It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, association or others, to make any excavation in any street, alley, or public place, or to tunnel under any street, alley or public place in the city without having first obtained a permit as herein required, and without complying with the provisions of this chapter; and it shall also be unlawful to be in violation of or variance from the terms of any such permit; provided, however, any person maintaining pipes, lines, or other underground facilities in or under the surface of any street may proceed with an opening without a permit when emergency circumstances demand the work to be done immediately, provided the permit could not reasonably and practically have been obtained beforehand. The person shall thereafter apply for a permit on the first regular business day on which the office of the city manager is open for business and said permit shall be retroactive to the date when the work was begun. (Ord. #316, Section I, 05/19/59).
(The provisions in Section 12-101 through 12-109 in this chapter were upheld by the Tennessee Supreme Court in the 1960 case of City of Paris, Tennessee, v. Paris-Henry County Public Utility District, 340 S.W. 23d 885).