Riverside County Municipal Code Ch. 17.284 Encroachment Permits

Subject to the control of the Board of Supervisors, there is hereby delegated to the General Manager-Chief Engineer the administration of the use of District facilities, right-of-way and/or easements for excavation, connections and other types of encroachments and the issuance, modification and revocation of permits for such uses, along with the establishment of a Deposit Based Fee (DBF) schedule for District services.

(Ord. 19 § 1, 2004: Ord. 18 § 1, 2004)

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 1, 7-28-2026)

No person, including firms, corporations, public districts, public agencies or political subdivisions, shall make any excavation in, or construct, install or maintain any improvement, structure, utility or encroachment in, on, over, under or within trenching limits of any District facility, right-of-way or easement thereof, without first obtaining from the District's General Manager-Chief Engineer, or their designee, an encroachment permit therefor, or maintain the same without such permit or in violation of the terms or conditions thereof. Such a permit shall be issued by the District only upon written application thereof and payment of the required fee or fees. Such permit shall be issued only if the applicant is a public utility holding a current franchise from the County of Riverside, or a public district, public utility or public service agency having lawful authority for the purpose specified, or a developer whose development has been approved by the District, County of Riverside or City with jurisdiction, or the owner of an easement for such purpose within the District's right-of-way and/or easement, or if the District is satisfied that the use proposed is in the public interest and that there will be no substantial injury to District facilities or impairment of its use as the result thereof and that the use is reasonably necessary for the performance of the functions of the applicant. Every such permit shall be revocable and the uses and installations thereunder shall be subordinate to any prior right of the District to use the right-of-way and/or easement for public drainage purposes. Every such permit shall be subject to such conditions as the District determines are necessary to assure the safety of the public and the restoration of the right-of-way and/or easement. If any permittee shall fail to refill any excavation or to restore the District's right-of-way or easement to its same condition as prior to the permitted work, the District's General Manager-Chief Engineer shall have the right to perform said work and collect the cost thereof in the name of the District.

(Ord. 19 § 2, 2004: Ord. 18 § 2, 2004)

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 2, 7-28-2026)

The filing fee portion of the Initial Deposit for each of the permits subject to this Ordinance shall be $1,000, with the exception of a permit for access to adjacent properties (Permit Type 802) which shall be $500. This fee, which is for the preparation of the permit and includes research and plan check, is nonrefundable and will be deducted from the Initial Deposit. The District shall draw against the remaining deposited funds for inspection and related services (including plan check) performed. If the Initial Deposit should be depleted, the second deposit shall be made prior to continuing work under the subject permit.

(Ord. 19 § 3, 2004: Ord. 18 § 3, 2004)

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 3, 7-28-2026)

The Initial Deposit for Filing required by this Ordinance shall be paid after the application is processed. Additional Deposits (if required) shall be paid prior to continuing to work under the subject permit. If the balance in the account drops under 25% of the original deposit and the District determines that the remaining amount is insufficient to complete the review or conduct inspections, the applicant shall be required to submit an Additional Deposit prior to the District continuing work on the project. All applicants, including public entities, shall submit the required fee. Said deposits for permits shall be as follows:

Table 1: Deposits for Encroachment Permits

* Access to Adjacent Properties Permits may apply to projects that will not be performing any soil disturbance activities within District right-of-way or easement thereof. The permittee may request to use District access road(s) to reach adjacent properties.

** Major Construction Encroachment Permits may apply to storm drain connections larger than 36 inches, bridge improvements, realignment of existing flood storm drain facilities and other improvements that will require extensive review by the District. If the District determines that the standard $15,000 deposit will not be sufficient to complete the review/inspection of the project, then a greater Initial Deposit may be required as determined by the District.

Additional fees associated with the review of encroachment permits may be required under certain circumstances. Said fees shall be as follows:

Table 2: Additional Fees

(Ord. 19 § 4, 2004: Ord. 18 § 4, 2004)

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 4, 7-28-2026)

Work that falls under any of the following conditions shall be subject to a separate, non-refundable fee for each individual occurrence:

i. Initiated or performed prior to obtaining permit authorization;

ii. Conducted under an expired permit;

iii. Initiated prior to acceptance of all required pre-construction deliverables;

iv. Performed in violation of the conditions of an issued permit;

v. Associated with an expired Certificate of Insurance (COI); or

vi. Performed without an inspection or clearance from an inspector

Each violation will be assessed as a fee equal to the initial deposit required for the applicable permit type, as specified in Table 1.

(Ord. 19 § 5, 2004: Ord. 18 § 5, 2004)

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 5, 7-28-2026)

Once a project is finished and the final inspection is completed, a notice of completion will be prepared and all unused funds of one hundred dollars ($100.00) or more in the applicant's account will be refunded within sixty (60) days.

(Ord. 19 § 6, 2004: Ord. 18 § 6, 2004)

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 6, 7-28-2026)

If no communication is made by the applicant of an issued permit or a permit under review for a period of eighteen consecutive months from the date of the last documented correspondence, the district shall issue a written and electronic notice requesting an update on the status of the project. The applicant shall have sixty (60) calendar days from the date of the notice to respond and provide an update. Failure to respond within the specified sixty-day period shall be deemed as abandonment of the project and the permit shall be closed. Any remaining balance in the account shall be returned to the payee, and no further action shall be taken on the project. Continued work on the project shall only be done with a new application.

(Ord. No. 19.1, § 7, 7-28-2026)