§ 12.16.040. Improvement procedure.

A.

General Procedure. Any person required to make street improvements by the provisions of Section 12.16.030 shall either construct and complete the improvements according to the procedure established by the City Engineer for construction of improvements in street areas, and in conformance with the standards set forth in Section 12.16.050, or shall provide the City Engineer with plans and specifications meeting his or her approval and an improvement security as provided herein, and enter into an agreement with the City Engineer as provided herein.

A cash inspection deposit, as is currently required by the City Engineer, shall be made at the time that the plans and specifications approved by the City Engineer, are obtained for construction by the owner or contractor for the street improvement work.

B.

Deferment of Improvements. Whenever the owner requests that the required street improvements be deferred, the City Engineer is authorized to enter into an agreement with the persons required to make said improvements. This agreement, among other conditions and provisions, shall provide a time limit or completion date to be met by said persons required to make said street improvements. The time limit or completion date shall not exceed one year from the date of issuance of the building permit or other permit. The agreement shall also require, and the persons required to make said street improvements shall provide the city with an improvement security as defined in subsection C of this section. Any such agreement shall be subject to the approval by the City Attorney prior to its execution by the City Engineer. Any extensions of time for completion requested beyond the one-year period hereinabove stated shall be subject to the approval of the City Council.

C.

Improvement Security.

1.

"Improvement security" as used in this section means one or more of the following:

a.

A cash deposit or deposits made with the city;

b.

A bond or bonds by one or more duly authorized corporate sureties; or

c.

An instrument or instruments of credit from one or more financial institutions subject to regulation by the state or federal government pledging that the funds necessary to meet the performance are on deposit and guaranteed for payment and agreeing that the funds designated by the instrument shall become trust funds for the purposes set forth in the instrument.

2.

Said improvement security shall be in the amounts and for the following purposes:

a.

An amount, determined by the City Engineer, of one hundred (100) percent of the total estimated cost of the improvement, conditioned upon the faithful performance of the agreement or contract; and

b.

An additional amount equal to fifty (50) percent of the total estimated cost of the improvement, securing payment to the contractor, his or her subcontractors and to persons renting equipment for furnishing labor or materials to them for the improvement.

3.

Improvement security may be released or reduced in whole or in part in the following manner:

a.

Improvement security given for faithful performance of the agreement or contract may be released upon final completion and acceptance of the work or the City Engineer may provide for the partial release of the improvement security upon the acceptance of portions of the work as it progresses.

b.

Improvement security securing the payment to the contractor, his or her subcontractors and to persons renting equipment or furnishing labor or materials may, six months after the completion and acceptance of the work, be reduced to an amount not less than the total of all claims on which an action has been filed and notice thereof given in writing to the City Engineer; and if there are no actions filed, the improvement security may be released in full.

4.

The City Engineer is authorized to release or reduce the improvement security under the above set forth conditions and in accordance with such rules as he or she may prescribe.

5.

The liability of the improvement security, as defined herein, shall be confined to:

a.

The performance of the work covered by the agreement or contract between the persons required to make said street improvement, and the City Engineer;

b.

The performance of any changes or alterations in such work; provided, that all such changes or alterations do not exceed ten percent of the original estimated cost of the improvement.

D.

Guarantee. The owner shall require his or her contractor to guarantee the work, in general, for one year after acceptance by the city. The contractor shall be held responsible for and must correct or repair any defects arising or discovered in any part of his or her work within a one-year period after acceptance of the work by the city. The contractor shall not be required to perform any further work thereon, beyond the said one year, except upon such items as may be reserved specifically in the plans and specifications or in the formal written acceptance.

(Prior code § 6-2.193)