69 GRADING AND SOIL EXCAVATION 69 CHAPTER 69. Application for permits; submission of plans. Completion and performance guarantee

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1 CHAPTER 69 GRADING AND SOIL EXCAVATION Title and purpose Definitions Permit requirement Exceptions to permit requirement Standards for grading Application for permits; submission of plans Hazardous conditions Completion and performance guarantee Expiration of permit Denial of permit; appeal Supervision of grading Maintenance Liability Fees Remedies Compliance; effect of noncompliance Penalty [HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of Findlay as Ord. No Amended as Ord. No Amended by Ord. No Amendments noted where applicable.]

2 69 FINDLAY CODE 69 General References Building Construction - See Ch. 49 Definitions; Rules of Interpretation - See Ch. 3 Street Excavation - See Ch Title and purpose This Chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Findlay Township Grading Ordinance." The purpose of this Chapter is to provide minimum standards to safeguard persons and property, to protect and to promote the public welfare, by preventing excess erosion, hazardous rock and soil slippage, sediment production and other soil and water management problems, and by regulating and controlling the design, construction, quality of materials, use, location, and maintenance of grading, excavations and fills Definitions. Wherever used in this Chapter, the following words shall have the meanings indicated: BEDROCK - natural rock layer, hard or soft, in place at ground surface or beneath unconsolidated surficial deposits. ENGINEERING GEOLOGIST - a person who holds a degree in geology from an accredited college or university and who has training and experience in the field of engineering geology. EROSION - the detachment and movement of soil or rock fragments by water, ice or gravity, including such processes as gravitational creep. EXCAVATION - any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock, or any other similar material is cut into, dug, quarried, uncovered, removed, displaced, relocated, or bulldozed and includes the conditions resulting therefrom. FILL - any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock, concrete or any other material is deposited, placed,

3 pushed, dumped, pulled, transported, or removed to a new location and includes the condition resulting therefrom. GOVERNING BODY - the Findlay Township Supervisors. GRADING - excavation or fill or any combination thereof and shall include the conditions resulting from any excavation or fill. GRADING PERMIT - any permit required under this Chapter. HAZARD - a danger or potential danger to life, limb, or health, or an adverse effect or potentially adverse effect to the safety, use or stability of property, waterways, public ways, structures, utilities and storm sewers; "hazard" includes stream pollution. PROFESSIONAL - an engineer, surveyor, architect or landscape architect licensed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. SITE - a lot, tract, parcel of land, or a series of lots, tracts or parcels of land which are adjoining where grading work is continuous and performed at the same time. SOIL SURVEY - the unpublished and operational Soil Survey for Allegheny County, Pennsylvania and the accompanying text "Soil Survey Interpretations of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania," as prepared by the USDA Soil Conservation Services. When applicable, "Soil Survey" means "Soil Survey, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania" when this publication is completed. SOIL ENGINEER - a person registered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as a professional engineer and who has training and experience in the branch of soils engineering. SOLID WASTE - all parts or combinations of ashes, garbage, refuse, radioactive material, combustible demolition materials and industrial wastes such as foodprocessing wastes, wood, plastic, metal scrap, etc Permit requirement A grading permit must be obtained from the

4 69 FINDLAY CODE 69 Township for new grading, excavations and fills. Changes, additions or alterations made to existing excavations or fills shall conform to the provisions of this Chapter. A separate grading permit shall be required for each site. One permit may cover the grading, excavations and any fills made on the same site Only one (1) permit is required for a continuous parcel to be graded for a proposed major planned development, such as a planned residential development, a residential subdivision, or a planned industrial park when adequate standards or requirements for grading the parcel are approved by the Township Engineer Exceptions to permit requirement. A grading permit will not be required for any of the following situations: Grading limited to reasonable, regular, normal maintenance and landscaping improvements by individual homeowners, where standards in this Chapter are not violated Stockpiling of rock, sand and aggregate in areas properly zoned for such use Grading performed for the construction of an individual residence shall not require a grading permit. The grading permit will be part of the building permit and all standards for grading set forth in this Chapter shall be applicable Standards for grading The maximum slope of cut shall not be greater than one and one-half (1 ) horizontal to one (1) vertical, and maximum slope for fill shall not be greater than two (2) horizontal to one (1) vertical, providing the materials being used will permit these slopes Adequate provisions shall be incorporated to prevent erosion due to storm drainage. All provisions shall be properly engineered and may be paved or planted swales and/or gutters and/or piped storm sewers. All of this shall be

