(a)

The excavation of sand, gravel, stone or other earth material from any land in the city is hereby prohibited except such excavation as may be authorized in any zoning district by a permit issued by the planning board or as otherwise permitted under this chapter.

(b)

The commercial excavation of sod, loam, topsoil, peat or other organic material for landscaping and site development related activities exceeding 300 cubic yards per site per year from any land in the city is hereby prohibited except such excavation as may be authorized in any zoning district by a permit issued by the department of community development and planning or as otherwise permitted under this chapter.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4A)

(a)

In judging whether or not an resource extraction permit shall be issued, the planning board shall after a public hearing, determine the setback allowances, ingress and egress to provide a site distance that meets minimum safety standards, and access road location and maintenance.

(b)

In judging whether or not an resource extraction permit shall be issued, the planning board shall address the following, if applicable:

(1)

Maintenance of safe and healthful conditions such as the posting of danger areas, the installation of gates to prevent access, etc.;

(2)

The prevention and control of erosion and sedimentation;

(3)

The proximity of water bodies and wetland areas;

(4)

The effect on the aesthetic, scenic or natural beauty of the immediate area;

(5)

Whether the size of the resource deposit in relation to the area affected justifies the excavation activity;

(6)

The compatibility of the use with the surrounding uses and the neighborhood. Under this criteria items to be addressed are as follows: hours of operation, noise emitted from the operation, types of machinery to be used, dust, provisions of screening, orientation of the excavation operation, etc.

(c)

In judging whether or not an resource extraction permit should be issued, the planning board shall address the following:

(1)

Adequacy of the applicant's reclamation plan;

(2)

The applicant must demonstrate proof of bonding capacity or security adequate to ensure compliance with an approved reclamation plan.

(d)

In judging whether or not an resource extraction permit should be issued for the excavation of organic material, the department of community development and planning shall consider compliance with the criteria cited in subsection (a) of this section and shall address, if applicable, the criteria in subsection (b) of this section.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4B)

(a)

A written application for an resource extraction permit required under section 60-697(a) shall be submitted with a processing fee in the amount provided in the city fee schedule to the department of community development and planning. The planning board shall conduct an on-site inspection of the proposed excavation location prior to the public hearing. Notice of such inspection shall be given to the applicant and others by mail at such addresses as may be known to the department of community development and planning or as appear in the city property tax list. Comments concerning the proposed excavation operation will be solicited from all persons in attendance. Failure of the applicant or others to receive a mailed notice of such on-site inspection shall not constitute grounds for objections by the applicant or others and shall not invalidate any action taken by the planning board shall hold a public hearing on such application.

(b)

An application of an resource extraction permit required under section 60-697(a) shall be submitted to the department of community development and planning not less than 30 days prior to the next regular meeting of the planning board. The planning board shall schedule a public hearing, the notice of which shall be given by publication in a newspaper having general circulation in the city not less than 12 days prior to the meeting of the planning board. Upon holding the public hearing and reviewing the application, the planning board shall approve, conditionally approve or deny the application based on the criteria set forth in section 60-698. The planning board shall notify the applicant in writing of any conditions and the reasons for its action.

(c)

A written application for an resource extraction permit required under section 60-697(b) shall be submitted with a processing fee in the amount provided in the city fee schedule to the department of community development and planning.

(d)

When an application for an resource extraction permit under section 60-697(b) is submitted, the department of community development and planning shall have 15 working days to complete its review of the application. The department of community development and planning can approve, conditionally approve or deny the application based on the criteria set forth in section 60-698. The department of community development and planning shall notify the applicant in writing of any conditions and the reasons for its action.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4C)

(a)

The written application submitted to the department of community development and planning shall contain the following information:

(1)

Legal description of the property and description of he site to be affected by the excavation operation;

(2)

Status of title of land;

(3)

Description of the scope of activities to be undertaken on the site: i.e., area, depth of proposed excavation, etc.;

(4)

Narrative description addressing the items required under section 60-698(a);

(5)

Narrative description addressing any items listed under section 60-698(b) that the applicant feels are applicable to his proposed operation; and

(6)

Proof of bonding capacity or security adequate to ensure compliance with an approved reclamation plan.

(b)

At the time of submission of the written application, the applicant shall submit an inked original and 15 copies of a site plan map drawn to the following specifications:

(1)

Sheet size not to exceed 24 inches by 30 inches;

(2)

A plan prepared to a scale of one inch equals 40 feet is preferred but where appropriate, a scale up to one inch equals 100 feet is acceptable;

(3)

Name and address of owner and developer, and interest of the applicant if other than the owner or developer;

(4)

Name of development and north point;

(5)

Names and addresses of all owners of record of all adjacent property as appear on assessor's records;

(6)

Current zoning classification and district boundaries;

(7)

Easements, rights-of-way, or other reservations adjacent to or intersecting the property;

(8)

Existing and proposed topography, at contour intervals of not more than five feet;

(9)

Location of watercourses, marshes and wooded areas within 150 feet of property lines;

(10)

Location of buildings existing on the site to be developed and on adjacent land;

(11)

Existing public street rights-of-way and proposed ingress and egress facilities; and

(12)

Proposed temporary and permanent drainage methods to be approved by the city engineer.

