The following words and phrases when used in this article shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them:

Applicant shall mean any person, firm or corporation, or their employees, officers or agents.

Fill shall mean topsoil, subsoil, sand, gravel, rock, stone and heavy aggregate, earth or any other material found in its natural state in, on or under the surface of the earth. Broken concrete, garbage, refuse, etc., are not considered fill and are prohibited.

Soil shall mean topsoil, subsoil, sand, gravel, rock, stone and heavy aggregate, earth or any other material found in its natural state in, on or under the surface of the earth.

(Code 1958, §§ 4-801, 4-815; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

All topsoil or earth removal or material placed upon any land which does or will result in the accumulation of standing water from rain or otherwise, or in the creation of objectionable quantities of airborne dust, or in the creation of pits or holes which would be hazardous to any person is hereby declared to be a nuisance and shall be prohibited.

(Code 1958, §§ 4-807, 4-819; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

Cross reference— Public nuisances generally, Ch. 17, Art. II.

Nothing contained in this chapter shall prevent the city from resorting to civil action for the purpose of preventing or abating any nuisance created by the removal of topsoil or earth or placement of material on any land.

(Code 1958, § 4-810; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

Charter reference— Specific authority to abate nuisances, Ch. 2, § 2.2(m).

It shall be unlawful for any person to dump or bury any debris from construction or from any other source upon any land within the city. The surface, when graded, shall be free of any bricks, bottles, cans, boards, concrete or any other matter which the city engineer or the building inspector, in his opinion, shall consider to be classified as debris.

(Code 1958, §§ 4-813, 4-822; Ord. No. 365, § 1, 11-11-68; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

All persons engaged in the construction of new residences within the city shall be required to place clean fill dirt to the established grade level upon any lands or parcels of land upon which such new residences are located. Removal of topsoil from such premises is prohibited without the express permission of the building inspector.

(Code 1958, § 4-811; Ord. No. 314, § 1, 9-18-67; Ord. No. 365, § 1, 11-11-68)

(a)

It shall be the obligation of the builder to obtain a certificate of occupancy for any residence constructed within the city, prior to occupancy or closing. Temporary certificates of occupancy may be issued at the discretion of the building inspector if in the opinion of the building inspector he shall find that grading of the premises, as required in section 11-5, would be impractical prior to occupancy. Final certificates of occupancy may be issued upon the builder posting a cash bond in an amount equal to one and one-half times the building inspector's estimate of grading the premises with clean fill as provided for in section 11-5.

(b)

Failure to obtain a final certificate of occupancy within a period of six months after the issuance of a temporary occupancy permit shall be deemed to be a violation of this article.

(Code 1958, § 4-812; Ord. No. 314, § 1, 9-18-67; Ord. No. 365, § 1, 11-11-68)

It shall be unlawful for any person to remove or strip any soil or other material from its natural location from any land within the city without first obtaining a permit from the city council. The application for such permit shall be filed in triplicate and be signed and acknowledged before a notary public and shall include among other things the following information:

(1)

The name, residence and business address of the applicant;

(2)

A complete legal description of the property upon which the removal is to occur;

(3)

The nature of the excavation, removal, etc., and an estimate of the quantity to be removed, said computation to be made by a registered surveyor or engineer;

(4)

The manner in which the excavation or removal will be done and the equipment to be used;

(5)

The route to be used in transporting the materials removed or excavated, whether over private or public ways;

(6)

The time within which such excavation or material will be removed;

(7)

Such other information as the city manager or the city engineer may deem necessary;

(8)

There shall be attached to said application a topographic map of the property, showing its topography, together with the surrounding area to a distance of 300 feet from the boundary of the property.

(Code 1958, § 4-802; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

This article shall not be construed to require a permit for the moving, grading or leveling of topsoil or other materials when the same is carried on in connection with the erection of a building or a use of land pursuant to a permit duly authorized and issued by the building department, or in connection with the site landscaping around an existing building or existing permitted use.

(Code 1958, § 4-808; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

The application for a permit shall be accompanied by a fee of $100.00 to defray the cost of engineering services, investigation and other administration expenses occasioned by the application. Upon the filing of said application and fee, the city engineer shall make an investigation of the facts set out in the application and shall thereupon make a written report to the city council of his investigation, together with his recommendations concerning the same.

(Code 1958, § 4-803; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

Upon receiving the engineer's recommendations required by section 11-31 concerning the application, the city clerk shall give notice of a public hearing on the application to be held by the city council at a day certain not less than ten days, nor more than 30 days after said notice. Such hearing may be continued by the city council from time to time as the circumstances may require. Notice of said public hearing shall be given by at least five days prior to the date of hearing by regular mail to the applicant, and to all owners of property situated within 500 feet of the boundary of the property covered by the application and by publication of a copy of said notice in a paper of general circulation in the city. Such notice shall contain sufficient information to advise the nature of the work to be done.

(Code 1958, § 4-804; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

Upon the public hearing required by section 11-32, the city council, acting as a special approvals board, may, in its discretion, authorize the granting of a permit required by this article, after consideration of the zoning on the proposed site, the relationship of the project to the public health, safety and general welfare, the preservation of natural resources, and the prevention of nuisances and hazards. The city council may, likewise, require compliance with one or more of the following conditions:

(1)

Adequate fencing of the site to prevent access to the excavation;

(2)

Access roads shall be dust controlled to specifications to be determined by the city engineer;

(3)

No ponding of water shall be permitted and the natural drainage of the land shall not be impeded. The premises shall at all times be graded so that surface water drainage will not be impeded;

(4)

All areas from which soil has been removed shall as soon as possible thereafter and not more than six months after the removal be seeded to a grass satisfactory to prevent erosion either by wind or water;

(5)

A satisfactory engineering grid pattern adequately staked to enable the city engineering department to ascertain the amount of removal from time to time;

(6)

In all cases where a permit is authorized the applicant shall post a cash or surety bond in such amount as determined by the city council guaranteeing the faithful performance of the conditions and requirements of the application and the permit, and a policy of insurance indemnifying and insuring the city and the public from any and all loss or damage to person or property arising out of the operations of the applicant being carried on under the terms of the permit.