5 reviewed and be subject to the approval of the Township Engineer Existing storm drainage shall not be diverted to adjacent property owners. The guidelines adopted for the Pennsylvania Storm Water Management Act, P.L. 864, Act 167, shall be followed. Any landowner and any person engaged in the alteration or development of land which may affect stormwater runoff characteristics shall implement such measures as are reasonably necessary to prevent injury to health, safety or other property. Such measures shall include such actions as are required: To assure that stormwater runoff complies with the Stormwater District Regulations that the application is within To manage the quality, velocity and direction of resulting storm water runoff in a manner which otherwise adequately protects health and property from possible injury Adequate engineered provisions shall be incorporated to prevent runoff sediment infiltration into existing streams. Guidelines established by the latest revision of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Manual shall be followed All fills shall be compacted to provide stability of fill materials and to prevent settlement or slippage No stumps, rubbish or any other objectionable material will be permitted to be used in any fill area Immediately upon completion of grading, all areas not designated for building or paving shall be mulched and planted. Planting shall be appropriate to maintain slopes from erosion and subject to approval of the Building Inspector. In general, planting may be rye grass, crown vetch or honey-suckle Any slope which exceeds twenty (20) feet in vertical height shall be properly benched

6 69 FINDLAY CODE In addition to the above, all fill and cut operations shall follow the "Erosion and Sediment Control Handbook" for Allegheny County or the Latest Revision of the Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Manual, dated April 15, 1978, by PADEP In the event that the cut and fill operation affects any natural watercourse under the jurisdiction of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Dams and Encroachments, by change in direction, cut and fill along the banks, culverts or bridges, or construction adjacent to, the applicant must present with his application the permit and the letter of comments from PADEP, Division of Dams and Encroachments Prior to the commencement of earthwork, the contractor shall conduct clearing and grubbing operations. This work includes the removal and stockpiling of all topsoil, and the removal of all objectionable material, rubbish, trees, stumps, brush, roots, down timber, rotten wood and any other vegetation from the grading limits. All materials removed by the clearing and grubbing operations shall be removed from the site and properly disposed of. Chipped materials may be used on site for mulching During all earthwork operations, dust control is to be closely monitored. If required, water, oil and/or calcium shall be utilized on the site to control dust at the direction of the Building Inspector No excavation, filling, grading, clearing or grubbing shall occur within twenty feet (20') of any exterior lot line. An applicant may request a waiver in order to perform limited excavation, filling, grading, clearing, or grubbing within twenty feet (20') of a property line if the applicant shows on its grading plan and installs a type B bufferyard in conformance with Section of the Township s Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance. [Added by Ord. No. 307] Application for permit; submission of plans Every applicant for a grading permit shall file a written application with the Township on a prescribed form

7 The application shall: Describe the land, on which the proposed work is to be done by lot, block, tract, or street address Be accompanied by the plans and specifications prepared and sealed by a professional giving a reasonable picture of the site and proposed soil erosion controls, if any. The plans must be on a 24" x 36" drawing, complete with north arrow, scale, distance to road intersections, adjacent structures, roads, utilities, waterways, existing contours, finished proposed contours and all contours maximum 5 foot intervals. All necessary existing and finished spot elevations are required to show drainage details of all constructed measures to prevent soil erosion, and planting. Stormwater runoff calculations shall be submitted by the applicant to show that no additional runoff is being generated The Township may waive the preparation of the plans by a professional when it is evident that the proposed work is simple, clearly shown on the plan submitted, and creates no potential nuisance or hazard to adjacent property Plans and specifications above shall be submitted to the Allegheny County Conservation District for approval before submission to the Township, and the District's approval must be obtained and submitted with the application for permit when: The area to be developed is in a land slide prone area as recognized by the Allegheny County Soil Survey; or The area to be developed is over five (5) acres; or In the opinion of the Township Engineer unusual site conditions warrant the review of the Conservation District Hazardous conditions Whenever the governing body, upon the

8 69 FINDLAY CODE 69 recommendation of its Building Inspector and/or Township, determines that any existing excavation, embarkment or fill has become a hazard as defined in Section 69.2, the owner of the property upon which the excavation, embankment or fill is located, or other persons or agent in control of the property, upon receipt of notice in writing from the Building Inspector shall, within the reasonable period specified therein, repair, reconstruct or remove such excavation, embankment or fill so as to eliminate the hazard If, after such notification, the property owner has not made the necessary repairs within the time adopted, the Township Supervisors may direct Township employees to make the required repairs and the cost thereof shall be assessed against the property owner by a lien filed as provided by law Whenever the governing body, upon the recommendation of its Building Inspector and/or Township Engineer, determines that any proposed excavation or fill may present a hazard as defined in Section 69.2, the Township Supervisors reserve the right to require the applicant to have the proposed work certified by a soils engineer or geologist Completion and performance guarantee. Before the issuance of a grading permit, the applicant shall post a bond written by a surety company authorized to do business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or shall post other security (such as a bank letter of credit) approved by the Township Solicitor in the amount of ten percent (10%) of the estimated cost of the grading work and erosion control facilities proposed for the permit to guarantee the work and facilities in a satisfactory manner and meeting the requirements of this Chapter. No bond shall be required if another bond or other approved security is posted for construction and/or site improvements. When all requirements of the permit have been met and the work has been completed in a satisfactory manner, the full amount of security shall be returned to the person posting the security. No bond shall be required for a property owner performing work on their own residential property less than one (1) acre in size, owned and occupied as their primary residence Expiration of permit

