Villa Park Municipal Code Art. 17-4 Regulating Excavations

As used in this section.

"City" shall mean the City of Villa Park, California.

"City Engineer" and "Engineer" shall mean the City Engineer of the City of Villa Park, California or his appointee.

"Highway" shall mean any public highway, public street, public way or public place in the City, either owned by the City or dedicated to the public for purpose of travel.

"Public Agency" shall mean and include the United States or any department or agency thereof, the State of California, or any department or agency thereof, county, municipal corporation or public district.

(Ord. #63-52, § 1)

No person shall make any excavation in, or under, the surface of any public street, or other public place for the installation, repair or removal of any pipe, conduit, duct or tunnel, without first obtaining from the City Engineer a permit, before beginning such excavation. The City Engineer, before issuing such permit shall require:

a. A written application therefore, to be made and filed with the City Engineer, wherein the applicant shall set forth the name and residence or business address of the person making such application, and shall state in detail the area of each excavation intended to be made, the purpose for which the excavation is to be made and used, and the time during which it is estimated that the excavation, fill or obstruction will exist.

b. The presentation of a plat, in duplicate, showing the proposed location of each proposed excavation and the dimensions thereof, and such other details as the City Engineer may require to be shown upon such plat; provided, that the filing of plats shall not be required when excavations are made for service connections for the location of trouble in conduits or pipes, or for making repairs thereto.

c. That either the applicant shall be the holder of a duly issued and effective franchise, or revocable permit, authorizing applicant to use the public street, or other public place sought to be excavated for the purpose for which the proposed excavation is to be made, or the excavation permit applied for shall be issued only after approval by the Bureau of Franchises and Public Utilities.

(Ord. #63-52, § 3)

If the United States, this State, this or any other county, any municipal corporation, school district or other public body files with the City, a written guarantee of payment of all costs for which they may become liable to the City hereunder, then no deposit shall be required from such persons other than the issuance fee.

(Ord. #63-52, § 2)

a. Provisions of Permit. The permit shall provide that the permittee, his successors and assigns, shall indemnify and keep indemnified and save the City, its officers and employees, harmless from and against any and all claims for injury, loss, damage, liability, cost and expense which the City, its officers and employees, may suffer, sustain, incur, be put to, pay or lay out from any and every and all actions, suits, proceedings, claims and demands which may be brought, made, or filed against the City, its officers and employees by reason of or arising out of, or in any way connected with any or all operations authorized by any permit issued to the permittee and until all excavation work shall have been completed to the satisfaction of the City Engineer, and the City Engineer shall have accepted in writing the completion of said work.

b. Conditions of Permit. The permit shall be subject to the following conditions which shall be stated thereon:

1. The permit must be kept at the site of the work and be shown, on demand, to any authorized representative of the City or any law enforcement officer.

2. The permit shall authorize work to be performed only as to such portion of the highway over which the City has jurisdiction.

3. All work shall be performed in accordance with the provisions of this section and of all applicable laws, rules and regulations of the City and any other public agency and to the satisfaction of the City Engineer.

4. The permit shall be nontransferable.

5. The City Engineer may, either at the time of the issuance of the permit or at any time thereafter until the completion of the work, prescribe such additional conditions as he may deem reasonably necessary for the protection of the highway or for the prevention of undue interference with traffic or to assure the safety of persons using the highway.

(Ord. #63-52, § 4)

No person shall make any excavation or install or maintain any pipe, conduit, duct or tunnel in or under the surface of any street, or other public place at any location other than that described in the permit issued therefore, and the City Engineer may require such surveys as may be deemed necessary to insure full compliance with this subsection.

(Ord. #63-52, § 6)

Whenever in this section a deposit is required, such deposit may be either in the form of a cashier's check or a good and sufficient bond in an amount equal to the amount of such deposit, executed by the applicant to the satisfaction and approval of the City Engineer, made by a reliable surety company and payable to the City. Such bond shall be conditioned upon the payment of all charges required by this section and the faithful performance of all work, and the City is hereby empowered to enforce collection under said bond of all sums due for charges hereunder, and for any and all damages accruing to the City by reason of faulty or defective work of the permittee. Such bond shall be approved by the City Attorney as to form, and by the City Clerk as to sufficiency before being accepted by the City Engineer.

