(A) Within this chapter, LAND RECLAMATION AND LAND GRADING is the depositing, removing and/or moving of material so as to alter the topography of a lot.
(1) Land reclamation and land grading shall be permitted only by a conditional use permit in all zoning districts.
(2) The depositing, moving and/or removing of more than 50 cubic yards and/or the disturbance of land area of 1,000 square feet or more of material per lot, either by hauling in and/or out or regrading of an area shall constitute land reclamation and land grading.
(3) Land reclamation and land grading in floodplains shall be in accordance with Ch. 159 of this code.
(4) The permit shall include as a condition thereof a finished grading plan that will not adversely affect the adjacent land and as conditions thereof shall regulate the type of material permitted, program for rodent control, plan for fire control and general maintenance of the site, controls of vehicular ingress and egress, drainage and control of material disbursed from wind or hauling of material to or from the site, and erosion control and stabilization plans for the deposited material or excavated area.
(5) In addition to a finished grading plan, a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) and an Erosion and Sediment Control Plan (ESCP) may be required, if in the judgment of the Zoning Administrator, significant soil erosion, vegetation destruction, drainage damage or pollution from stormwater may occur during, or after the land alteration process. These plans shall achieve at least the minimum standards described in Ch. 158 of this code.
(6) The finished grading plan and stormwater pollution prevention and erosion control plan shall be reviewed by the City Engineer and may be reviewed, as deemed necessary by the Zoning Administrator or the City Council, by the state’s Department of Natural Resources, the county’s Soil and Water Conservation District and the appropriate Watershed Management Organization and/or District.
(7) The Zoning Administrator may require the applicant to post a bond or other financial guarantee to ensure compliance with the permit.
(B) No person, county, municipality or other political subdivision shall appropriate or use any public water, surface or underground, without first obtaining a use of public waters permit and written permission of the Commissioner of the Division of Waters, Soils and Minerals of the state’s Department of Natural Resources. For purposes of these regulations, public waters shall be defined in M.S. Ch. 103G, as it may be amended from time to time, and as follows:
(1) Public waters shall include all lakes, ponds, swamps, streams, drainageways, floodplains, floodways, natural watercourses, underground water resources and similar features involving directly or indirectly the use of water within the city.
(2) No public water area shall be filled, partially filled, dredged, altered by grading, mining or otherwise utilized or disturbed in any manner without first securing a public waters use permit from the state’s Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and a grading permit from the city. Grading permits shall be reviewed and approved by the Department of Natural Resources, the City Engineer, the Watershed District, the Planning Commission and the City Council.
(C) A land reclamation and land grading permit is not required for the following activities:
(1) Grading activities associated with a construction project provided a building permit is used and there is a minimal amount of land disturbance;
(2) Subdivisions that have received preliminary plat approval;
(3) Driveways permitted in conjunction with a driveway permit;
(4) Cemetery graves;
(5) Refuse disposal sites controlled by other regulations;
(6) Excavations for wells or tunnels for utilities;
(7) Mining, quarrying, excavating, processing or stockpiling of sand, gravel, rock, aggregate or clay where regulated by Ch. 162 of this code; and
(8) Exploratory excavations under the direction of soil engineers or engineering geologists.
(D) Guidelines for grading of slopes are as follows.
(1) No slopes of 18% or greater shall be disturbed, with the exception of driveways crossing human-made slopes that were created by the construction of roads or related ditches, and that extend only perpendicular to the road for a horizontal distance of 30 feet or less, and, where no other option is available to the landowner.
(2) Within the Lower St. Croix River Bluffland and Shoreland Management District, no slopes of 12% or greater shall be disturbed. See § 157.41 of this code.
(3) Additional grading and filling requirements are applicable if in Shoreland Management District. See § 156.056 of this code.
(E) The work for which a land reclamation and land grading permit is used shall commence within 180 days after the date of permit issuance unless an application for an extension of 90 days has been submitted to and approved by the Zoning Administrator.
(F) Permits issued by the Zoning Administrator under the provisions of this section shall expire and be null and void if the work authorized by a permit is abandoned or suspended for a period of 180 days or if work in not commenced or completed within the time limitations of division (E) above.
(Prior Code, § 12-215) (Ord. 8-2005, passed 5-17-2005; Ord. 02-2009, passed 4-21-2009; Ord. 11-2016, passed 10-18-2016; Ord. 03-2017, passed 3-21-2017)