived under the provisions of this chapter).

E. In such cases where curbs and gutters, sidewalks, etc., exist along the street frontage of such property and such curbs and gutters, sidewalks, etc., are in a deteriorated or hazardous condition, the City Engineer may require the repair, replacement or reconstruction of such facilities as a condition of issuance of a building permit without utilizing procedures as specified in Section 5610, et seq., Streets and Highways Code.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

All work or improvements shall conform to the construction standards adopted by the City and on file in the office of the City Engineer. Any and all specifications for the improvements referred to above shall be prepared and signed by a civil engineer or other such person licensed by the state to design such works, and the plans and specifications shall be submitted to the City Engineer for review and approval prior to any commencement of said work within the public right-of-way.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

An encroachment permit shall be required for all improvements performed on the public rights-of-way in conformance with the provisions of Chapter 12.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

A. The City Engineer shall have the power to waive the requirement for the installation of either sidewalks, curbs, driveways, parkways, pavement or any combination of the above required improvements along the frontage of a single-family residence if the City Engineer determines and finds upon application for exception by an applicant in such form as the City Engineer may reasonably require, that:

1. Such improvement is not presently in existence at the subject property; and

2. No adjoining lot or parcel contains such improvement; and

3. Substantially all of the built-up lots and parcels within five hundred feet (500 ft) of the subject property, and abutting upon the same street, do not have such improvements; and

4. The character of the neighborhood is such that, based on present neighborhood conditions, and conditions which can be expected to exist within five years from the date of the application for the building permit, that it would be unreasonable to require the applicant to construct such improvement.

B. In order for the City Engineer to waive any of the required improvements, the City Engineer must determine that the conditions specified above are satisfied as to each required improvement waived. Any required improvement not waived by the City Engineer must be constructed by the applicant. Therefore, pursuant to the conditions specified above, the applicant may for example, obtain a waiver from the sidewalk, curb, and gutter requirements. This shall not, however, relieve the applicant of his/her responsibility to construct parkways, driveways, and pavement to the centerline of the street as required by this chapter.

C. The waiver granted by the City Engineer pursuant to this section may be granted conditionally to include any reasonable conditions imposed by the City Engineer. Such conditions may include, but are not limited to, the condition that any required improvement which may be waived be installed upon the occurrence of some future event, condition, or happening.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

Any decision by the City Engineer made under this chapter shall be subject to review by the Council of the City. Any person dissatisfied with the decision of the City Engineer may appeal therefrom by filing a written notice to the City Council within ten days after notice of determination by the City Engineer. Thereafter, the Council shall set such appeal for hearing before it and hear the appeal at the next regular Council meeting. The decision of the City Council shall be final and shall be binding upon all parties. In deciding whether an exception to this Chapter's requirement should be allowed, the Council shall be governed by the criteria specified in Section 12.20.080.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

Unless an exception has been granted pursuant to the provisions of Sections 12.17.080, or 12.17.090, the City shall deny final building permit approval and acceptance, and shall refuse to allow final public utility connections, to any building or dwelling unless such sidewalks and curbs are completed in accordance with the approved plans and specifications, or unless money or a bond to guarantee the required construction is deposited with the City in a sum equal to the estimated cost of construction of such improvements as determined by the City Engineer of the City.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988)

If the improvements required by this chapter are not performed by the applicant within ninety days after the completion of construction of the building, dwelling and/or improvement thereto, the City Engineer is authorized to install such sidewalks and curbs, or cause the same to be constructed by a call for bids to do the work. Following the call for bids, the applicant shall not undertake or cause to be undertaken any work specified in the call for bids. All permits previously issued for the work shall become null and void. The cost of labor, materials, equipment rental, and overhead as necessary to perform the work shall be charged against the owner of the property and such charges shall become a lien upon the property and shall be collected in the same manner as sidewalk repair costs are collected under California Streets and Highways Code §§ 5616—5630.

(Ord. 1117 C.S. § 1, 1988; Ord. No. 1121 C.S. § 1, 1988)