(Ord. #63-52, § 8)

All permits, except those issued for service connections or for making repairs to same, shall become and be void unless the excavation to be made pursuant thereto is commenced within thirty (30) days from the date of the issuance of such permit and the work diligently prosecuted, as in this section required.

(Ord. #63-52, § 9)

Every permit for making a service connection shall become and be void unless all work to be done pursuant thereto shall be done and the excavation refilled in the manner required by this section within thirty (30) days after the date of such permit; provided, however, that the City Engineer may grant an extension of time for a period not exceeding thirty (30) days for the performance of such work, and the refilling of such excavation, whenever the City Engineer shall deem that good cause exists therefore; and provided, further, that if any such extension of time be granted, such permit shall become and be void unless all such work shall be done and such excavation refilled in the manner required by this section, prior to the expiration of such extension of time; and provided further, that any excavation made for the purpose of making a service connection or making repairs to a service connection shall be refilled in the manner required by this section within three (3) days after the inspection of the pipe by the City Engineer.

(Ord. #63-52, § 10)

The street surface excavated shall be replaced under the direction and supervision of the City Engineer at the sole cost and expense of the permittee, who shall maintain the same for a period of one year from the date of the completion of the work.

(Ord. #63-52, § 11)

All excavations shall be backfilled in a manner satisfactory to the City Engineer, who may require trenches to be settled either with water or by tamping, or both. In the event an excavation is five (5) or more feet in depth, the permittee shall cause a competent person to be placed at the site of the work for the purpose of observing backfilling operations in those cases where the operator of a power unit engaging in such backfilling is unable to see into the excavation. All excavations must be properly backfilled in the most workmanlike manner, and surplus material removed without delay. In all public streets, or other public places, the surface over the trenches and to the side thereof shall, after being backfilled as hereinbefore specified, and after settlement has taken place, be finished by the permittee in a workmanlike manner and in accordance with specifications to be furnished by the City Engineer at the time the permit is issued. In all easements, all buildings, fences, shrubbery, lawns, walks, driveways, or other improvements must be replaced or reconstructed without delay in a workmanlike manner and fully equal to the original improvement.

(Ord. #63-52, § 12)

Whenever the pavement on surfacing is not immediately replaced, the surface shall have a two (2) inch temporary course of blacktop installed immediately upon completion of backfilling and compaction and shall conform to the level of the adjoining street surface, and shall be compacted so that it is hard enough and smooth enough to be safe for traffic to pass over at any legal rate of speed.

(Ord. #63-52, § 13)

The permittee shall maintain the surface of the backfill for vehicular traffic and pedestrian travel until the pavement or surfacing has been replaced, and shall assume full responsibility for all accidents which may occur due to the vehicles and pedestrians crossing the site of the excavation until the pavement or surfacing has been replaced to the satisfaction of the City Engineer. If it is impractical to maintain the surface of the backfill in a safe condition for traffic, then the permittee shall maintain barriers and red lights around excavation to the satisfaction of the City Engineer until the pavement or surfacing has been replaced.

(Ord. #63-52, § 14)

It shall be the duty of every person making any excavation in any public street or public place, to maintain safe crossings for vehicles and pedestrian traffic at all street intersections, and safe crossings for pedestrians at intervals not to exceed six hundred (600) feet. If any such excavation is made across any public street, at least one safe crossing of twelve (12) foot width shall be maintained at all times for vehicles and pedestrians. Free access must be provided to all fire hydrants, water gates and driveways. All materials excavated shall be laid compactly along the side of the trench and kept trimmed up so as to cause as little inconvenience as possible to public travel. If the street is not wide enough to hold the excavated materials without using part of the adjacent sidewalk, the person by whom the excavation is made shall erect a tight board fence upon and along such sidewalks and keep a passageway at least three (3) feet in width open and along such sidewalk.

(Ord. #63-52, § 15)

All gutters shall be maintained free and unobstructed for the full depth of the adjacent curb and for at least one foot in width from the face of such curb at the gutter line. Whenever a gutter crosses an intersecting street, an adequate waterway shall be provided and at all times maintained.

