Lake Como City Zoning Code
§ 17-15.2
Guaranties and Inspections.
[Ord. No. 90-535]
a.
Approval Requirements.
1.
No final plat shall be approved until all items required to be bonded (on-site, on-tract and off-tract) have been installed and approved by the Municipal Engineer and accepted by the Governing Body and a maintenance guaranty has been filed and accepted by the Governing Body or their installation shall have been provided for by a performance guaranty accepted for any item which has further stages of work or which will need to be altered or reworked due to the installation of any other facility. Any improvements installed prior to the final plat application that do not meet required standards shall be added to the performance guaranty.
2.
As part of its final plat review, the Approving Authority shall determine which of the following improvements shall require a performance guaranty:
(a)
On-site and/or on-tract improvements, including streets, grading, pavement, gutters, curbs, sidewalks, streetlighting, shade trees, surveyor's monuments, as shown on the final map and required by the Map Filing Law, P.L. 1960, C. 141 (N.J.S.A. 46:23-9.9 et seq.), water mains, culverts, storm sewers, sanitary sewers or other means of sewage disposal, drainage structures, erosion control and sedimentation control devices, public improvements of open space and, in the case of site plans only, other on-site improvements and landscaping.
(b)
Off-site and/or off-tract improvements.
3.
Other improvements of a similar nature which can affect the health, safety and welfare of the community and which are included in the final plans shall also be included in the performance guaranty.
b.
A performance guaranty estimate of cost of improvements shall be submitted to the Approving Authority by the Municipal Engineer as part of his report on final plat review. The Approving Authority may request the Municipal Engineer to update this estimate as required.
c.
The applicant shall submit the performance guaranty required for final plat approval to the Municipal Engineer and Attorney for review and then to the Governing Body for approval and acceptance by resolution. Final plat submission shall not be made until the performance guaranty has been accepted and approved by the Governing Body.
1.
The performance guaranty shall consist of the performance guaranty cost estimate and a performance bond in which the developer shall be principal and the surety company licensed to do business in the State of New Jersey, and/or cash or certified check which shall be deposited with the Borough Treasurer. The Treasurer shall issue a receipt of such deposits and shall retain them, to be returned to the developer upon completion of all required work or, in the event of default, to be used by the Borough to complete the requirements. If the improvements have not been completed in accordance with the standards or within the stipulated time but not longer than two years, the obligor and surety for any bond shall be liable thereon for the reasonable cost of completing the improvements. Upon authorization by the Governing Body, the Municipal Attorney shall take the necessary steps to obtain such costs from the obligor and surety. The Borough may, either prior to or after receipt of the proceeds thereof, complete such improvements.
2.
The total performance guaranty shall equal 120% of the performance guaranty cost estimate plus an amount equal to 15% of the cost of any facilities installed prior to final plat submission as a maintenance guaranty. Ninety percent of this total shall be either certified check, bank money order or surety bond of a bonding company approved by and at the option of the Governing Body. The remaining 10% shall be in cash and shall be paid in a like manner and under the same conditions as the security aforesaid. In the event of default, the 10% cash fund shall be first applied to complete the requirements, and the cash, certified check or surety bond shall thereafter be resorted to, if necessary. The cash or surety bond may recite the foregoing provision. The Municipal Engineer's certification that the principal has satisfactorily installed or has defaulted in meeting the required standards of construction shall be the basis for Governing Body action which accepts or rejects the improvements, withholds the improvements.
d.
The Borough Clerk shall immediately notify the Approving Authority and the Municipal Engineer when the performance guaranty has been approved and accepted by the Governing Body.
e.
Prior to beginning construction, the developer shall arrange for a preconstruction conference between the developer, contractor and Municipal Engineer. The Municipal Engineer shall be notified by the developer at least five days in advance of the start of construction. The cost of inspection shall be the responsibility of the developer, who shall reimburse the Borough for all reasonable inspection fees by submitting a certified check or bank money order to the Borough Clerk. This fee shall be in addition to the amount of the performance guaranty and all application fees as outlined above and shall be deposited initially in accordance with the following schedule. Upon completion of the development and all inspections, the developer shall receive an accounting of the expended funds. Any unexpended funds shall be returned to the developer. Should the initial deposit be insufficient to cover inspections and costs, the developer shall deposit additional sums upon notice of the Borough Clerk, each additional deposit being in an amount not to exceed 50% of the initial deposit.
Estimated Construction Cost | Inspection Fee |
|---|---|
Under $5,000 | $350 |
$5,000-$10,000 | $350 + 5% of excess over $5,000 |
$10,000-$50,000 | $600 + 4.5% of excess over $10,000 |
$50,000-$75,000 | $2,400 + 4% of excess over $50,000 |
$75,000-$100,000 | $3,400 + 3.5% of excess over $75,000 |
Over $100,000 | $4,275 + 3% of excess over $100,000 |
f.
No work shall be done without permission from and inspection by the Municipal Engineer. No underground installation shall be covered until inspected and approved. The Municipal Engineer's office shall be notified after each of the following phases of the work has been completed so that he may inspect the work: road subgrade; curb and gutter forms; curbs and gutters; road paving (after each coat in the case of priming and sealing); drainage pipes and other drainage structures before backfilling; shade trees and planting strips; street name signs; and monuments.
g.
No utility installations installed by utility companies shall be subject to the inspection requirements.
h.
