§ 40-49. Regulations governing excavations and openings.

(a)

Frozen ground. No openings in the streets, alleys, sidewalks or public ways shall be permitted between November 15 and May 1 except where it is determined by the Director of Public Works or his designee to be an emergency excavation.

(b)

Protection of public.

(1)

Every opening and excavation shall be enclosed with sufficient barriers, signing, and such other traffic control devices as may be required by the City and in accordance with Section VI of the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Sufficient warning lights shall be kept on from sunrise to sunset. No open flame warning devices shall be used. Except by special permission from the Director of Public Works, no trench shall be excavated more than 250 feet in advance of pipe or conduit laying nor left unfilled more than 500 feet from where pipe or conduit has been laid.

(2)

All necessary precautions shall be taken to guard the public effectively from accidents or damage to persons or property through the period of the work. Each person making such opening shall be held liable for all damages, including costs incurred by the City in defending any action brought against it for damages, as well as the cost of any appeal, that may result from the neglect by such person or his employees to take any necessary precaution against injury or damage to persons, vehicles or property of any kind.

(3)

Unless otherwise approved, a minimum of one lane of traffic in each direction shall be provided. Every effort shall be made on the part of the permittee to provide reasonable access to all properties adjacent to his project. In the event traffic is limited to less than one lane in each direction, a flagman or temporary traffic control signal shall be provided so as to safely cycle traffic in each direction past the work area.

(4)

The permittee shall perform the work in such a manner so as not to disrupt the flow of traffic in the area or endanger the safety of workmen or passersby. It shall be the responsibility of the permittee to prevent traffic backup during construction operation. The permittee shall notify the Director of Public Works 24 hours prior to commencement of excavation of the location and extent of the excavation, unless the excavation is an emergency excavation as identified in Subsection (b)(5) of this section.

(5)

When the operations will result in the loss of any utility service to private properties, the private properties shall be notified in writing or by personal contact at least 12 hours prior to the loss of service, unless the operations are part of an emergency excavation as defined in Subsection (g) of this section.

(c)

Pavement removal.

(1)

Removal of existing pavement shall be to neat, straight lines. The permittee shall make a final saw cut in the existing pavement after backfilling. Excavations shall be kept to the minimum possible and acceptable for the convenience and safe performance of his work and in accordance with all applicable codes and regulations.

(2)

If the pavement is damaged during excavation beyond the original saw cut lines, it shall be saw cut again along neat, straight lines. The finished saw cut shall leave a regular rectangular section for pavement replacement. Should the street opening occur within adjacent or close to an existing patch or require more than one opening within a short distance, the permittee shall identify and locate the existing patches or additional openings on the permit application form. The Director of Public Works or his designee shall, on the basis of an on-site inspection, approximate the boundaries of the pavement replacement area.

(3)

Pavement replacement areas with the long dimension in the direction of travel shall have the long dimension parallel with the curbline or the direction of travel. Pavement replacement areas in concrete pavements shall be parallel with or at right angles to the direction of travel.

(4)

The Director of Public Works or his designee may order the permittee to remove and replace up to one full lane width of pavement along the patched or excavated area. Special care shall be taken with concrete pavement to produce a vertical face on the existing concrete at the point of the saw cut to ensure a full depth of concrete at the joint.

(d)

Excavation.

(1)

All excavated material shall be piled in a manner such that pedestrian and motor traffic is not unnecessarily disrupted. Gutters shall be kept clear or other satisfactory provisions made for street drainage, and natural watercourses shall not be obstructed.

(2)

Excavated material to be used for backfilling of the trench must be so handled and placed as to be of as little inconvenience as practical to public travel and adjoining tenants.

(e)

Backfilling.

(1)

All backfill material shall be free from cinders, ashes, refuse, vegetable or organic matter, boulders, rocks or stones greater than eight inches in their greatest dimension, frozen lumps or other material which in, in the opinion of the Director of Public Works or his designee, is unsuitable.

(2)

In refilling the excavation, if there is not sufficient material excavated suitable for refilling, the deficiency shall be made up with material, approved prior to use by the Director of Public Works or his designee, hauled in.

(3)

Wherever an excavation crosses an existing utility, pipe or other structure, backfill shall be carefully compacted in stages from the bottom of the excavation. Any sanitary sewer, storm sewer, water, telephone, natural gas or other service shall not be interrupted by the permittee. It shall be the permittee's responsibility to have the various utilities locate and mark their facilities prior to excavation.

(4)

Mechanical compaction shall be used on all materials used for trench backfill. Each layer, 12-inch maximum, shall be uniformly compacted to a dry density of at least 95 percent of the maximum dry density as determined by the Modified Proctor Test, ASTM-1557. Compaction or consolidation by flooding shall not be permitted.

