§ 17.5-60. Land disturbance permit.

(a)

When required. A land disturbance permit shall be obtained before any land disturbance activity, including grubbing, grading, or excavating, that causes to be moved more than three (3) cubic yards of soil, fill, or other material. A permit shall be obtained whenever the land disturbance activity is within the corporate limits of the City of Copperas Cove.

(b)

When not required. A land disturbance permit is not required for the following land disturbing activities:

(1)

The removal of woody or herbaceous plants on existing, individual one- and two-family residential parcels less than two (2) acres in size. All other properties shall be subject to permitting. In instances where, in the opinion of the city engineer or designee, the removal of woody or herbaceous plants would not result in significant drainage or erosion control issues, permit may be waived.

(2)

Tree removal that does not disturb the root system or soil.

(3)

Agricultural activities such as clearing and cultivating ground for crops, construction of fences to contain livestock, construction of stock ponds, and other similar agricultural activities.

(4)

Clearing of narrow sightlines for the specific purpose of conducting measurements and surveys.

(5)

Trenching required for structural foundations or utility improvements.

(6)

Routine maintenance of existing landscaping.

(7)

When there is an approved plat, approved construction plans, and a notice of intent (NOI), when required by any agency.

(c)

Required components. An applicant proposing land disturbance must submit an application for a land disturbance permit, a copy of their notice of intent (NOI) (when required by any agency), proof of a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP) (when required by any agency), along with the following items:

(1)

Completed permit application signed by the property owner or, in the case of a corporation/partnership, a party empowered to sign such actions (supported with authorizing documentation);

(2)

Nonrefundable permit application fee, as established by the city council;

(3)

Deed showing current ownership of the subject property;

(4)

Existing topographic survey (including all existing facilities, both under and above ground);

(5)

Proposed grading plan (including all existing and proposed facilities, both under and above ground) if existing drainage flow patterns will be changed; and

(6)

Erosion control plan detailing how silt, sediment, and pollutants will remain onsite and how soil will be stabilized once land disturbance is complete.

Note— For homeowners of one- and two-family residential lots less than two (2) acres, hand sketches, combined with written descriptions of proposed modifications, shall suffice for required components (4), (5), and (6) (for permitting purposes).

(d)

Review process. The city staff agency responsible for the intake of the permit shall be the building department, and the review of land disturbance permit applications shall be made by the city engineer. Applications shall be submitted on a form provided by the building department. The city engineer shall advise the applicant in writing of any concerns with the permit application. The city engineer shall approve the issuance of the land disturbance permit if all components required by this section have been submitted, the fee paid, and all concerns have been addressed.

The city engineer shall review the permit application for the following items:

(1)

Completeness of the application;

(2)

Compliance with all ordinances pertaining to drainage and detention; and

(3)

Compliance with all ordinances pertaining to erosion control.

(e)

Reserved.

(f)

Issuance of permit. The building official shall issue a permit within ten (10) working days after the permit application is received, or give a detailed written notice to the applicant that the permit application is unapproved. If response is not given within ten (10) days, applicant may request to have the permit taken to the city manager's office for consideration.

If the permit application is returned as being unapproved, the applicant may correct the deficiencies and resubmit the permit application for approval without paying any additional fees. If the permit application is returned a second time or if a second request is not received within forty-five (45) calendar days of the date of notice of the first written notice, the applicant shall be required to resubmit the permit application and shall be required to pay all standard permit application fees.

(g)

Appeal.

(1)

Any appeals of the interpretation of this section may be made to the supervisor of the city engineer. An appeal to the supervisor of the city engineer shall be requested in writing to the city engineer requesting the appeal of the interpretation of the ordinance within five (5) business days of the ruling by the city engineer. If no appeal is filed within five (5) business days of the ruling by the city engineer, the appellant is considered to have waived their rights of appeal. For the purposes of this section, a written appeal may be made in writing by letter or email addressed to the city engineer.

(2)

The supervisor of the city engineer will hear all issues and may call a meeting of the applicant for a land disturbance permit. At this meeting, the supervisor of the city engineer will attempt to resolve any conflicts through education on the intent of the codes. No code is written and adopted that can possibly predict all circumstances that may arise. The city engineer and his/her supervisor will seek to identify alternatives to the issues that do not violate the intent of the code, but allow individual circumstances to apply using a common sense approach. The supervisor of the city engineer may elect to have more than one (1) meeting to accomplish a resolution. He/she may also use other resources at his/her discretion to research possible alternatives. These resources may include, but are not limited to: other cities with similar ordinances and codes, legal advice from the city attorney, inquiries to other officials, and consultation with other staff members of the City of Copperas Cove.

(3)

It is generally understood that the appeal meeting(s) will begin within ten (10) business days of the receipt of the appeal.

(4)

A final appeal may be made to the city council if no resolution can be reached through the process described above. An appeal to the city council shall be requested in writing to the supervisor of the city engineer requesting the appeal of the interpretation of the section within five (5) business days of the ruling by the supervisor of the city engineer. This final appeal may not supersede the process above, and the supervisor of the city engineer will verify that the appeal process has been exhausted prior to hearing the final appeal. The decision of the city council is final, and no further appeals may be made.

(5)

This appeal process in no way represents a variance to the ordinance. It shall not be interpreted to be a circumvention of the intent of the ordinance. It is intended to seek all possible resolutions to interpretation issues while still complying with the intent of the ordinance.

(Ord. No. 2010-30, § 1, 8-17-10; Ord. No. 2016-61, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-16)