1020.14 UTILITY INSTALLATIONS.

   (a)   Permit Required. No person shall lay, construct, maintain, operate or use pipes, mains, conductors, lines of pipe or other appliances, including service connections, in any street, alley, easement or public or private property in the City, for the purpose of supplying or selling manufactured or natural gas for illuminating and fuel purposes, and no person shall lay conduits, erect poles or place thereon or therein any guy wires or conductors, including service connections, for the purpose of furnishing telephone or telegraph service or electric power, in or over any street, alley, easement or public or private property in the City, without first obtaining a permit therefor from the Building Department, as provided herein.

   (b)   Application; Plans and Specifications; Issuance. Any person desiring a permit under this section shall file a proper application therefor with the Building Department, upon forms prescribed and furnished by the Department, and shall attach thereto detailed plans and specifications showing the nature, object and location of the work for which such permit is desired. If such plans and specifications are approved by the City Engineer, the permit shall be issued in accordance with the application filed.

   (c)   Fees. Council shall fix and determine the various fees and charges incidental to the issuance of any such permit, except an annual maintenance permit, upon recommendation of the Director of Inspections. No permit shall be issued as herein provided unless any fee previously incurred has been paid to the City Treasurer and a receipt has been obtained.

   (d)   Liability for Damage or Injury. The person to whom such permit is granted shall do no injury in any street, avenue, alley, lane, sidewalk, park or other public place, or to any shade tree, shrub, lawn, concrete paving, sidewalk or other like improvement, or in any manner disturb or interfere with any sewer, water main, pipe, conduit or other public or private appliance now or hereafter laid or constructed by any authorized person. Such person shall fully indemnify and save harmless the City from any and all claims and damages for which the City might be made or become liable to pay by reason of the construction, maintenance, repair or operation of the poles, conduits, wires, mains, pipes or apparatus connected therewith, or otherwise arising from the use or possession of any of the rights and privileges granted or from any neglect on the part of the person or his or her employees to comply with this section or the ordinances of the City. Such person shall, especially, indemnify the City and assume all liability and damages which may arise, come or occur to the City from any injury to persons or property from the doing of any work herein mentioned, or from the neglect of such person or his or her employees to comply with this section or other ordinances of the City relative to the use of streets or other public places, especially as to the putting up of lights or barriers at or around excavations. The acceptance by such person of any permit under this section shall be an agreement to pay to the City any sum of money for which the City may become liable from or by reason of such injury. However, such person shall be given written notice of any and all formal claims, suits and demands filed with the City within thirty days after receipt of the same and shall be given an opportunity to defend the same.

   (e)   Poles and Transmission Lines. All poles and structures for power and/or communication transmission lines erected under such permit shall be firmly set in the ground so as not to create any obstruction to existing or future sidewalks, service walks, sidedrives, approaches, etc. Poles erected in parking areas must be of an approved type and at locations approved by the City Engineer.

   (f)   Mains, Conduits or Wires in Ground. All operating and conducting mains, conduits and wires used for the purpose of transmitting electrical energy or communications, which mains, conduits and wires are laid below the surface of the ground, shall be insulated and protected, shall be parallel with the property lines thereof and shall be at such locations therein and at such depths as shall be approved by the City Engineer. It is especially required that all service connections used by such person shall be connected only with the nearest main source of supply laid in the alley or street nearest to the building into which it is desired to conduct such service.

   (g)   Excavations; Restoration. At least forty-eight hours before opening or excavating in any street, alley or public place for the above purposes or for any other purpose, except in cases of emergency, and except for service connection installations, such person shall notify the City Engineer's office, in writing, of the intent to excavate, stating the number of the permit and the date of issuance thereof. In the opening and refilling of such openings and excavations, the relaying of the pavement and other work necessary to the complete restoration of the street, pavement, sidewalk or grounds to an equally good condition as when disturbed, shall be under the supervision of the City Engineer. No street, alley or public place shall be allowed to remain open or encumbered for a longer period than authorized to execute the work for which the same has been opened, and the City Engineer may extend the period allowed for the completion of such work for such time as the City Engineer deems necessary.

   The earth removed in making such excavation shall be restored. However, where pavement has been broken, no debris, broken concrete or noncompatible substance shall be used in refilling. The pavement shall be relaid by such person in as good a condition as before the making of such excavation, and thereafter shall be maintained in as good a condition as the surrounding pavement until the street, alley or public place is allowed to remain open or for so long as such street, alley or public place is encumbered, when authorized by the City Engineer.

