(A) No land owner or land operator shall receive any of the building, grading or other land development permits required for land disturbance activities without first meeting the requirements of this Chapter prior to commencing the proposed activity.
(B) Land Disturbance Activities carried out by the following government agencies as authorized public agencies shall be exempt from this Chapter:
(1) City of Lima Department of Public Works
(2) City of Lima Department of Utilities
(C) REGULATED LAND DISTURBANCE ACTIVITIES.
Land Disturbance Activities requiring a soil erosion and stormwater runoff control permit from the City Engineer include the following:
(1) Land Disturbance Activities connected with any of the following activities which disturb 1 or more acres of land, or are within 500 feet of a lake or stream, except for normal maintenance:
(a) Transportation facilities, including public and private streets, access roads, highways, railroads, airports, common carrier pipelines, and mass transit facilities, except normal maintenance procedures such as earth or gravel road leveling and minor repairs or alterations to rights of way not affecting a lake or stream.
(b) Mobile home park developments, multiple-family residential developments, and site preparation for a single-family residence.
(c) Site condominium developments or condominiums.
(d) Public buildings and service facilities, including but not limited to government buildings and facilities, schools, vehicle maintenance facilities, and salt storage facilities.
(e) Recreational facilities, including but not limited to parks, golf courses, trails, including public or private facilities.
(f) Utilities, including but not limited to underground pipelines or cables, except pole installation, service lines and other Land Disturbance Activities of a minor nature, and emergency repairs.
(g) Non-agricultural water impoundments and waterway construction or improvements.
(h) Mining activities including access roads, except the principal area where minerals are being removed.
(I) Land Disturbance Activities on agricultural lands, including road construction and building construction, but not including plowing and tilling of soil for the purpose of crop production.
(2) Land Disturbance Activities for environmentally-sensitive residential sites.
(3) Industrial or commercial use development sites, regardless of size, location, or environmental sensitivity.
(4) All subdivision developments regardless of size, location, or environmental sensitivity.
(D) IDENTIFICATION OF ENVIRONMENTALLY-SENSITIVE SITES.
Property owners are responsible for determining whether their sites are environmentally-sensitive as defined in this Chapter.
(E) PERMIT APPLICATION SUBMITTAL.
(1) All applications for soil erosion and stormwater runoff control permits shall include three copies of the proposed soil erosion and stormwater runoff control plan unless more copies are requested by the City Engineer. Copies of the permit application form shall be made available by the Building and Zoning Licenses and Permits Office.
(2) Permit applications shall be submitted to the Building and Zoning Licenses and Permits Office.
(3) Application for a permit shall be made prior to the start of any Land Disturbance Activity including construction of access roads, driveways, tree and shrub removal, or grading. Permit approval shall be given prior to the initiation of any work activity. Any unauthorized work shall be considered a violation of these procedures regardless of any later actions taken toward compliance. Soil test borings, vegetative cutting for land surveys, percolation tests, and normal maintenance shall not be considered a start of work under these regulations.
(4) Permit applications shall include a signed statement that any Land Disturbance Activity shall be in accordance with the Soil Erosion and Stormwater Runoff Control Plan as approved by the City Engineer or Stormwater Manager.
(5) The application review period begins upon receipt of a completed application.
(F) SEQUENTIAL APPLICATIONS.
(1) On projects which are so large or complex that a plan encompassing all phases of the project cannot reasonably be prepared prior to initial ground-breaking, application for permit on successive major incremental Land Disturbance activities may be allowed. Requests for sequential applications shall be approved by the City Engineer prior to submittal of a permit application.
(2) Approval of sequential applications shall take place in two phases. First, the overall conceptual plan for the entire development shall be submitted for review and approval. Second, detailed plans for sections of the total project may be submitted for review and approval.
(3) All permits processed and issued for phases of a project shall be clearly defined as to the nature and extent of work covered. Each phase of the project must be reviewed and permitted prior to construction.
(G) PERMIT APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL.
(1) If the City Engineer determines that the proposed soil erosion and stormwater runoff control plan complies with the standards in this Chapter, a permit shall be issued specifying the work approved. If the proposed plan does not comply with these standards, the permit request shall be modified or denied.
(2) Upon request, the City Engineer shall furnish the applicant or other interested person with a statement in writing of the reasons for permit denial or approval.
(3) If necessary, the City Engineer may request additional information from the applicant.
(H) PERMIT EXPIRATION OR REVOCATION.
(1) Permits shall terminate automatically if construction has not commenced within one year of the date of issuance. The permit holder may request a one year extension if there are valid reasons to support such an extension.
(2) Any permit issued by the City Engineer under this Chapter may be revoked or suspended, after notice and an opportunity for a hearing, for any of the following causes:
a. A violation of a condition of the permit.
b. Obtaining a permit by misrepresentation or failure to fully disclose relevant facts in the application or soil erosion and stormwater runoff control plan.
c. A change in a condition that requires a temporary or permanent change in the activity.
(I) ADMINISTRATIVE FEE SCHEDULE.
(1) Permit fees shall be directly related to the actual costs of administering the soil erosion control and stormwater management permit program of the City Engineer, including site inspection costs and permit administration costs.
(2) The fee schedule shall be proposed by the City Engineer and approved by the City Council.
(J) PENALTIES FOR INITIATING LAND DISTURBANCE ACTIVITIES WITHOUT A PERMIT.
Any Land Disturbance activities without a valid permit or in violation of a permit or permit conditions shall be considered a violation of this Chapter and subject to fines and other penalties as provided in this Chapter.
(Ord. 91-06. Passed 3-27-06, Ord. 80-14. Passed 3-24-14)