9 Every grading permit shall expire by limitation and become null and void if the work authorized by such permit has not been commenced within one (1) year or it is not completed within three (3) years from the date of issue, provided that the Township Supervisors, acting upon the recommendation of the Building Inspector and/or Township Engineer, may, if the permit holder presents satisfactory evidence that unusual difficulties have prevented work being started or completed within the specified time limits, grant a reasonable extension of time, and provided further, that the application for the extension of time is made before the date of expiration of the permit. Any physical changes in the site such as surface water drainage, soil and bedrock dislocations, alterations or groundwater discharge or any other natural or manmade modification which would cause a doubt to be cast upon the feasibility of the contents of the original permit approval, must be reported to the Building Inspector in the intervening period between approval of permit and completion of the project Denial of permit; appeal When the requirements of this Chapter for obtaining a permit have been met, the Township shall approve the proposed plan and grant a grading permit to the applicant. Approved work may then start. However, when, in the opinion of the Township, work proposed by the applicant is likely to endanger any property or person, or any street or alley, or create hazardous conditions, the grading permit shall be denied. In determining whether the proposed work is likely to endanger property or streets or alleys, or create hazardous conditions, the Township shall give due consideration to: possible saturation by rains, earth movements, run-off surface waters and subsurface conditions such as the stratification and faulting of rock, acquifers, springs, and the nature and type of the soil or rock Any person aggrieved by the denial of a permit may appeal to the Board of Supervisors within fifteen (15) days of the denial of the permit. The Supervisors shall consider any appeal within thirty (30) days of its filing. In addition, the Supervisors shall, within thirty (30) days, consider alternate methods, standards or materials proposed by the applicant/developer when, in his opinion, strict compliance with the provisions of this Chapter is unnecessary. Any applicant or permit holder shall have the right to appeal to any court of competent jurisdiction from any decisions of the Supervisors

10 69 FINDLAY CODE Supervision of grading The permittee or his agent shall notify the Building Inspector in writing of the start and completion of each continuous grading operation. Notice shall be received by the Building Inspector at his office at least two (2) working days before both the start and completion of grading operations Grading work will be subject to spot inspections at any time at the discretion of the Building Inspector to determine that the work is being performed in compliance with these regulations In special cases, when grading occurs in areas of landslide-prone soil as recognized by the Soil Survey or by inspection of the site, the Township Engineer may require special precautions from the grader. The results of all soil tests and core borings made relating to the site to be or being graded shall be submitted to the Township Engineer Maintenance The owner of any property on which an excavation or fill has been made shall maintain in good condition and repair the excavation or fill permitted, and also all retaining walls, cribbing, drainage structures, fences, ground cover and any other protective devices which may be a part of the permit requirements If, at any time subsequent to the completion of the grading work, the cut face or fill slope shall evidence signs of deterioration, erosion or other evidence which might be detrimental to the properties above and below the grading site, the Supervisors, upon recommendation of the Building Inspector and/or Township Engineer, may direct the property owner to take necessary remedial steps in accordance with sound engineering practice to restore the grading to a safe condition, and to do so in a reasonable period of time Liability. Neither the issuance of a permit under the provisions of this Chapter, nor the compliance with the provisions hereof or with any conditions imposed by the Building Inspector hereunder, shall

11 relieve any person from any responsibility for damage to persons or property resulting from the grading work, nor shall any such grading work impose any liability upon the Township for damages to persons or property Schedule of fees. A fee shall be charged for each grading permit as provided in Chapter 59, "Fees." Remedies. In case any work is performed by any person in violation of any of the provisions of this Chapter, the Township Solicitor, in addition to other remedies, may institute in the name of the Township, any appropriate action or proceeding to prevent such unlawful work and to restrain or abate such violation Compliance; effect of noncompliance No person shall construct, enlarge, alter, repair, or maintain any grading, excavation or fill, or cause the same to be done contrary to or in violation of any provision of this Chapter When written notice of any violation of any provision of this Chapter has been served by the Township on any person, such violation shall be discontinued immediately or within a reasonable time limit specified in such notice. If violation is not discontinued, or extends beyond the specified time limit, the Township shall revoke the grading permit and the violator shall be subject to the penalty provided in Chapter 5, "Enforcement of Ordinances; Penalties." Penalty. Any person violating any provision of this Chapter shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 5, "Enforcement of Ordinances; Penalties."