   The cost of restoring the earth or other costs arising from such excavations, the relaying of the pavement and the repairs thereto caused by the opening of such street, alley or public place shall be at the expense of such person. Such work shall be done under the supervision of the City Engineer, and the expense of such supervision shall be paid by such person upon presentation of bills certified by the Director of Inspections. Any expense incurred by the City because of the neglect of such person or his or her employees in the doing of any work, or the doing of the same in an unworkmanlike manner, or for the digging of ditches or holes, the erection of poles, the restoration of earth or any excavation, or relaying or replacing any pavement, shall be paid in a like manner by such person upon presentation of a bill certified by the Director. Such person, in each instance, shall promptly pay all bills for labor, material, supervision, etc., incurred by the City, in relaying and restoring any pavement or surface disturbed by such person. If such bill remains unpaid for thirty days after presentation of the same to such person, thereafter such person shall not be entitled to receive the permit provided for in this section while such person remains in default in the payment of such bill.

   (h)   Supervision by City Engineer. The City Engineer's office shall supervise the construction of all lines or wires erected in pursuance of the authority hereby granted and all connections made with any buildings. In the stringing of lines or wires or the laying of conduits as herein provided, Council shall prescribe and determine the streets in which it shall be lawful to erect or construct lines or wires above ground or to lay conduits in the ground for street lighting purposes. No person shall erect any pole or train any wire for such lines above or in the ground in any street, alley or highway, except as authorized by such permit.

   (i)   Wires in Underground Conduit. Whenever the City Engineer or the Director of Inspections deems it in the public interest, he or she may require, as a condition to the issuance of any permit, that wires be laid in underground conduits. Service drops to commercial buildings requiring additional poles to service the building, if less than thirty feet from the building, shall be run underground.

   (j)   Cessation of Permit Rights; Removal of Installations. Any rights acquired under such permit shall cease whenever Council so directs, and all poles, wires, conduits, mains, pipes or other appliances shall thereupon be removed or relocated, upon proper permit to do so, at the expense of the person erecting, laying or controlling the same.

   (k)   Orders to Remove or Alter. When wires erected or conduits, mains or other appliances laid or constructed under this section, or which may have been erected, laid or constructed prior to the adoption of this section (Ordinance 455, passed November 9, 1988), interfere in any way with the use, improvement or alteration of any street, alley, lane, park or other public place by the City, Council may direct the removal of the same or such alteration in relation thereto as will obviate or prevent such interference. Failure to so remove or alter the same shall be considered a violation of this section.

   (l)   Emergencies. In cases of emergency, such as, but not limited to, repairs to gas mains, repairs to service and service connections or any breakdown of the utility company service, no permit will be required to place the service in operation. Copies of the utility company work orders or repairs shall be submitted to the Building Department as soon as possible after repairs are made. Permit and inspection fees will be billed to the utility company by the City Engineer and are payable on receipt.

   (m)   Utility Installation Fees.

      (1)   Poles: erection, replacement, alteration or removal.

         First pole   $25.00

         Each additional pole, same area         5.00

      (2)   Tapping underground carriers.

         A.   Where a main is so located as
            not to require the disturbance
            of any public structure or in-
            stallation, the fee for service
            connection to any building
            shall be ten dollars ($10.00).

         B.   When a pavement or sidewalk break
            is required to reach a pipe,
            conductor, conduit or main, the
            fee for such pavement break
            shall be as follows:
            First 15 sq. ft.            $30.00

            Each additional sq. ft.         5.00

         C.   When a continuous pavement
            break (over twenty-five linear
            feet) is necessary for the
            installation of underground
            facilities or carriers, the
            fee shall be five dollars
            ($5.00) for each linear foot
            of pavement break.

         D.   When the City is required to
            replace the pavement for the
            utility company, the fees shall
            be as follows:

            Pavement
               First one sq. yard      $200.00
               Each additional sq. yard   60.00

               Sidewalk
                  First 25 sq. ft.      125.00

                  Each additional sq. ft.   5.00

      (3)   Inspection fees. All installations of mains, conduits or carrier services of any description shall be inspected by the City Engineer's office for compliance with City ordinances during the construction work. The fees for necessary inspection time shall be charged at an hourly rate.

      (4)   Plan review fee. A fee of sixty dollars ($60.00) per sheet will be charged for the review of plans. Such fee shall be paid upon submission of plans.

   (n)   Appeals. Any person denied a permit, as provided for in this section, may appeal such denial to the Building Code Board of Appeals by filing a written application with the Secretary of the Board not less than ten days subsequent to the denial of the permit. Such person shall, in the application for appeal, fully and particularly set forth the nature and grounds upon which the appeal is based. The Board shall, within ten days after the filing of such notice of appeal, grant a hearing thereon, which hearing shall be held not less than two days nor more than fifteen days after the filing of such notice of appeal. No filing fee shall be required for such appeal. Upon the hearing of the appeal as herein provided, the Board shall either grant or deny the permit as originally applied for.

(Ord. 455. Passed 11-9-88.)