(A) Permit required. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no person shall commence or perform any clearing, grading, stripping, excavating or filling of land which meets the following provisions without having first obtained an erosion control permit from the village.
(1) Any land disturbing activity (i.e., clearing, grading, stripping, excavation, fill or any combination thereof) that will affect an area in excess of 5,000 square feet;
(2) Any land disturbing activity that will affect an area in excess of 500 square feet if the activity is within 25 feet of a lake, pond, stream or wetland; or
(3) Excavation, fill or any combination thereof that will exceed 100 cubic yards.
(B) Exceptions.
(1) A permit shall not be required for any of the following provided that the person responsible for any such development shall implement necessary soil erosion and sediment control measure(s) to satisfy the principles set forth in § 157.03 above:
(a) Excavation below final grade for the basement and footings of a single-family residence and appurtenant structures on a site in excess of two acres for which a building permit has been issued by the village;
(b) Agricultural use of land, including the implementation of conservation measures included in a farm conservation plan approved by the Will - South Cook Soil and Water Conservation District, and including the construction of agricultural structures; and
(c) Installation, renovation or replacement of a septic system to serve an existing dwelling or structure.
(2) The village may waive the permit application process and fee for subdivision development projects upon finding the subdivision development plans and specifications are sufficient to conform to the objectives and principles of this chapter.
(C) Application for permit. Application for an erosion control permit shall be made by the owner of the property or his or her authorized agent to the village. Each application shall bear the name(s) and address(es) of the owner or developer of the site and of any consulting firm retained by the applicant together with the name of each applicant’s principal contact at the firm, and shall be accompanied by a filing fee of $100. Each application shall include certification that any land clearing, construction or development involving the movement of earth shall be in accordance with the plans approved upon issuance of the permit.
(D) Submissions. Each application for an erosion permit shall be accompanied by the following information:
(1) A vicinity map in sufficient detail to enable easy location in the field of the site for which the permit is sought, and which shall include the boundary line, approximate acreage of the site, existing zoning, a legend and scale;
(2) A development plan of the site showing:
(a) Existing topography of the site and adjacent land within approximately 100 feet of the boundaries, drawn at no greater than two-foot contour intervals and clearly portraying the conformation and drainage pattern of the area;
(b) The location of existing buildings, structures, utilities, streams, lakes, floodplains, wetland and depressions, drainage facilities, vegetative cover, paved areas and other significant natural or human-made features on the site and adjacent land within 100 feet of the boundary;
(c) A general description of the predominant soil types on the site, their location, and their limitations for the proposed use; and
(d) Proposed use of the site, including present development and planned utilization; areas of clearing, stripping, grading, excavation and filling; proposed contours, finished grades and street profiles; provisions for storm drainage, including storm sewers, swales, detention basins and any other measures to control the rate of runoff, with a drainage area map, indications of flow directions, and computations; kinds and locations of utilities; and areas and acreage proposed to be paved, covered, sodded or seeded, vegetatively stabilized, or left undisturbed.
(3) An erosion and sediment control plan showing all measures necessary to meet the objectives of this chapter throughout all phases of construction and permanently after completion of development of the site, including:
(a) Location and description, showing standard details of all sediment control measures and design specifics of sediment basins and traps, including outlet details;
(b) Location and description of all soil stabilization and erosion control measures, including seeding mixtures and rates, types of sod, method of seedbed preparation, expected seeding dates, type and rate of lime and fertilizer application, kind and quantity of mulching for both temporary and permanent vegetative control measures, and types of non-vegetative stabilization measures;
(c) Location and description of all runoff control measures, including diversions, waterways and outlets;
(d) Location and description of methods to prevent tracking of sediment offsite, including construction entrance details, as appropriate;
(e) Description of dust and traffic control measures;
(f) Locations of stockpiles and description of stabilization methods;
(g) Description of offsite fill or borrow volumes, locations and methods of stabilization;
(h) Provisions for maintenance of control measures, including type and frequency of maintenance easements, and estimates of the cost of maintenance; and
(i) Identification (name, address and telephone) of the person(s) or entity which will have legal responsibility for maintenance of erosion control structures and measures during development and after development is completed.