Occupancy permits will be issued only when curbs, utilities, functioning water supply and sewage treatment facilities, necessary storm drainage to ensure proper drainage of the lot and surrounding land, rough grading of lots, soil stabilization, base course for the street and driveway, and sidewalks are installed to serve the lot and structure for which the permit is requested. Streets shall not receive surface course paving until all heavy construction is completed. Shade trees shall not be planted until all grading and earthmoving is completed. Seeding of grass areas shall be the final operation.
i.
Inspections by the Municipal Engineer shall not subject the Borough to claims, suits or liability of any kind that may arise because of defects or negligence, it being recognized that the responsibility to provide proper utilities and improvements and to maintain safe conditions at all times on all parts of the tract is upon the developer and his contractors or subcontractors, if any.
j.
After completing the improvements, the developer shall prepare two sets of the plans and the profiles amended to read "as constructed" and to apply to the Governing Body for final inspection of the work. The Municipal Engineer shall, within 30 days of completing the inspection, report in writing to the Governing Body, indicating either approval, partial approval or rejection with a statement of reasons for any rejection. If partial approval is indicated, the cost of the improvements rejected shall be set forth.
k.
The Governing Body shall either approve, partially approve or reject the improvements and shall notify the obligor by certified mail of the contents of the Municipal Engineer's report and the action of the approving authority with relation thereto not later than 65 days after receipt of the notice from the obligor of the completion of the improvements, except that no approval or partial approval shall be granted until an acceptable maintenance guaranty has been submitted and approved by the Governing Body to cover the improvements. Where partial approval is granted, the obligor shall be released from liability pursuant to its performance guaranty, except for a portion sufficient to secure completion of the improvements not yet approved; provided that 30% of the amount of the performance guaranty posted may be retained to ensure completion of all improvements. Failure of the Governing Body to send or provide such notification to the obligor within 65 days shall be deemed to constitute approval of the improvements, and the obligor and surety, if any, shall be released from liability pursuant to such performance guaranty for such improvements. The time allowed for installation of the improvements for which the performance guaranty has been provided may be extended by resolution of the Governing Body. As a condition or as part of any such extension, the amount of any performance guaranty shall be increased or reduced, as the case may be, to an amount not to exceed 120% of the cost of the installation as determined as of the date of the passage of the resolution.
l.
If any portion of the required improvements are rejected, the approving authority may require the obligor to complete such improvements, and upon completion the same procedure of notification as set forth above shall be followed.
m.
Upon request of the developer in writing, by certified mail, with copies to the Planning Board and Municipal Engineer, the Governing Body may reduce the amount of the performance guaranty after considering the report of the Planning Board and the Municipal Engineer. The performance guaranty retained shall be sufficient to cover the cost of uninstalled, uncompleted and defective improvements, engineering costs and an amount equal to 15% of the cost of completed facilities to assure upkeep of these facilities until accepted by the Governing Body and until covered by a maintenance guaranty. Agreement to reduce the performance guaranty in accordance with this provisions shall not constitute approval or acceptance of any of the improvements by the Governing Body. The reduction shall first be in the surety portion of the performance bond, and only in the cash portion after all the surety portion has been released.
n.
The approval of any plat under this chapter by the approving authority shall in no way be construed as acceptance of any street, drainage system or other improvement required by this chapter, nor shall such plat approval obligate the Borough in any way to maintain or exercise jurisdiction over such street, drainage system or other improvements. Acceptance of any street, drainage system or other improvement shall be implemented only by favorable action by the Governing Body.
o.
Maintenance Guaranty. No improvement shall be accepted by the Governing Body unless and until all of the following conditions have been met:
1.
The Municipal Engineer shall have certified in writing that all the improvements are complete and that they comply fully with the requirements of this chapter and of other applicable local ordinances.
2.
The developer has provided a maintenance guaranty to the Governing Body in an amount equal to 15% of the cost of improvements and running for two years. Ninety percent of this total shall be in either certified check, bank money order or surety bond of a bonding company approved by and at the option of the Governing Body. The remaining 10% shall be in a certified check. The maintenance guaranties shall be in a form acceptable to the Governing Body and approved as to form and content by the Municipal Engineer and Attorney. In the event that other governmental agencies or public utilities automatically will own the utilities to be installed or the improvements are covered by a performance or maintenance guaranty to another governmental agency, no performance or maintenance guaranty, as the case may be, shall be required by the Borough for such utilities or improvements.
3.
To obtain release of the maintenance bond, the developer shall, after all required maintenance has been completed, apply to the Governing Body in writing, by certified mail, with copies to the Planning Board and Municipal Engineer, for final inspection of the work. The Municipal Engineer shall, within 30 days of receipt of request for inspection, report in writing to the Governing Body, with a copy to the Planning Board, indicating either approval, partial approval or rejection of the improvements from a maintenance viewpoint with a statement of reasons for any rejection.
4.
The Governing Body shall either approve or reject the improvements and release of maintenance bond or reduce the amount of the maintenance bond, following the same procedures as for performance bonds.
p.
All money deposited by an applicant pursuant to approvals granted under the Municipal Land Use Act (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.) shall comply with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.1. Deposits with municipality; escrow; interest, provided that the municipality may, by resolution, retain an amount not in excess of the amount permitted by statute for administrative and custodial expenses so permitted.