(Code 1958, § 4-805; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

Cross reference— Expiration of special approval of city council, § 2-2.

Upon the authorization for the issuance of a permit required by this article and upon filing of the bond and policy of insurance per section 11-33, and upon payment of a permit fee of $5.00 per acre, but in no case less than $25.00, the city clerk shall be authorized to issue a permit containing such conditions and requirements to the applicant.

(Code 1958, § 4-806; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

Nothing contained in this article shall prevent the city council, the city manager or the city engineer from canceling or revoking the permit required by this article for violation of any of the requirements or conditions of the permit.

(Code 1958, § 4-810; Ord. No. 137, § 1, 12-7-59)

It shall be unlawful for any person to carry on or allow dumping or landfilling operations on any land within the city in excess of 15 cubic yards or where said filling will result in raising the grade to a height above the surrounding or adjoining properties without first obtaining a permit from the city. The application for such permit shall be filed in triplicate and be signed and acknowledged before a notary public and shall include among other things the following information:

(1)

The name, residence and business address of the applicant;

(2)

Name and address of the owners of the land for which a permit is applied for and permission in writing thereof;

(3)

A complete legal description of the property upon which the dumping is to occur;

(4)

The nature and extent of the filling and dumping and an estimate of the quantity to be placed, said computation to be made by a registered surveyor or engineer;

(5)

The manner in which the landfilling or dumping will be done and the equipment to be used;

(6)

The route to be used in transporting the materials to be used in filling, whether over private or public ways;

(7)

The time within which such landfilling will be placed;

(8)

The past experience of the applicant in the matter to which the permit appertains and the name, address and past experience in such matter of the person to be in charge of the proposed operations;

(9)

Whether or not any permit of applicant has been revoked and if so, the circumstances of such revocation;

(10)

Such other information as the city manager or the city engineer may deem necessary;

(11)

There shall be attached to said application a topographic map of the property, showing its topography, together with the surrounding area to a distance of 300 feet from the boundary of the property.

(Code 1958, § 4-816; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

This article shall not be construed to require a permit for the moving, grading or leveling of topsoil or other materials when the same is carried on in connection with the erection of a building or a use of land pursuant to a permit duly authorized and issued by the building department. A minimal permit fee shall be required for permits involving less than one acre of land and not less than 100 cubic yards of fill. Such permits may be issued upon approval of the city engineer. Estimates of soil to be filled or deposited need not be made by a registered civil engineer, nor will a topography map be required for such limited operations.

(Code 1958, § 4-820; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

The city council, acting as a special approvals board, may authorize the granting of the permit required by section 11-59 after consideration of the zoning on the proposed site, the relationship of the project to the public health, safety and general welfare, the preservation of natural resources and the prevention of nuisances and hazards. It may, likewise, require compliance with one or more of the following conditions:

(1)

Adequate fencing of the site to prevent access to the fill or dump site;

(2)

Dust control of access roads, restoration and cleanup to specifications to be determined by the city engineer;

(3)

No ponding of water shall be permitted and the natural drainage of the land shall not be impeded. The premises shall at all times be graded so that the surface water drainage will not be impeded;

(4)

All areas in which fill has been placed shall as soon as possible thereafter and not more than six months after the placement to be filled with four inches of topsoil and seeded with grass to prevent erosion either by wind or water;

(5)

A satisfactory engineering grid pattern adequately staked to enable the city engineering department to ascertain the amount of fill from time to time;

(6)

In all cases where a permit is authorized the city council may require the applicant to post a cash or surety bond of up to $1,000.00 per acre, guaranteeing the faithful performance of the conditions and requirements of the application and the permit, and a policy of insurance indemnifying and insuring the city and the public from any and all loss or damage to person or property arising out of the operations of the applicant being carried on under the terms of the permit;

(7)

The permit shall be prominently displayed at all times at the site of the soil removal or dumping operation.

(Code 1958, § 4-817; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

Cross reference— Expiration of special approval of city council, § 2-2.

Upon the authorization for the issuance of the permit required by this article and upon filing of the bond and policy of insurance per section 11-60, and upon payment of a permit fee established by resolution of council, the city engineer shall be authorized to issue a permit containing such conditions and requirements to the applicant.

(Code 1958, § 4-818; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

Upon completion of the removal or dumping operation, request for release of the bond specified in section 11-60 shall be made in writing to the city engineer and said request shall be accompanied by a topographic survey prepared by a registered engineer certifying compliance with the original topographic survey approved by the engineering department.

(Code 1958, § 4-823; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)

(a)

Permits shall be valid for one year from the date of issuance or until the volume of soil for which the permit is granted has been placed upon the premises, whichever occurs first. Filling to elevations above those shown on the approved site plan shall be deemed a violation of this article and in addition thereto constitute immediate revocation of the permit issued under this article.

(b)

Nothing contained in this article shall prevent the city council, the city manager or the city engineer from canceling or revoking the permit for violation of any of the requirements or conditions of the permit.

(Code 1958, § 4-821; Ord. No. 444, § 1, 6-1-71)