Chapter 12.08
EXCAVATIONS
Sections:
12.08.050 Time limit and damages payable for violation thereof.
12.08.060 Blanket permits to utilities and certain governmental districts.
12.08.070 Restrictions on street cutting.
12.08.080 Safety requirements.
12.08.100 One-day notice to abate violations.
12.08.120 Costs a debt to city.
12.08.150 Violation an infraction.
* Prior ordinance history: Ord. 172.
12.08.010 Permits.
No person shall open, excavate or dig any trench, tunnel or opening in any public street in the city without first obtaining a permit from the public works department. When work requiring a permit under this chapter is commenced before a permit is issued, the fee for any permit thereafter issued for such work shall be twice the normal permit fee. (Ord. 462 § 2, 1980)
12.08.020 Applications.
Any person desiring a permit required by this chapter shall submit an application to the public works department on a form provided by the public works department. The application shall be signed by the, applicant and shall include such information as may be required by the director, including local address for service of notices. (Ord. 462 § 3, 1980)
12.08.030 Fees.
The public works department, prior to the issuance of any street opening permit, shall demand and collect a fee for each permit duly and regularly issued. The permit fee shall be determined by resolution of the city council. (Ord. 462 § 4, 1980)
12.08.040 Issuance of permit.
The director may grant the permit if he or she determines that the work will be performed in compliance with the requirements of this chapter and any other applicable provisions of the law. If all the conditions for issuance of the permit have been met, and if in his or her judgment the proposed work is consistent with the public interest and convenience, the director will grant the permit. Nothing herein shall be deemed to compel the director to issue any permit if in his or her judgment the proposed work is against the public interest or convenience. In granting a permit, the director may impose such conditions as are consistent with the public interest or convenience and with the provisions of this chapter. (Ord. 462 § 5, 1980)
12.08.050 Time limit and damages payable for violation thereof.
A. In addition to such other conditions as may be imposed, the public works director at the time the permit is issued shall establish a time within which the work, once commenced, must be completed. The public works director may limit the time of commencement so as to prevent the work from occurring during times of heavy traffic, such as the Christmas season. Once a permit is issued, a permittee may, at any time, apply to the public works director for an extension of the time period, based on any combination of the following grounds:
1. Unusual weather conditions which have substantially prevented ordinary work on the project;
2. Otherwise expeditious conduct of the project has shown the original time period to have been unrealistic;
3. During the course of the work, unforeseen physical conditions have been encountered;
4. Unforeseen circumstances caused by the third parties, such as strikes.
B. The following shall not be considered valid reasons for an extension of the time period:
1. Convenience of the permittee or his or her agents;
2. Permittee desires to devote the time and resources of himself or herself and his or her agents to other endeavors;
3. Disputes or difficulties between the permittee and his or her contractors, agents or employees;
4. Inadequate staffing, preparation or planning by the permittee.
C. The city recognizes that streets which are torn up any longer than is absolutely necessary nose an inconvenience and burden to the public. Belated completion of the work, whether the completion is done by the city or the applicant, does not cure the damage done to the members of the public who are so inconvenienced or delayed. In recognition of this, the acceptance of a permit under this chapter and commencement of the work under the permit shall constitute the acceptance by the permittee of the following provisions for damages and permittee shall be contractually liable therefor:
Permittee recognizes that the actual detriment to the public caused by the untimely repair of the streets is impossible to precisely quantify. As a measure of the damages due to inconvenience and delay only, the permittee agrees that it must pay to the city one hundred dollars for every day or part thereof, and for every block or part thereof, in which the work remains uncompleted beyond the time period specified in the permit, together with any extensions of said time period. This provision shall not limit other remedies of the city herein provided nor remedies of third parties for damage suffered other than by reason of inconvenience and delay.
D. Any person subjected to the payment of damage pursuant to this section may appeal to the city council which shall conduct a de novo hearing on any such appeal. Any such appeal shall be confined to the following grounds:
1. The public works director has refused to grant a reasonable extension of time. If an appeal is upheld on this ground, the council shall determine the period of a reasonable extension.
2. The project by its nature was of such a negligible burden to the public so as to render the per-day assessment of damages excessive. If an appeal is sustained on this basis, the council shall declare a lesser figure which is fair under the circumstances. (Ord. 462 § 6, 1980)
12.08.060 Blanket permits to utilities and certain governmental districts.
The public works director is empowered to grant permits wherein a general description of activities may be set forth which are exempt from the requirement of seeking repetitive permits. An example would be activities which do, not intrude upon the traveled portion of the roadway. Such blanket permits may be granted to any utility regulated by the Public Utilities Commission of California or to any governmental district such as the water district. Any such permit is revokable at any time upon five days written notice. (Ord. 462 § 7, 1980)
12.08.070 Restrictions on street cutting.
Except when the permittee is a utility regulated by the Public Utilities Commission or some governmental district:
A. All work authorized or required upon the issuance of a permit under this chapter shall be performed by, or under the direction of, a contractor licensed to perform the work authorized by the permit.