(Ord. #63-52, § 16)

It shall be the duty of every person making any excavation in any street, or other public place, to keep and maintain barriers at each end of such excavation and at such places as may be necessary along the excavation to prevent accidents. It shall also be the duty of every person cutting or making any excavation on any street to place and maintain a sign or barrier with letters not less than three (3) inches in height, which sign shall state the name of the person cutting or making the excavation, and to place and maintain lights at each end of such excavation and at a distance of not more than fifty (50) feet along the line thereof, from sunset each day to sunrise of the next day, until such excavation is entirely refilled; and no person shall fail, refuse or neglect to comply with any requirements contained in this subsection.

(Ord. #63-52, § 17)

After such excavation is commenced, the work of making and refilling shall be prosecuted diligently and continuously until completion, so as not to obstruct the street or other public place of travel more than is actually necessary.

(Ord. #63-52, § 18)

No action pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be construed to relieve the person responsible for the existence of any obstruction, encroachment or excavation in the public street, sidewalk, alley or way from any liability whatsoever arising out of the existence of such condition, nor shall any provision of this section be construed to constitute any assumption of liability by the City of any duties imposed by law or contract upon any person.

(Ord. #63-52, § 19)

Immediately upon completion of the work necessitating the excavation or obstruction authorized by any permit issued pursuant to this section, the permittee shall promptly and in a workmanlike manner refill the excavation or remove the obstruction to the satisfaction of the City Engineer. If any permittee fails or refuses to refill any excavation which he has made or remove any obstruction which he has placed on any highway, the City Engineer may do so and the applicant shall promptly reimburse the City the cost thereof or forfeit the bond or deposit as specified in subsection 17-5.7.

(Ord. #63-52, § 20)

a. After completion of the refilling and compacting of the backfill material in the excavation as specified in subsection 17-5.24, and the removal of the obstruction, the permittee shall promptly replace, with temporary or permanent patching material, or repair any portion of the highway surface removed or damaged by the excavation, obstruction or construction operations as specified elsewhere herein, to the satisfaction of the City Engineer.

b. Permanent Repaving. Where the pavement (except Portland Cement Concrete Pavement) or surface has been removed, the permittee shall replace it with a standard repair consisting of either five (5) inches of Plant Mixed Surfacing or three (3) inches of Plant Mixed Surfacing over six (6) inches Untreated Rock Base except that the standard repair shall not be less in total thickness than the adjacent pavement or surfacing and except that road-mixed surfacing may be repaired with three (3) inches of Plant Mixed Surfacing in lieu of the standard repair.

Plant Mixed Surfacing shall consist of mineral aggregate and liquid asphalt grade SC-6, or grade 200-300 penetration paving asphalt. If Portland Cement Concrete pavement is removed, it shall first be sawed at the neat lines of the excavation and subsequently replaced with Portland Cement Concrete.

c. Tunneling or Boring. Excavation of pavement or surfacing on an arterial highway (as shown on the Master Plan of Highways) and determined by the City Engineer as having been improved with Plant Mixed Surfacing or Portland Cement Concrete pavement, will be permitted only when physical conditions make boring or tunneling impossible. All boring and tunneling and placing conduits, casings and pipe lines shall be done in such a manner that the existing driving lanes will not be disturbed. If a casing is installed to receive the conduit or pipe line, all voids between the casing conduit shall be filled with grout or sand.

d. Replacing Entire Driving Lane. If the surfacing or pavement within the driving lanes of an arterial highway (as shown on the Master Plan of Highways) and determined by the City Engineer as having been improved with Plant Mixed Surfacing or Portland Cement Concrete is removed or damaged by parallel construction operations, the existing surfacing or pavement of the width of the driving lane for the length of the damaged surfacing shall be removed and replaced except that such a removal and replacement shall in no case be less than one hundred (100) feet in length.

All materials and construction operations shall conform to the applicable provisions of the Orange County Standard Specifications.

