925.05 CONNECTION TO PUBLIC SEWERS.
(a) Procedure to Connect. No house sewer shall be constructed to connect with a public sewer nor shall any connection be made to a public sewer within the City, except in accordance with the following procedure. The owner, agent or lessee of the property for which the connection is desired shall make written application for the connection to the Public Utilities Director, which application shall state the location and nature of the property, the number of the lot, the length of the house sewer desired from the building foundation to the property or curb line and the fixtures to be connected thereto. After the application is made and a permit fee paid, a permit will be issued. The owner, agent or lessee shall have the house sewer installed and the connection to the public sewer established in the manner hereinafter provided. Connections are unlawful until the permit has been issued. In order to permit ventilation of the public sewer and sewer service, no trap shall be placed in the sewer service. After the sewer is laid and before it is covered or used, it shall be inspected by the Public Works Director and approved by the Public Utilities Director.
(b) Authorization to Install House Sewers: Connections and Toilet Facilities. The Public Utilities Director is authorized to install or have installed sewers, laterals and connections where satisfactory installation has not been made by the owner or agent. For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this subsection, the Public Utilities Director is authorized and directed to secure the necessary equipment and hire the necessary labor. He shall maintain a record of the cost of the equipment and labor and shall ascertain as accurately as possible the actual cost of the installation of the house sewer and connection which cost, the addition to the cost of inspection and recording, shall be the cost charged to the owner, agent or lessee of the property for which the construction is done.
(Ord. 25-14. Passed 4-14-14.)
(c) License Required for Construction.
(1) Sewer service license. A sewer service lateral and/or connection may only be made, built or repaired by a person, firm or corporation having a sewer service license issued by the Public Utilities Director. Application for such licenses must be made to the Public Utilities Director and a license fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) shall accompany the application. The license shall be valid within the calendar year that it was issued, and must be renewed cyclical on January 1st with an additional fee paid each year. The license applicant shall be required to prove to the satisfaction of the Public Utilities Director that he/she possesses the qualifications necessary for a competent sewer builder. The applicant may be required to pass a test as to competency under the bylaws and regulations adopted by the Public Utilities Director. A license may be revoked by the City Manager or Public Utilities Director if the licensee violates any of the laws, ordinances, bylaws and regulations governing connection to City sewers.
(2) Bond. Before being granted a license to make sewer service repairs or connections, the applicant shall file with the City a bond in the amount of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) which shall be a blanket bond covering work performed by the sewer servicer for one year after the actual installation. The bond shall be conditioned so as to insure proper workmanship and materials in the installation or repair of any sewer for any proper owner and to save the City harmless from claims arising as a result of damage to any person or property by reason of such sewer installations or repairs. The bond shall be approved by the Law Director as to form and surety. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to authorize any person, firm or corporation to whom a sewer service license is issued under this section to perform any other plumbing work in the City.
(Ord. 107-21. Passed 9-27-21.)
(d) Permit Fees; Inspection Fees. Before commencement of construction of any building sewer whether it is located on private or public property, the owners, agent or lessee shall obtain a written permit signed by the Public Utilities Director. There shall be three classes of sewer permits to establishments producing industrial wastes: residential, commercial service and multiple-family residences and service. In any case, the owner, agent or lessee shall make application on a special form furnished by the City. The permit application shall be accompanied and supplemented by any plans, specifications or other information considered necessary and pertinent in the judgment of the Public Utilities Director. A sewer permit fee of two hundred dollars ($200.00) per tap shall be paid to the Utility Collection Office at the time the application is filed. The Public Utilities Director shall have the authority to require increased permit and inspection fees in unusual cases, or in cases where repeated inspections are required. (Ord. 25-14. Passed 4-14-14.)
(e) Building Permit Required and Sewer Expansion Fee.
(1) No sewer service shall be constructed to connect with a public sewer nor shall any connection be made to a public sewer within the City until the building permit from the Building Inspection Division has been obtained by the person, firm or corporation employed to perform the work. An application for a permit shall be signed by the owner, agent or lessee of the property for which the connection is to be made and by the person, firm or corporation employed to perform the work, and shall describe the property and state the number of fixtures to be connected.
