Introduction

The Department of Public Works oversees the maintenance and operation of the public roads and bridges throughout the county, waterways, and the County's Fleet Department.

The mission of the Public Works Maintenance Operations Department is to maintain a safe, quality transportation infrastructure for the citizens who live, work and travel throughout Hernando County. Currently, this includes the maintenance of 1,141.93 miles of paved roads ranging from local residential to urban arterial and 504.22 miles of unpaved roads. Along with the above tasks, 19 bridges, over 119 traffic control and beacon signals, informational signs, thermoplastic roadway striping, and rights-of-way litter/debris pick-up, and rights-of-way mowing fall under this department's jurisdiction. laying new asphalt road More specific tasks include:

• Drainage – repair and maintain county-owned drainage culverts, Catch basins, drainage swales, retention ponds and shoulder repair;
• Rights-of-Way (ROWs)
• Mowing - the county is on a 6 – 8 week mowing cycle under normal conditions. Issues for delays include, but are not limited, to weather conditions and equipment failure.
• Right-of-Way Permits*/Inspections – all work in the county rights-of-way, alleys, and permanent easements shall have prior approval from the Public Works Department BEFORE any work is performed.
  *Unless otherwise noted, a permit shall be obtained from and submitted to the Public Works Department for review and approval. The original permit application shall be submitted at a minimum of two (2) weeks prior to the work being performed.
• Pavement Maintenance – pothole patching, driveways repairs (within Rights-of-Way), sidewalk repair and maintenance
• Grading – limerock roads, base repair and upgrades, prep roads for MSBU projects. The county is on a 6 – 8 week grading cycle.
• Grading of emergency maintained Right-of-Ways are completed when a road is deemed "impassable".
  Installation and maintenance of waterways navigational aids; waterways tree trimming, ramp and dock maintenance, vandalism repair/cleanup, debris pick-up/removal, and trash removal of the County's public waterways
• Fleet – monitors, coordinates and manages the motorized vehicle and equipment inventory throughout the county. Fleet effectively monitors and coordinates State and Federal regulatory procedures pertaining to fuel inventory and garage operations, as well as ensures the highest quality of vehicle and equipment maintenance through the implementation of a full-range, in-house maintenance program.

Right of Way Permits

All work in the county right of way, alleys and permanent easements shall have prior approval from the Public Works Department before any work is performed.

Unless otherwise noted, a permit shall be obtained from and submitted to the Public Works Department for review and approval. The original permit application shall be submitted in sufficient time to allow the department to review the proposed work and comment.

• Right of Way Utilization Permit Application (Revised 05162016)
• Ordinance 2016-8

Fees

A permit fee and a financial guarantee that are commensurate to the amount of work shall be required with each permit application. The financial guarantee in the amount agreeable to the Public Works Department shall be cash or an approved irrevocable letter of credit.

• Right of Way Utilization Permit Application Notice Letter

Warranty

The Applicant shall be responsible for the work authorized under the permit for a period of one year from the date of completion. Should there be any defects or failures in the work, such as, but not limited to, settlement of trenches in the roadway/shoulders or graded areas, pipe, curb and gutter, driveways, sidewalks, vegetation, etc., corrective work shall be performed immediately upon notification from the County. Failure to respond in a reasonable time frame, as determined by the County based on public need or safety, shall be just cause for the county to take the necessary action to have the defect corrected and to bill the Applicant or draw on the financial guarantee for the cost to correct the defect.

Traffic Control

The Applicant shall be responsible for providing all traffic control as required by the Traffic Engineering Department. All work shall be inspected and approved by the Public Works Department. The Permit can be revoked at any time for unsatisfactory work or failure to comply with the requirements of the permit. The open cutting of roads shall not be permitted, unless substantial justification is submitted and approved. If approval is granted, restoration of the pavement shall be as specified in the permit, or as directed by the Public Works Department. Pavement restoration requirements are subject to change if the amount of actual disturbance is more than what was anticipated when the permit was approved. The installation of any private facility within the County right of way, in which the County will not ultimately become the owner of the facility, cannot be installed in the county right of way unless an Agreement for Use of Public Rights of Way has been executed between the Applicant and the County.

Driveways

Individual requests to construct or modify a residential entrance will not be subject to the requirements above, as long as the request is specifically from the homeowner who will accept full responsibility for the work. Once it has been determined that the location of the entrance or modification of an entrance meets County requirements, a letter will address inspection requirements, time limits, responsibility and workmanship and will include specifications and standards that are applicable to the work. No permit fee or financial guarantee will be required for this form of a permit.

Maintained Roads

Collector Roads

Residential Roads

Emergency Maintenance Only

* We maintain approximately 450 miles of unpaved roads. 400 miles are graded on a 6 – 8 week schedule depending on weather conditions.