HomeMy WebLinkAboutordinance.council.025-00 ORDINANCE NO. 25
SERIES OF 2000
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN,
COLORADO, REGULATING DITCH ALTERATION AND MAINTENANCE
WITHIN THE CITY OF ASPEN.
WHEREAS, the City of Aspen, Colorado, currently has no municipal ordinance
regulating the alteration and maintenance of ditches within the City of Aspen, and
WHEREAS, such an ordinance is necessary because individual homeowners have re-
routed ditches, added or removed culverts, and created ponds in detriment of the needs of
the community as a whole, and
WHEREAS, ditches in the City of Aspen have not been properly maintained, and
WHEREAS, the proper maintenance of ditches is a City wide concern and is necessary
for the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Aspen.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO, THAT:
Section 1.
That the Municipal Code of the City of Aspen, Colorado, is hereby amended by the
addition of a chapter, which shall read as follows:
21.36 Ditch Regulations
21.36.010 Definitions.
For purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to
them:
Ditch. The term "ditch" shall mean a long narrow trench or furrow dug in the ground
for irrigation, drainage, a boundary line, or similar uses.
Clear ditch bottom. The term "clear ditch bottom" shall mean a dirt bottom of a ditch
which has no gravel, rocks, or other impediments.
21.36.020 Alteration of Ditches.
Ditches may not be altered or restricted without the approval of the Aspen Parks
Department, Water Department, or Golf Departmem. This includes, but is not limited to,
the re-routing of a ditch, the addition or removal of culverts, and the creation of ponds for
a homeowner irrigation system which uses a stilling well as its water source.
21.36.030 Clear Ditch Bottom.
With the exception of ditches located in the west end of Aspen, where ~velve inches of
clear ditch bottom shall be required, it shall be uulawbxl for any person to place any
material in a ditch so as to create a ditch with less than twenty-four (24) inches of clear
ditch bottom.
21.36.040 Landscaping Along Ditches.
A ditch in the public right-of-way may not be newly landscaped, and cut'rem landscaping
may not be altered, unless a landscaping plan is submitted to the City of Aspen and a
landscaping permit is issued by the Aspen Parks Department, Water Department, or Gulf
Department.
21.36.050 Culverts and Ditch Liners.
Prior to installation, culverts and ditch liners shall be approved by the Parks, Water, or
Golf Deparm/em. Culvert installation or replacement shall be completed at the expense
of the homeowner. No culverts or ditch liners shall be approved near large trees. The
pipe to be used for replacement or for new installation shall be ADS-N-12 or equivalent.
Pipe shall be installed with a minimum slope of .50. The size shall be determined by fiow
capacity charts; however, the pipe size shall not be smaller than eight (8) inches in
diameter. Whenever possible, ADS-N-12 installation specifications shall be met for bury
depth and compaction. Where specifications cannot be met, flow-fill shall be used. Pipe
shall be installed with water-tight couplings.
21.36.060 Access by City employees.
Landowners shall provide City employees free, urrrestricted access to all ditches for the
purpose of allowing reasonable maimenance of the ditches. The City shall not be legally
responsible for damage to landscaping resulting from reasonable maintenance or
emergency repairs.
21.36.070 Violation; work done, liability therefor; penalty.
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(a) In the event of the failure of any person to comply with the ditch ordinance
provisions of this chapter, the parks director may, as soon as practicable after such failure,
cause such situation to be corrected.
(b) The director shall ascertain and keep a record of the exact cost of all work that he or
she causes to be done in accordance with this section on account of each act
or omission of each responsible party, and the director shall identify the responsible
party with particularity.
(c) The cost of work done in accordance with this section, plus a penalty of one
hundred (100) percent of such cost, shall be charged against the land abutting the
ditch where such work was done as a municipal lien and shall be collected in the same
manner as city taxes, or, in the alternative, such costs and penalty may be recovered by
the city in a suit at law against the owner or such person whose act or omission makes it
necessary for such work to be done.
21.36.080 Penalties.
Violation of any provision of this chapter by any person, firm, or corporation, whether as
owner, lessor, or tenant, shall be deemed a misdemeanor, punishable upon conviction by
a fine, imprisonment, or both a fine and imprisonment, as set forth in section 1.04.080 of
this Code.
Section 2.
This ordinance shall not have any effect on existing litigation and shall not operate as an
abatement of any action or proceeding now pending under or by virtue of the ordinances
amended as herein provided, and the same shall be construed and concluded under such
prior ordinances.
Section 3.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any
reason held invalid or unconstitutional in a court of competent jurisdiction, such portion
shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and shall not affect the
validity of the remaining portions thereof.
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Section 4.
A public hearing on the ordinance shall be held on the 24th day of July 2000,
in the City Council Chambers, Aspen City Hall, 130 South Galena, Aspen, ColoradO.
INTRODUCED, READ, AND ORDERED PUBLISHED as provided by law by the
City Council of the City of Aspen on the 26t~ day of June 2000.
Rachel E. Richards, Mayor
ATTEST:
Kathryn S. Koch, City Clerk