(Ord. #63-52, § 21)

If at any time subsequent to the first repair of a surface of a highway damaged or destroyed by any excavation or obstruction in such highway, it becomes necessary again to repair such surface due to settlement or any other cause directly attributable to such excavation or obstruction, the permittee shall pay to the City the cost of such additional repairs made by the Engineer. The cost shall be computed by the Engineer as follows:

Whenever, in this section, any costs are to be charged to any permittee and no other method for the calculation thereof is specified, such cost shall be the actual cost, including the proportionate part of the salaries, wages or other compensation of any deputy or employee, plus the cost of overhead, not to exceed twenty (20) percent of the total cost.

(Ord. #63-52, § 22)

Trenching for installation across any intersecting roadway open to traffic shall be progressive. Not more than one-half (½) of the width of a traveled way shall be disturbed at one time and the remaining width shall be kept open to traffic by bridging or backfilling.

(Ord. #63-52, § 23)

a. General Compaction Requirements. All backfill replaced in excavations within the road right-of-way shall be compacted until the relative compaction within six (6) feet of the top surface is not less than ninety (90) percent and below six (6) feet is not less than the adjacent undisturbed soil as determined by the Relative Compaction Test specified in Section 19 of the State Standard Specifications.

b. Compaction of Clayey Soils. Clayey materials shall be defined as a soil containing more than thirty (30) percent of material which will pass a No. 200 mesh screen. Clayey material replaced as backfill may not be ponded or jetted but shall be compacted as specified under general compaction requirements by any other suitable method providing the material is first conditioned by wetting or drying to within two (2) percent of optimum moisture content.

In lieu of backfilling with clayey material, the permittee as his option may elect to furnish sandy or grandular material, less than thirty (30) percent of which will pass a No. 200 mesh screen in which case compaction may be obtained as specified under general compaction requirements.

c. Finishing and Clean Up. After work has been completed, all debris and excess material from excavation and backfill operations shall be removed from the right-of-way and the roadway left in a neat and orderly condition.

All roadside drainage ditches shall be restored to the original grades and the inlet and outlet ends of all culverts shall be left free and clear.

All approaches to private driveways and intersecting highways and streets shall be kept open to traffic at all times.

Excess and nonsurfacing materials which adhere to roadway surfacing as a result of construction operations shall be removed by approved methods to the satisfaction of the City Engineer.

(Ord. #63-52, § 24)

The City shall deduct from any deposit made or maintained by the permittee:

a. The permit issuance fee if it has not otherwise been paid.

b. The cost to the City of refilling any excavation or removing any obstruction.

c. The cost to the City of resurfacing or repairing the highway.

d. The cost of the City of resurfacing or repairing the highways as provided in subsection 17-4.20.

e. The cost of any inspection and/or tests by the City Engineer made necessary by the failure of the permittee to comply with any provisions of this section or the terms or conditions of the permit.

After making the deductions specified above, the City shall, unless the deductions are made from a general deposit, refund any balance to the applicant in the same manner as provided by law for the repayment of trust moneys. The balance remaining in the general deposit shall be retained by the City and applied to issuance fees and costs in connection with any future excavations, fills, or obstructions pursuant to a permit issued hereunder unless a written demand for the balance be made by the depositor, in which event any balance therein shall be refunded in the same manner as provided by law for the repayment of trust moneys.

(Ord. #63-52, § 25)

If any deposit is insufficient to pay all fees and costs herein provided, the permittee shall, upon demand, pay to the City an amount equal to the deficiency.

(Ord. #63-52, § 26)

If a permittee, upon demand, fails to pay any deficiency as provided in subsection 17-4.24 or shall fail to pay any other costs due the City hereunder for which no deposit has been made, the City may recover the same by an action in any court of competent jurisdiction. Until such deficiency or cost is paid in full, a permit hereunder shall not thereafter be issued to such permittee.

(Ord. #63-52, § 27)

Nothing in this section prohibits any person from making such excavation as may be necessary for the preservation of life or property when necessity arises during such hours as the offices of the City are closed, if the person making such excavation obtains a permit therefore within one day after the offices of the City Engineer are first opened subsequent to the making of such excavation.

(Ord. #63-52, § 28)

A person who violates any provision of this section or of any permit hereunder shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof, shall be liable to the penalty stated in Chapter I, Article 1-5.

(Ord. #63-52, § 29)