(a) The public improvements that are required as part of a subdivision in this code shall be provided and installed by the developer in accordance with the provisions this code and any other applicable codes, ordinances, and engineering documents of the City.
(b) Drawings and specifications for public improvements shall be reviewed and approved by the City Engineer and the installation shall be subject to the Engineer's continuous inspection. The installation of all public improvements required by this code shall be completed in accordance with such drawings and specifications.
(c) Agreements to install such improvements shall be approved concurrent with the Planning Commission's approval of the final plat or the approval of a final development plan. See Section 1105.07.
(d) At the completion of construction, and before acceptance of the public improvements, the developer shall furnish the City a set of record or "as-built" reproducible drawings as well as a digital copy that is compatible with the City Engineer's CAD software showing the locations of all public improvements including the sizes and elevations of all underground utilities.
(e) The improvements required are determined according to the accessibility of a sewer system and a public water supply, stormwater runoff, drainage requirements, the relationship to existing or planned streets, the type and size of lots required by this code for the applicable zoning district in which the subdivision or development is located, and any other applicable site development issues that fall under the category of public improvements. For improvements within a subdivision, multi-family development, or nonresidential development:
(1) Land for rights-of-way for all local streets within the subdivision or development and for all secondary or major streets within or along the boundary of the subdivision or development shall be dedicated by the developer and all easements shall be provided. See Chapter 1125: Parking, Access, and Mobility.
(2) Utilities shall be furnished and installed as hereinafter required and they shall be of such sizes and capacities as are required for the proposed development or subdivision.
(f) Off-Site Improvements.
(1) Where the construction, improvement, development, or subdivision of land makes necessary, at least in part, the installation of new or improved sewerage, water, or drainage facilities located outside the property limits of the development, the developer shall pay a proportionate share of the cost of the facilities, in accordance with this sub-section.
(2) No such payment shall be required until the City Council has established, or has committed itself by ordinance, to the establishment of a general sanitary sewer, water or drainage improvement program for an area having related and common sanitary sewer, water and drainage conditions, or any of them, and within which the land to be developed is located. The City may develop and administer all three programs together or any one, or other number, separately or jointly.
(3) The program shall include regulations that establish reasonable standards to determine the proportionate share of the total estimated cost of ultimate sanitary sewerage, water and drainage facilities required adequately to serve a related and common area, when and if fully developed in accord with the comprehensive plan, that shall be borne by each developer within the area.
(4) The share to be borne by each developer shall be limited to the proportion of such total estimated cost which the increased sanitary sewerage flow, water use or increased volume and velocity of stormwater runoff to be caused by the proposed development bears to the total estimated volume and velocity of such sanitary sewerage, water or runoff from such area in its fully developed state. In calculating the volume and velocity of stormwater runoff, the City shall take into account the effect of all on-site stormwater facilities or best management practices constructed or required to be constructed by the developer and give appropriate credit therefore.
(5) Each such payment received shall be expended only for the necessary engineering and related studies and the construction of those facilities for which the payment was required and, until so expended, shall be held in an interest-bearing account for the benefit of the developer. In lieu of such payment, the City Engineer may accept a letter of credit satisfactory to the City Engineer conditioned upon the payment at the commencement of construction. The payments received shall be kept in a separate account for each of the individual improvement programs until such time as they are expended for the improvement program. All payments shall be released and used, with any interest earned, as a tax credit on the real estate taxes on the property if construction of the facilities identified in the established water, sewer and drainage programs is not commenced within twelve years from the date of the posting of the payment.
(6) Nothing in this section shall imply or constitute an obligation on the part of the City to upgrade or construct any sanitary sewerage, water or storm drainage facilities or prevent the developer from constructing on his own account and to satisfy his own schedule such off-site facilities necessary or desirable for the safe and proper provision of utility service to the development in accordance with this subdivision ordinance and other ordinances of the City.
(g) Financial Guarantees for Public Improvements.
(1) The subdivider or developer shall execute financial guarantees and shall file such financial guarantees with the City prior to approval of a development plan or certification of a final plat, if the applicant does not propose to construct the required public improvements or private streets prior to receiving certification of the final plat or approval of the development plan. Such financial guarantee shall take any form allowed in Section 1129.04(g).
(2) The financial guarantee shall be an obligation for the faithful performance of any and all work and the construction and installation of all public improvements required to be done by the subdivider, together with all engineering and inspection costs and fees incurred by the City.
(3) Guaranteed Amount.
A. The financial guarantees shall be in an amount equal to the estimated total costs of materials and labor required to install or construct the improvements. The City Engineer shall determine such costs. When any portion of the improvements has, upon inspection, been found satisfactorily completed, a reduction in the bonds or partial withdrawal of funds equal to the estimated costs of such completed improvements may be authorized.
B. Where applicable, engineering, plan review, and construction review fees, etc., shall be required to be a part of the engineer's cost estimate.
C. After a period of two years from the date of submittal, the City Engineer may require that a revised engineer's estimate and bond be submitted that reflects updated unit prices.
(4) The terms of such financial guarantees shall be determined by the Law Director, with confirmation by the City Engineer.
(5) Subdivision Agreements.
A. Where the subdivider chooses to post a financial guarantee in lieu of completion of those public improvements shown on the approved engineering plan and/or final plat in order to allow for the recordation of the final prior to completion and acceptance of all required public improvements, the subdivider shall be required to enter into a subdivision agreement.
B. The subdivision agreement shall be approved as to content and form by the City's Law Department, with confirmation by the City Engineer, prior to approval of the final plat by the Planning Commission. The City shall provide to the subdivider a sample subdivision agreement during review of the final plat.
