(A) Any new connections to the sanitary sewer system shall be prohibited unless sufficient capacity is available in all downstream facilities, including but not limited to capacity for flow, BOD5 and suspended solids as determined by the Superintendent.
(B) No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connections with or opening into, use, alter or disturb any public sewer or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining a written permit from the city. All connections shall be made by a licensed plumber.
(C) Applications for permits shall be made by the owner or authorized agent and the party employed to do the work, and shall state the location, name of owner, street number of the building to be connected, and how occupied. No person shall extend any private building drain beyond the limits of the building or property for which the service connection permit has been given.
(D) There shall be two classes of building sewer permits: for residential and commercial service; and for service to establishments producing industrial wastes. In either case, the application shall be supplemented by any plans, specifications or any other information considered pertinent in the judgment of the city. The industry, as a condition of permit authorization, must provide information describing its wastewater constituents, characteristics and type of activity.
(E) All costs and expenses incidental to the installation and connection of the building sewer shall be borne by the owners. The owners shall defend, indemnify and hold harmless the city from any loss or damage that may be directly or indirectly occasioned by the installation of the building sewer.
(F) A separate and independent building sewer shall be provided for every building, except where one building stands at the rear of another on an interior lot and no private sewer is available or can be constructed to the rear building through an adjoining alley, court, yard or driveway. The building sewer from the front building may be extended to the rear building and the whole considered one building sewer. The city does not and will not assume any obligation or responsibility for damage caused by or resulting from any such connection aforementioned.
(G) Old building sewers may be used in connection with new buildings only when they are found, on examination and test by the Superintendent or his or her representative, to meet all requirements of this subchapter.
(H) The size, slopes, alignment, materials of construction of a building sewer, and the methods to be used in excavating, placing of the pipe, jointing, testing and backfilling of the trench shall all conform to the requirements of the State Building and Plumbing Code or other applicable rules and regulations of the city. In the absence of code provisions or in the amplification thereof, the materials and procedures set forth in appropriate specifications of the ASTM and WPCF Manual of Practice No. 9 shall apply.
(I) Whenever possible, the building sewer shall be brought to the building at an elevation below the basement floor. In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit gravity flow to the public sewer, sanitary sewage carried by such building drain shall be lifted by an approved means and discharged to the building sewer.
(J) No person shall make connection of roof downspouts, foundation drains, areaway drains or other sources of surface runoff or groundwater to a building sewer or indirectly to the wastewater disposal system.
(K) The connection of the building sewer into the public sewer shall conform to the requirements of the State Building Code and Plumbing Code and other applicable rules and regulations the city, or the procedures set forth in appropriate specifications of the ASTM and the WPCF Manual of Practice No. 9. All such connections shall be made gastight and watertight, and verified by proper testing to prevent the inclusion of infiltration/inflow. Any deviation from the prescribed procedures and materials must be approved by the city prior to installation.
(L) The applicant for the building sewer permit shall notify the city when the building sewer is ready for inspection and connection to the public sewer. The connection and inspection shall be made under the supervision of the Superintendent or authorized representative thereof.
(M) All excavations for building sever installation shall be adequately guarded with barricades and lights by the applicant or his or her agent 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 city.
(N) No person shall make a service connection with any public sewer unless regularly licensed under this chapter to perform such work, and no permit shall be granted to any person except such regularly licensed person.
(O) Any person desiring a license to make a service connection with public sewers shall apply in writing to the City Council with satisfactory evidence that the applicant or employer is trained or skilled in the business and qualified to receive a license. All applications shall be referred to the Superintendent for recommendations to the Council. If approved by the Council, such license shall be issued by the City Administrator upon the filing of a bond as provided in this subchapter.
(P) No license shall be issued to any person until a $5,000 bond to the city, approved by the Council, is filed with the City Administrator conditioned that the licensee will indemnify and save harmless the city from all suits, accidents and damage that may arise by reason of any opening in any street, alley or public ground made by the licensee or by those in the licensee's employment for any purpose whatever, and that the licensee will replace and restore the street and alley over such opening to the condition existing prior to installation, adequately guard with barricades and lights and will keep and maintain the same to the satisfaction of the Superintendent, and shall conform in all respects to the rules and regulations of the Council relative thereto, and pay all fines that may be imposed on the licensee by law.
(Q) The license fee for making service connections is $25. All licenses shall expire on December 31 of the license year unless the license is suspended or revoked by the Council for cause. Upon failure to apply for a license renewal prior to the expiration date thereof, the license fee for the ensuing year shall be $50. The City Council may, from time to time, amend license fee schedule by resolution duly enacted.
(R) The Council may suspend or revoke any license issued under this subchapter for any of the following causes:
(1) Giving false information in connection with the application for a license.
(2) Incompetence of the licensee.
(3) Willful violation of any provisions of this subchapter or any rule or regulation pertaining to the making of service connections.
(Prior Code, § 11.20) (Ord. 277, passed 8-27-90) Penalty, see § 51.99