(c)

At the time of submission of the written application and site plan, the applicant shall submit a reclamation plan which shall include such items as slope of finished banks, vegetation to be introduced, etc.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4D)

Upon approval of an application for an resource extraction permit and prior to the excavation of any earth or organic materials, the applicant shall tender a certified check payable to the city a performance bond running to the city and issued by a surety company or secured by deposits issued by institutions authorized to issue the same by the laws of the state or the United States or irrevocable letters of credit issued by said banking institutions, in a dollar amount to be determined by the planning board and/or the department of community development and planning in an amount adequate to guarantee fulfillment of conditions imposed.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4E)

(a)

The planning staff shall conduct at least an annual review of the excavation operation and forward its findings to the planning board at the next regular scheduled meeting. The review process shall take into consideration the conditions of compliance, adjustment of the performance bond, if warranted, and any other applicable concerns.

(b)

If after the review of the planning staff findings the planning board determines that the conditions of the permit have substantially changed, the owner of an resource extraction permit may be required to submit a new application in the same manner as prescribed in sections 60-699 and 60-700.

(c)

If after the review of the planning staff findings the planning board determines that the owner of an resource extraction permit has violated the conditions of the permit, the planning board may revoke such permit provided the owner of such permit is given a reasonable time to abate the violations as prescribed in section 60-1403.

(d)

Any person being the owner or tenant of, or having the control or use of land or part thereof in the city, who excavates, grades, transfers or removes any earth or organic materials prior to receiving an resource extraction permit and who intends to initiate an excavating operation shall be guilty of a civil infraction and penalized as provided for by section 1-15. This section is not intended to prohibit exploratory excavation for earth material deposits.

(e)

Complaints against an excavation operation permitted under this article shall be received and reviewed in the manner provided by section 60-1403.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4F)

(a)

This article shall be deemed not to prohibit the excavation of earth or organic materials as may be incidental to any lawfully permitted use of land or of a building or incidental to any necessitated by any building construction for which a building permit has lawfully been issued under the city zoning chapter prior to such materials excavation.

(b)

This article shall also be deemed not to prohibit the excavation from any lot or way of materials so far as may be necessitated by the construction or installation of utilities, public ways or other engineering works for public service on such lot or in such way.

(c)

This article shall also be deemed not to prohibit the excavation, grading, or transferring of any earth materials noted under section 60-697(a) from one part of a lot, tract, or parcel of land to another part of the same lot, tract or parcel of land in the same ownership, or excavation for sale at a rate not exceeding ten cubic yards per acre per year.

(d)

This article shall not apply to excavation activities in existence on the date of adoption of the ordinance from which this chapter is derived, provisioned and registered with the department of community development and planning within six months of the date of adoption of the ordinance from which this chapter is derived provision as long as the total land area affected by the excavation activity is not expanded by more than one acre. Excavation activities which expand in depth must file a reclamation plan to be approved by the department of community development and planning. The applicant shall post a bond of security in a dollar amount to be determined by the department of community development and planning in an amount adequate to guarantee completion of reclamation activities. Any excavation activity which is discontinued for 12 consecutive months shall require a permit to reopen.

(e)

In order for an excavation to be considered grandfathered, in addition to the registration requirements outlined in this article, the owner/operator must file a reclamation plan for the entire area proposed to be excavated. In addition, the owner/operator shall tender a certified check payable to the city, a performance bond running to city, or other surety acceptable to the city, in a dollar amount to be determined by the department of planning and permitting services to guarantee completion of pit reclamation. To be considered grandfathered, any excavation that is located wholly or partly in the Lake Auburn Watershed Overlay Zone or which proposes to extend excavation into an area affecting that zone shall, within six months of registering, also be required to comply with the following:

(1)

The excavation area must be registered under the provisions of 38 M.S.R.A. § 490 and 38 M.S.R.A. §§ 490-A to 490-M or be fully licensed under state site development law as provided in 38 M.S.R.A. 484-A.

(2)

The owner/operator must provide a basic site plan of the entire property proposed to be excavated based upon the most current versions of the City of Auburn GIS Mapping Systems.

(3)

The owner/operator must provide a written or plan view excavation plan that illustrates how the excavation will be maintained as an internally drained pit.

(4)

The owner/operator must agree to operate any new excavation areas in compliance with existing state permits. For excavations registered under the provisions of 38 M.R.S.A. § 490 and 38 M.R.S.A. §§ 490-A to 490-M, any new excavation area shall occur without variance to the rules, unless the variance request is approved by the state department of environmental protection, the department of planning and permitting services and the Lake Auburn Watershed Protection Commission.

(f)

The Lake Auburn Watershed Protection Commission and gravel pits grandfathered in this article are exempt from strict adherence to the requirements of this article when the Lake Auburn Watershed Protection Commission makes a determination that the proposed activity will result in significant improvement in water quality with Lake Auburn and the Lake Auburn Watershed.

(Ord. of 9-21-2009, § 4.4G; Ord. No. 11-03012021, § 74, 3-15-2021)