C. When an applicant for a development plan is required by this code to construct the improvements shown on an approved development plan, the applicant shall enter into an agreement, approved as to content and form by the City's Law Department, with the City prior to approval of the development plan.
(6) The financial guarantee and subdivision agreement shall contain the further condition that should one of the following conditions exist, the City may, at its option, cause all required work to be done and public improvements constructed by using the financial guarantee.
A. The installation of all required public improvements as called for in these regulations has not taken place within the time period agreed on in the subdivision agreement with the City, and the subdivider has failed to establish reasonable cause for such delay to the satisfaction of the City Council and thereby to receive a time extension; and/or
B. The subdivider has not constructed the required public improvements in accordance with the minimum standards specified by these regulations, and the subdivider is unwilling to modify and upgrade said public improvements within a six-month time period of notice so as to be in compliance with the provisions of these regulations.
(7) The parties executing the financial guarantee shall be firmly bound for the payment of all necessary costs therefor.
(8) Unit prices used in the engineer's cost estimate shall be based upon unit costs associated with public contracting (i.e., prevailing wage rates).
(9) Financial guarantees shall be made payable to the City of Wooster and be acceptable to the City Engineer and the Law Director.
(10) Incomplete public improvements that the City Engineer determines will constitute a safety hazard or maintenance issue, or will prevent the effective functioning of the public improvements, shall be required to be completed prior to the approval of a final plat.
(11) Street, Utility, and Improvements Maintenance. The developer shall guarantee the construction and materials of the street, utilities, and public improvements for a two-year period after acceptance by the City. In order to secure the guarantee, the developer shall deposit an amount equal to 50% of the total cost of the construction of the streets, utilities, and public improvements as determined by the City Engineer. The deposit shall be in the form of a financial guarantee as allowed in Section 1129.04(g).
(12) Types of Financial Guarantees. The following are the types of financial guarantees allowed by the City. The standards for each type of guarantee shall apply to any situation where a financial guarantee is required, regardless if it is related to a subdivision application or not.
A. Irrevocable Letter of Credit. The following standards shall apply if an irrevocable letter of credit is utilized as a financial guarantee:
i. The subdivider shall provide an irrevocable letter of credit from a bank or other reputable institution or individual subject to the approval of the City Law Director and City Engineer.
ii. The letter shall be deposited with the City, and shall certify the following:
a. The creditor guarantees funds in an amount equal to the cost, as estimated in accordance with Section 1129.04(g), for completion of all required public improvements.
b. In the case of failure on the part of the subdivider to complete the specified public improvements within the required time period, the creditor shall pay to the City immediately and without further action such funds as are necessary to finance the completion of those public improvements, up to the limit of credit stated in the letter.
c. This irrevocable letter of credit may not be withdrawn or reduced in amount until released by the City Engineer in accordance with this chapter.
B. Certified Check, Wire Transfer, Escrow, or Cash Deposit. The following standards shall apply if cash is utilized as a financial guarantee:
i. The subdivider shall provide a certified check, wire transfer, escrow to a third-party escrow account, or cash deposit for the amount of the guarantee, payable to the City of Wooster.
ii. If a third-party escrow account is to be established, the account shall be with a bank approved by the Law Director and shall be in an account set up for the sole ownership of the City.
iii. When the public improvements are complete, the City shall issue a check for the released amount based on this subsection.
iv. The City shall not be responsible for paying interest for the period of time the City retains the guarantee.
C. Bonds. The following standards shall apply if a bond is utilized as a financial guarantee:
i. A bond in the amount determined in accordance with this section shall be filed with the City of Wooster.
ii. The bond may be in the form of a surety bond or a cash bond of the kind approved by law for securing deposits of public money.
iii. The bond shall be executed by the subdivider as principal, and if a surety bond, shall be executed by a corporation authorized to act as a surety under the laws of the State of Ohio.
(h) Insurance. The developer shall agree to indemnity and hold harmless the City against and from any and all loss, cost, damage, liability, and expense on account of damage to property of, or injury to or death of, the parties or a third person caused by or in any way whatsoever attributable to the construction of the improvements and the use of streets delineated on a subdivision plat/plan or a development plan during construction. The developer shall further agree, but without limiting its liability to indemnify the City, to carry liability insurance contracts in an amount determined by the City for injury to or death of persons, and for damage to or destruction of property, which insurance contracts shall include the City as a named insured. The developer shall further agree to maintain on file with the City during the period of such construction, certificates or memoranda of insurance evidencing that such insurance contracts are in force.
(i) Protection of Streets, Utilities, and Other Installations.
(1) The subdivider shall provide the City Engineer with a plan for the routing of construction equipment and traffic with the objective of alleviating any need to traverse adjacent off-site residential streets. In exceptional cases, where no reasonable alternative exists or can be provided, construction equipment may be permitted the use of collector streets for a predetermined time period. The contractor shall be permitted to operate only pneumatic-tired equipment over any paved street surfaces and shall be responsible for correction of any damage to street surfaces in any manner resulting from the contractor's operation. During the period of use, such streets shall be kept reasonably free of debris, based on periodic inspections by the City and in accordance with approved sedimentation and erosion control measures.
(2) The subdivider and their contractors shall protect the pavement against all damage prior to final acceptance of the work including damage created by the contractor's construction equipment and vehicles, as well as general traffic. As soon as curing and sealing are completed, the contractor shall clean the pavement free of all debris and construction equipment.
(3) The subdivider and their contractors shall at all times take proper precautions for the protection of utility lines, the presence of which can be determined by contacting the Ohio Utilities Protection Service (OUPS). The subdivider shall be financially responsible for the repair of any damage to such utility lines.
(Ord. 2018-009. Passed 5-7-18.)