(4) The proposed phasing of development of the site, including stripping and clearing, rough grading and construction, and final grading and landscaping. Phasing should identify the expected date on which clearing will begin, the estimated duration of exposure of cleared areas, and the sequence of installations of temporary sediment control measures (including perimeter controls), clearing and grading, installation of temporary soil stabilization measures, installation of storm drainage, paving streets and parking areas, final grading and the establishment of permanent vegetative cover, and the removal of temporary measures. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to notify the village of any significant changes which occur in the site development schedule after the initial erosion and sediment control plan has been approved;
(5) These submissions shall be prepared in accordance with the requirements of this chapter and the standards and requirements contained in “Standards and Specifications for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control” (the Yellow Book) published by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the “Illinois Procedures and Standards for Urban Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control” (the “Green Book”) prepared by the Northeastern Illinois Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Steering Committee and adopted by the Will-South Cook Soil and Water Conservation District, which standards and requirements are hereby incorporated into this chapter by reference; and
(6) The village may waive specific requirements for the content of submissions upon finding that the information submitted is sufficient to show that the work will comply with the objectives and principles of this chapter.
(E) Bonds. The applicant is required to file with the village a faithful performance bond rated “A” or better with investment service bonds, letter of credit or other improvement security satisfactory to the municipality in an amount deemed sufficient by the village to cover all costs of improvements, landscaping, maintenance of improvements and landscaping, and soil erosion and sediment control measures for a period as specified by the village, and engineering and inspection costs to cover the cost of failure or repair of improvements installed on the site.
(F) Review and approval. Each application for an erosion control permit shall be reviewed and acted upon according to the following procedures:
(1) The village will review each application for an erosion control permit to determine its conformance with the provisions of this chapter. The village may also refer any application to the Will-South Cook Soil and Water Conservation District and/or any other local government or public agency within whose jurisdiction the site is located for review and comment. Within 30 days after receiving an application, the village shall in writing:
(a) Approve the permit application if it is found to be in conformance with the provisions of this chapter, and issue the permit;
(b) Approve the permit application subject to such reasonable conditions as may be necessary to secure substantially the objectives of this chapter, and issue the permit subject to these conditions; or
(c) Disapprove the permit application, indicating the deficiencies and the procedure for submitting a revised application and/or submission.
(2) No site development permit shall be issued for an intended development site unless:
(a) The development, including but not limited to subdivisions and planned unit developments, has been approved by the village where applicable;
(b) The permit is accompanied by or combined with a valid building permit issued by the village;
(c) The proposed earth moving is coordinated with any overall development program previously approved by the village for the area in which the site is situated; and
(d) All relevant federal and state permits (i.e., for floodplains and wetlands) have been received for the portion of the site subject to soil disturbance.
(3) Failure of the village to act on a complete original or revised application within 30 days of receipt shall authorize the applicant to proceed in accordance with the plans as filed unless the time is extended by agreement between the village and the applicant. Pending preparation and approval of a revised plan, development activities shall be allowed to proceed in accordance with conditions established by the village.
(G) Expiration or permit. Every erosion control permit shall expire and become null and void if the work authorized by the permit has not been commenced within 180 days, or is not completed by a date which shall be specified in the permit; except that the village may, if the permittee presents satisfactory evidence that unusual difficulties have prevented the work being commenced or completed within the specified time limits, grant a reasonable extension of time if written application is made before the expiration date of the permit. The village may require modification of the erosion control plan to prevent any increase in erosion or off site sediment runoff resulting from any time extension.
(H) Appeals. The applicant, or any person or agency which received notice of the filing of the application, may appeal the decision of the village as provided in division (F) above, to the Board of Appeals. Upon receipt of an appeal, the Board of Appeals shall schedule and hold a public hearing, after giving 15 days notice thereof. The Board of Appeals shall render a decision within 30 days after the hearing. The factors to be considered on review shall include, but need not be limited to the effects of the proposed development activities on the surface water flow to tributary and downstream lands, any comprehensive watershed management plans, or the use of any retention facilities; possible saturation of fill and unsupported cuts by water, both natural and domestic; runoff surface waters that produce erosion and silting of drainage ways; nature and type of soil or rock which when disturbed by the proposed development activities may create earth movement and produce slopes that cannot be landscaped; and excessive and unnecessary scarring of the natural landscape through grading or removal of vegetation.
(Ord. 766, passed 10-20-2004)