Maintenance, inspection and repair of retaining walls shall comply with sections 28-305.4.1 through 28-305.4.8.
As used in this article, the following term shall have the following meaning:
RETAINING WALL. A wall that resists lateral pressures and limits lateral displacement caused by soil, rock, water or other materials, except that basement and vault walls that are part of a building, underground structures, including but not limited to utility vault structures, tunnels, transit stations and swimming pools, shall not be considered retaining walls.
RETAINING WALL. A wall that resists lateral pressures and limits lateral displacement caused by soil, rock, water or other materials, except that basement and vault walls that are part of a building, underground structures, including but not limited to utility vault structures, tunnels, transit stations and swimming pools, shall not be considered retaining walls.
Owners of retaining walls with a height of ten feet or more and fronting a public right-of-way shall comply with the requirements of this section. For the purposes of this section, the height of a retaining wall shall be the distance from the top of the ground in front of the wall to the top of the wall stem, or wall step for stepped walls, including any parapets or fencing capable of retaining material.
A condition assessment of a retaining wall shall be conducted at periodic intervals as set forth by rule of the commissioner, but such assessment shall be conducted at least once every 5 years. The commissioner may establish staggered assessment cycles for retaining walls required to comply with this section.
The condition assessment shall be conducted on behalf of the owner by or under the direct supervision of a registered design professional with appropriate qualifications as prescribed by the department.
The condition assessment shall be conducted in accordance with rules promulgated by the commissioner.
A report of condition assessment shall be submitted to the department in accordance with sections 28-305.4.4.1 and 28-305.4.4.2.
Except as otherwise provided in section 28-305.4.6, the registered design professional shall submit a written report to the commissioner within 60 days of completing the assessment, but not more than 5 years following submission of the preceding report of assessment, certifying the results of the assessment.
The report shall certify the results of the assessment as either safe, safe with minor repair or safe with repair and/or engineering monitoring, as prescribed by rules of the department. The report shall clearly document the condition of the retaining wall and shall include a record of all significant deterioration, potentially unsafe conditions of the wall or affecting the wall, and movement observed. The report must be certified by the registered design professional.
Every owner of a retaining wall shall pay to the department a report filing fee for each report of condition assessment in the amount prescribed by this code.
Whenever the registered design professional under whose supervision the inspection is performed learns of an unsafe condition through a condition assessment of a retaining wall, such person shall notify the owner and the department of such condition immediately by calling 311 and by written notification to the department.
Upon the notification to the department of an unsafe condition, the owner or the owner's agent shall immediately commence such repairs, reinforcements or other measures as may be required to secure public safety.
The owner or the owner's agent shall obtain a permit within the time set forth in the rules of the department in order to correct the unsafe condition, after securing public safety as provided above.
The owner or the owner's agent shall monitor the protection of public safety until the unsafe condition is remedied.
The owner or the owner's agent shall reinspect the retaining wall and file an amended report within two weeks after the repairs have been completed certifying that the unsafe conditions of the retaining wall have been corrected.
The commissioner may grant an extension of time of up to 90 days from the date of the application for an extension to complete the repairs required to correct an unsafe condition upon receipt and review of an initial extension application submitted by the registered design professional together with such additional documentation as may be prescribed by rule.
The commissioner may grant further extensions of time to complete the repairs required to remove an unsafe condition upon receipt and review of an application for a further extension submitted by the registered design professional together with such further documentation as may be prescribed by rule.
A retaining wall or any part thereof that may pose a potential danger to persons or property, but does not require immediate action shall be rated safe with repair and/or engineering monitoring. This condition requires further investigation and timely remedial action to prevent its deterioration into an unsafe condition. A registered design professional shall be responsible for appropriately monitoring the wall until the repair is completed.
The registered design professional shall not file a report of safe with repair and/or engineering monitoring for the same retaining wall for 2 consecutive filing periods unless the second such report is accompanied by his or her professional certification attesting to the correction of all conditions identified in the prior report as requiring repair.