(5)

All excavations shall be subject to testing by the City. Backfilled material not achieving the compaction requirements specified in this section shall be removed and recompacted by the permittee. The cost of any retesting shall be paid by the permittee.

(6)

When the sides of the trench will not stand perpendicular, sheathing and braces shall be used to prevent caving. No timber, bracing, lagging, sheathing or other lumber shall be left in any trench. At no time shall any street pavements be permitted to overhang the excavation.

(f)

Notice. It shall be the duty of the permittee to notify the Director of Public Works and all public and private individuals, firms and corporations affected by the work to be done at least one business day before such work is to commence. The Director of Public Works shall also be notified at least four hours prior to backfilling and/or restoring the surface.

(g)

Pavement replacement and sidewalk, curb and gutter and driveway restoration.

(1)

Backfill material shall be left below the original surface to allow for five inches of three inch crushed rock and four inches of three-quarter inch crushed rock, plus the thickness of the required pavement structure. If paving will not occur as part of the initial street restoration operation, the balance of the opening to the original surface elevation shall be backfilled with compacted three-quarter-inch crushed rock.

(2)

Bituminous pavement shall be placed the full depth of the existing pavement or three inches, whichever is greater. Bituminous pavement shall be placed in a maximum of 1½ inch layers with each layer compacted to maximum density and shall consist of State Department of Transportation Gradation No. 1 for the binder course and State Department of Transportation No. 3 for the surface course. The finished surface shall be smooth and free of surface irregularities and shall match the existing pavement and any castings or street appurtenances. Allowable deviations shall be no more than one-quarter inch as measured with a ten-foot straight edge.

(3)

Concrete pavement shall be placed to the full depth of the existing pavement or seven inches, whichever is greater. Concrete used shall not contain calcium chloride. The surface shall be given a barn broom finish. The edges shall be tooled to prevent spalling at the saw cut edge. The surface shall be evenly and completely sealed with a white pigmented curing compound. The surface shall be protected from traffic for a minimum of three days. The bars shall be installed as directed by the Director of Public Works or his designee.

(4)

All permanent restoration of street, curb and gutter shall be of the same type and thickness as the curb and gutter which abuts. The grade of the restored curb and gutter shall conform with the grade of the existing adjacent curb and gutter.

(5)

All permanent restoration of driveways and sidewalks shall conform to the manner of construction as originally placed and to the lines and grades as given by the City Engineer. No patching of concrete driveway areas will be allowed between joints or dummy joints.

(6)

Sidewalks shall be replaced the full width of the walk and minimum length shall be 60 inches. All replaced walk shall be four inches thick, except at driveways where it shall be six inches thick. The new walk shall slope to conform to existing construction across the width of the walk toward the street.

(7)

In emergency excavations during winter months when it is not possible to replace the removed pavement with a like material, the excavation shall be temporarily resurfaced with a minimum of 3½ inches of cold mix bituminous material. This temporary wearing surface shall be compacted and rolled smooth. These temporary wearing surfaces shall be removed and replaced with material as specified in this section by not later than the following June 1, except as provided in ths section. Permanent pavements shall be replaced within 60 days of the date of the permit.

(h)

Emergency excavation. In the event of an emergency, any person owning or controlling any sewer, gas main, water main, conduit or other utility in or under any public street, alley easement, way or ground and his agents and employees make take immediate proper emergency measures to remedy dangerous conditions for the protection of property, life, health or safety without obtaining an excavation permit, provided that such person shall apply for an excavation permit not later than the next business day and shall notify City officials immediately.

(i)

Excavation in new streets limited. Whenever the City determines to provide for the permanent improvement or repaving of any street, such determination shall be made not less than 30 days before the work of improvement or repaving shall begin. Immediately after such determination by the Common Council, the City shall notify in writing each person, utility or other agency owning or controlling any sewer, water main, conduit or other utility in or under said street or any real property abutting said street, that all such excavation work in such street must be completed within 30 days. After such permanent improvement or repaving, no permit shall be issued to open or excavate said street for a period of five years after the date of improvement or repaving unless, in the opinion of the Common Council, conditions exist which make it absolutely essential that the permit be issued. Every effort shall be made to place gas, electric, telephone and television cable lines in street terraces.

(j)

Repair by the City. The City may elect to have the City or a contractor working for the City make the pavement repair for any street or sidewalk opening, in which case the cost of making such repair and of maintaining such repair for one year shall be charged to the person making the street opening.

(Code 1991, § 6-2-4)