B. The person opening any street or public way (sidewalk) of any kind or nature within the city limits shall do so by cutting the area to be removed by an abrasive saw or other such method as approved by the public works department.
C. The work for which the permit is issued, once commenced, shall be prosecuted with due diligence and so as not to obstruct the street or travel thereon more than is actually necessary to perform the work.
D. Any opening trench, tunnel or excavation made shall be backfilled with a structural sand or other structural backfill material in a good and workmanlike manner with thorough compaction of the backfill material either by jetting, tamping or other method which, in the judgment of the public works department, will give satisfactory results. No native material is to be used as backfill.
E. Pavement shall be replaced in kind; however, minimum standards are as follows:
1. .50'' prime coated class 2 aggregate base;
2. 2' asphalt concrete type B.
F. All costs and expenses of all work required by this chapter and undertaken by the applicant in connection with the issuance of the permit shall be borne by the applicant or by other person who agrees to bear such costs and expenses. The city shall not be responsible for any such costs or expenses. (Ord. 462 § 8, 1980)
12.08.080 Safety requirements.
No person shall perform or cause to be performed any work on the streets of Capitola unless such person shall place or cause to be placed appropriate traffic-control devices and other safety equipment for the protection of the public and construction workers. The standards of the State Manual of Traffic Controls are used as the accepted standards for the placement of traffic control devices. (Ord. 462 § 9, 1980)
12.08.090 Completion of work.
Upon restoration of the street to its original condition, the work shall be subject to a final inspection. The director of public works may require that the final inspection be completed before the permittee’s workmen leave the job site. (Ord. 462 § 10, 1980)
12.08.100 One-day notice to abate violations.
If a permit has been issued for any work under this chanter, and if any work in connection with such permit is performed in violation of any provision of this chapter or in violation of any terms or conditions of such permit, the director of public works may notify the person performing the work to correct the violation within one day; such notice shall be in writing, shall specify the nature of the violation and shall be served on the person to whom the permit was issued, on the person causing the work to be performed, or on the person supervising any part of the work. The notice may be served on such person by delivery to such person at the job site or by leaving a copy of the notice at the address specified in the permit application as the address for service of notices. If the violation is not corrected as required by the notice, the public works director may immediately cause the street to be restored to its original condition. (Ord. 462 § 11, 1980)
12.08.110 Public nuisance.
Any work performed in violation of the requirements of this chapter or in violation of any permit issued under this chapter is declared to be a public nuisance. Where no permit has been issued hereunder in connection with such work, or where such work constitutes an immediate hazard to the public safety, the public works director may immediately take such steps as are necessary or appropriate to abate the nuisance, including removal of any improvements installed in connection with such work, restoration of the street to its original condition, or any other steps necessary or appropriate to protect the public safety. Such work may be done by the director of public works, without prior notice to the person causing such nuisance to exist. In order to abate any nuisance as defined herein, whether performed with or without a permit, the director may pursue any other appropriate legal or equitable remedies available for the abatement of public nuisances. (Ord. 462 § 12, 1980)
12.08.120 Costs a debt to city.
If any person performs street cutting or street improvement work in violation of the requirements of this chapter or in violation of any terms and conditions of any permit issued under this chapter, and if because of such violation the city performs work or incurs expenses in correcting such violation or in restoring the street to its original condition, then the cost of any such work performed and any expenses so incurred by the city shall be a debt due to the city from any person whose violation caused the city’s work to be performed, which debt shall be payable upon demand. (Ord. 462 § 13, 1930)
12.08.130 Exemptions.
The following are exempted from the requirements of this chapter:
A. Work done under the provisions of any Street Improvement Act of the state of California;
B. Work performed by any department, board or officer of the city in the course of official duty;
C. Work performed pursuant to any contract for improvement authorized by the city council. (Ord. 462 § 15, 1980)
12.08.140 Emergencies.
Any person who maintains a pipe or conduit in any public street may perform, without first obtaining a permit under this chapter, any street cutting work made necessary as an emergency measure for the preservation of life or property, when such necessity arises at any time when the offices of the city are closed. If street cutting is undertaken pursuant to this section, then within four hours after the offices of the city are first opened after the initiation of such work, the person performing the work or causing the work to be performed shall notify the public works department of such work and shall apply for a permit in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. In the discretion of the director of public works, the bond and insurance requirements may be waived if the street has been restored to its original condition at the time the permit is issued, and if the bond or insurance requirement would not serve a purpose at that time. (Ord. 462 § 16, 1980)
12.08.150 Violation an infraction.
Any work performed in violation of the requirements of this chapter or in violation of any permit issued under this chapter is an infraction. Each day that such violation occurs or continues shall constitute a separate offense. (Ord. 462 § 14, 1980)