16.26.040 Permit required.
A. Permit Required. Any land disturbing activity that involves clearing, grading, or creation or modification of a stormwater management facility requires approved plans and permit(s), unless such activity is determined to be exempt from obtaining a permit as provided below. Activity requiring a permit is authorized under a site work permit, building permit, landscaping permit, or as a component of any other permit that authorizes land disturbance if City-approved drawings and associated technical reports for such activities are included under the other permit.
B. Permit Exemptions. The following activities are exempt from compliance with this chapter:
1. An excavation below finish grade for basements and footings of a building retaining wall or other structure or activity authorized by any valid building permit. This shall not exempt any fill made with the material from such excavation nor exempt any excavations having an unsupported height greater than five feet after the completion of such structure. See also IMC 16.26.050(C)(2);
2. Maintenance. Activities that are considered to be maintenance include:
a. Underground Utility Projects. Underground utility projects that replace the ground surface with in-kind material or materials with similar runoff characteristics are only subject to Minimum Requirement No. 2, Construction Stormwater Pollution Prevention.
b. Pavement Maintenance. Pothole and square cut patching, overlaying existing asphalt or concrete pavement with asphalt or concrete without expanding the area of coverage, shoulder grading, reshaping/regrading drainage systems, crack sealing, resurfacing with in-kind material without increasing impervious surface area, pavement preservation activities that do not increase impervious surface area, and vegetation maintenance. If removing and replacing a paved surface to base course or lower, or repairing the pavement base, Minimum Requirements No. 1 through No. 5 apply subject to applicable thresholds.
c. Other Routine Maintenance. Includes activities conducted by a public agency within a public right-of-way or upon an easement for the purposes of maintaining water, storm, sanitary sewer, transportation, and other facilities, and by a franchised utility for the purposes of maintaining power, gas or communication facilities, as needed to maintain function in accordance with original purpose, design, size and location of the facility. Also includes replacement of hard surfaces that is part of a routine repair or maintenance activity, and minor upgrades to failing or substandard systems using BMPs if needed to improve functionality but not resulting in an expansion of the utility system. Also includes maintenance of existing private stormwater systems as required by Chapter 13.28 IMC (see also definition of “maintenance”);
3. The cutting of trees as defined in Chapter 18.812 IMC where a tree removal permit is exempt or required;
4. Routine landscape maintenance involving not more than 30 cubic yards of excavation and fill on a single parcel of property within a consecutive 12-month period;
5. Landscape installation where fill is confined to less than one foot of topsoil or landscape berms not exceeding four feet in height and 30 cubic yards in volume with side slopes flatter than three feet horizontal to one foot vertical (33 percent);
6. Emergency situations involving immediate danger to life or property, substantial fire hazards or other public safety hazards within seven days of the onset of the emergency or during the period covered by an emergency declaration by the City; provided verbal authorization is provided by the City and followed up with written authorization communicating the need and verifying the nature of the emergency;
7. In any 12 consecutive months an excavation of less than 50 cubic yards of materials which:
a. Is less than two feet in depth; or
b. Which does not create a cut slope greater than five feet in height and steeper than two horizontal feet to one vertical foot;
8. Routine agricultural activities such as plowing, harrowing, disking, ridging, listing, leveling and similar operations to prepare a field or crop;
9. Clearing or grading less than 1,000 square feet where the existing zoning is single-family residential;
10. The fill or excavation of less than 500 cubic yards or clearing of less than 6,000 square feet in association with mineral resource extraction or processing in a mineral resource zone (“M”) regulated by IMC 18.504.060;
11. Cemetery graves;
12. Except for subsections (B)(2) for maintenance only, (B)(6), and (B)(10) of this section, the exemptions set forth in this section shall not apply to activity within critical areas and associated buffers as defined by Chapter 18.802 IMC;
13. Removal of nonnative invasive plant species from environmentally critical lands and native growth protection easements in accordance with Chapter 18.802 IMC;
14. Development activities that are exempt or fall below the thresholds of all requirements contained in the Stormwater Design Manual.
C. Expiration of Inactive Applications. Site work permit applications shall be closed by the Permit Center and deemed “inactive” in accordance with IMC 18.204.090, Application expiration.
D. Expiration of Issued Permit. Issued permits for clearing, grading and stormwater management shall expire in accordance with Chapter 16.04 IMC, Section 105.5, “Expiration.” (Ord. 3023 § 21, 2023; Ord. 2783 § 3 (Exh. A3), 2016; Ord. 2560 § 3 (Exh. A2), 2009; Ord. 2546 § 6, 2008; Ord. 2487 § 1, 2007).