The purpose of this chapter is to require and to regulate the construction and/or capital maintenance of public facilities or the facilities of private utilities within the public rights of way by reviewing construction design drawings, by issuance of construction permits and oversight of inspection of such facilities in order to assure, to the greatest extent practical, that utility construction work and/or other construction work within the public right of way complies with applicable city ordinances and construction standards adopted by the city.
It is the intent of the city by enactment hereof, and the city hereby does establish physical improvement standards for land uses to be constructed, established, materially added to or otherwise developed from an unimproved state. No building permit shall issue nor shall any development permit issue until the city council has approved construction plans for public right of way improvements adjoining any such development site. Further, no certificate of occupancy, business license or approval to operate any land use shall be authorized for any owner or occupant of unplatted lands within the city or for any owner or occupant of any lands platted prior to enactment of the city’s subdivision ordinance until the site in question has been improved in a manner equivalent to the standards for public improvements for developments established by the subdivision ordinance of the city as of the date of the proposal to establish occupancy or initiate a land use regulated by the zoning ordinance of the city.
At a minimum, said required site improvements shall include a paved surface on the fronting street, sidewalk for pedestrian travel, extension of water and sewer lines and continuation of surface water drainage across the full frontage of the lands in question. If improvements must be installed in the midst of lots, tracts or parcels that have been partially improved to comply with previously adopted standards, the city council may authorize improvements to standards that will integrate with improvements already in place. In no instance shall such authority to integrate improvements compromise efforts of the city to maintain continuity in utility extension, continuity of pedestrianways and extension of paved street rights of way.
Construction excavation shall not be allowed within City rights-of-ways from November 1 until March 31. Should extended freezing conditions prevail before or after those dates, the City may impose additional restrictions for construction excavation with City rights-of-way. Construction excavation shall not be allowed within City streets that have received Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) surfacing within 5 years of the date of proposed construction excavation, unless special conditions imposed by the City are met. Those special conditions could include backfill with Controlled Density Fill (CDF), or other means through which to minimize settlement and provide a smooth, durable surface across the excavation area.
In the end, the city engineer shall recommend in writing whether plans for right of way improvements are consistent with the purposes and requirements established by this chapter, by the city’s zoning ordinance and by sound engineering practices. The city engineer shall forward any such recommendation for final decision to the Spirit Lake city council no more than seven (7) days after the date of the written recommendation by the city engineer, and after allowing a reply from the property owner, either on the record during a public meeting or in writing, shall decide the standards of site improvement that shall apply to the specific site. The city council shall render its decision as promptly as practical, but no later than ninety eight (98) days subsequent to the date of transmission of the written recommendation from the city engineer unless otherwise approved by the applicant. In extraordinary circumstances where practical difficulties may be presented, the city engineer or city council may allow payment of estimated cost equivalents in lieu of installation of required improvements. (Ord. 508, 7-10-2007; amd. Ord. 626, 12-14-2021)