1. If required by the City Engineer, after construction or other development, but prior to final building inspection, certificate of occupancy or other final approval the applicant shall obtain and furnish to the City a topographic survey, elevation certificate, or as-built plan prepared by a licensed surveyor or engineer, with sufficient scale and contour interval to adequately assess variation in ground surface and determine the average grade after construction or development, unless the requirement for a topographic survey was waived at the time of application, such as for a project not involving grading.

2. The average finished grade of all lots, tracts or parcels after construction of a building or other development, excluding the area occupied by the above-grade building or other development, shall be no greater than 12 inches above the average grade of the lot prior to construction or development. In no instance shall finished grade at any given point be greater than 30 inches above the grade of the lot prior to construction or development. No building or other development shall be occupied or used if the requirements of this section are not met. In areas of substantial grade differential or large lots, the City Engineer may approve variations from this standard; provided, that the intent of this chapter is achieved.

3. Finished grade shall provide an appropriate transition from public streets and sidewalks to the site development, and between the subject parcel and its development and adjacent parcels so as to not result in a substantial visual or physical separation due to grade differential.

4. Any earth material that must be removed from a site in order to comply with the requirements of this chapter shall be transported to an approved disposal site at the applicant’s or property owner’s sole expense and evidence of such disposal shall be furnished to the City Engineer. The location of such site shall be indicated on the project plans and such disposal may require a separate grading permit.