(2) No building permit shall be issued until a sewer expansion fee is paid. The sewer expansion fee is to be charged according to the following schedule:
Water Meter Size | Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU) | Treatment Plant | Collection System | Total Sewer Expansion Fee |
5/8" and 3/4" | 1.0 | $1,500 | $700 | $2,200 |
1" | 1.4 | $2,100 | $980 | $3,080 |
1.5" | 1.8 | $2,700 | $1,260 | $3,960 |
2" | 2.9 | $4,350 | $2,030 | $6,380 |
3" | 11.0 | $16,500 | $7,700 | $24,200 |
4" | 14.0 | $21,000 | $9,800 | $30,800 |
5" | 21.0 | $31,500 | $14,700 | $46,200 |
6" | 29.0 | $43,500 | $20,300 | $63,800 |
(Ord. 87-20. Passed 10-26-20.)
(f) Responsibilities to be Borne by Property Owner.
(1) All costs and expenses incident to the installation and connection of the sewer service shall be borne by the owner. The property owner shall indemnify the City from any claims arising as a result of any loss or damage that may directly or indirectly be occasioned by installation of the sewer service.
(2) The owner is responsible for the cleaning of the sewer service from his house or building to the public sewer main. The owner is responsible for the maintenance of the sewer service from his house or building to the limit of the public right of way.
(g) Responsibilities to be Borne by City.
(1) The Public Utilities Director has the option of installing the sewer service from the sewer main connection to the limit of the public right of way and billing the property owner for such installation or requiring the owner to install the sewer service from the sewer main connection to the limit of the public right of way, at the owner's expense.
(2) The City is responsible for maintenance on the sewer service from the limit of the public right of way to the sewer main.
(h) Separate Sewers Required; Exception. A separate and independent sewer service shall be provided for every building, except where one building stands on the opposite side of the sewer service from another building on an interior lot and no private sewer is available or can be built to the far building through an adjoining alley, court, yard or driveway. In such case, the sewer service from the structure nearest to the sewer main may be extended to accommodate the far building and the whole considered as one sewer service except for billing purposes.
(i) Approval of Existing Sewer Services. As public sewers become available and connections are made to them, existing sewer services shall generally not be approved for future use. The Public Utilities Director shall, however, have the authority to approve the use of an existing sewer service for new sewer service if, in his opinion, the existing sewer service is of acceptable construction quality and good condition. An additional permit and inspection fee shall be charged for persons seeking approval of the use of all or part of an existing sewer service, regardless of the subsequent approval or rejection of them. The fee schedule shall be the same as for a new sewer service. The property owner shall, in addition, pay for or perform any testing or exposure of the existing line for inspection deemed necessary by the Public Utilities Director.
(j) Minimum Specifications for Sewer Service Connection.
(1) Sewer service connection shall be made by a material approved by the Director. Joints shall be tight and waterproof to the satisfaction of the Public Utilities Director.
(2) The size and slope of the sewer service shall be subject to the approval of the Public Utilities Director, but in no event shall the diameter be less than eight inches for a public sewer main, and not less than six inches for private lateral for a gravity sewer system. Low pressure force main systems shall be sized according to hydraulic design criteria. The uniform slope of a gravity wastewater pipe shall be not less than one- quarter inch per linear foot.
(3) No sewer service shall be laid parallel to or within five feet of any bearing wall which might thereby be weakened. The depth shall be sufficient to afford protection from frost. The sewer service shall be laid at uniform grade and in straight alignment insofar as possible. Changes in direction shall be made only with properly curved pipe and fittings. Cleanouts shall be built at all changes of direction of forty-five degrees or more and at every seventy-five feet or fraction thereof along all straight lines.
(4) In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit gravity flow to the sewer main, sanitary sewage carried by such drain shall be lifted by artificial means as approved by the Public Utilities Director and discharged to the sewer service.
(5) Connection of cellar floor drains to the sewer service shall be permitted only when they connect to a trap with a permanent waterseal between them and the sewer service connection. All vents shall be constructed so as to prevent foreign objects from being introduced into the sanitary sewers. Tees shall not be permitted in any part of the sewer service connection.
(6) The connection of the sewer lateral into the sewer main shall be made at the Y branch provided for the lot on which the building is located. The greatest of care shall be exercised to produce a water-tight job and to assure that alignment of the sewer main is not disturbed. This work may be done only by a properly licensed contractor or by the City at the Public Utility Director's option, and the cost of it shall be borne by the property owner.
(k) Notification Required. The applicant for the building sewer permit shall notify the Public Works Director at least twenty-four hours prior to when the sewer lateral is ready for inspection and connection to the sewer main. The connection shall be made under the supervision of the Public Works Director or his designated representative.
(l) Hazard Protection. All excavations for sewer service installations shall be adequately guarded with barricades and lights so as to protect the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, parkways and other public property disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in a manner satisfactory to the Public Works Director.
(Ord. 25-14. Passed 4-14-14.)