(a) Permits Required. No person, being the owner of any property or in possession or control of any property, shall allow any grading or filling of land for the purpose of permanently changing the elevation or contour of the property without first filing an application and obtaining a proper permit from the Director of Building and Housing.
(b) A permit shall be required for an excavation or fill comprising the movement of less than five hundred (500) cubic yards of material if the work area borders one or more work areas under separate excavation and fill permit and the total amount of material being moved in all contiguous areas is more than five hundred (500) cubic yards and the areas have some common ownership or the work in all areas is under common control.
(c) Exceptions. A permit for excavation or filling of land shall not be required for:
(1) Normal cemetery operations of opening or closing graves.
(2) Public work performed by or under regulations of the Director of Public Works relative to the right of way other than elevated pedestrian walkways, buildings and structures regulated under OBC and Cleveland Ordinance.
(3) Exploratory excavations under the direction of a registered professional engineer, geotechnical engineer, engineering geologist, soil scientist, or architect where incident to the practice of architecture, and exploratory excavations by a contractor or builder provided they are not made in a slope steeper than five (5) horizontal to one (1) vertical. All such excavations shall be promptly and properly filled, and the terrain shall be properly restored to original condition.
(4) Temporary trenches for sewers, water lines, gas lines, electric lines, and other underground utilities.
(5) Any excavation that does not exceed five (5) feet in vertical depth at its deepest point or one hundred (100) cubic yards per each five thousand (5,000) square feet of site area, whichever is the more restrictive, and is made on natural terrain with a slope flatter than five (5) horizontal to one (1) vertical and does not result in a finished slope steeper than three (3) horizontal to one (1) vertical or adverse drainage conditions to the site or neighboring sites. This does not exempt phased installations that fall above the listed thresholds over a period of twelve (12) months.
(6) Any fill that does not exceed three (3) inches in vertical height at its highest point above the natural ground elevation, contain more than one hundred (100) cubic yards per each five thousand (5,000) square feet of site area, and is made on natural terrain with a slope flatter than five (5) horizontal to one (1) vertical and does not result in a finished slope steeper than three (3) horizontal to one (1) vertical. This does not exempt phased installations that fall above the listed thresholds over a period of twelve (12) months.
(7) Excavation or filling of land necessary for the permanent removal of existing underground storage tanks provided excavated soil is not removed from the site and demolition prior to replacement of existing single story, detached garage structures, is less than one thousand (1,000) square feet in area.
(Ord. No. 721-16. Passed 7-13-16, eff. 7-17-16)