Ordinance 2026-06 ORDINANCE NO. 2026- 06
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 2003-37, AS
AMENDED; PROVIDING FOR REVISIONS TO THE
PURPOSE, DEFINITIONS, AND PERMIT SECTIONS;
PROVIDING FOR REGULATIONS REGARDING
EXCAVATION WITHIN THE RIGHT-OF-WAY; PROVIDING
FOR CONFLICT AND SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR
INCLUSION IN THE COLLIER COUNTY CODE OF LAWS
AND ORDINANCES; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE
DATE.
WHEREAS, in 1977, Collier County first established a set of standards to regulate and
require consistency and quality of workmanship and materials for construction activities within
the County right-of-way, which standards were updated in 1982, 1989, 1993, 2003 and 2009; and
WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners (Board) enacted Ordinance No. 2003-
37,as amended,cited in Chapter 110,Article II of the Collier County Code and Ordinances, which
Ordinance, among other things, concerns the regulation of private construction in Public Rights-
of-Way; and
WHEREAS, the County has incurred significant monetary damage resulting from third
party contractors performing excavation work in the County Rights-of-Way and damaging County
property resulting in repair costs to the County and temporary loss of essential services to County
customers; and
WHEREAS, Section 556.111, Florida Statutes, authorizes the Board to enact reasonable
rules and regulations relating to its Public Rights-of-Way; and
WHEREAS, Section 337.401, Florida Statutes, further authorizes the Board to enact and
enforce reasonable rules and regulations with reference to the placing and maintaining of utilities
along, across, or on any road and may grant to a resident or corporation organized or licensed in
Florida the use of the right-of-way in accordance with said rules and regulations; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary to implement reasonable rules and regulations regarding work
performed in the County owned right-of-way to protect the health, safety, and welfare of County
citizens; and
WHEREAS, the Board deems this Ordinance to be in the best interest of the citizens of
the County.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA,that:
SECTION ONE: Ordinance No. 03-27,as amended,and as codified in article II Construction
in Public Rights-of-Way, Sections 110-26 through 110-35 of the Code of Laws and Ordinances of
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Collier County, Florida, is hereby amended as follows:
Sec. 110-26. Purpose
This article is to protect the public against hazards resulting from private construction in the
public right-of-way, atic#to protect the structural and physical integrity of Collier County-owned
or Collier County-controlled public road right-of-way facilities and materials including and not
limited to roads,soils,bridges,sidewalks, signs,wellheads,water facilities, sewer facilities,and/or
drainage facilities:, and protect the public from the interruption of services resulting from damage
to an underground facility caused by excavation operations in the public right-of-way.
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Sec. 110-27. Definitions
County: Means the Transportation Services Division of Collier County, the Collier County
Community Development and Environmental Services Division Collier County Growth
Management Community Development Department, the Collier County Transportation
Management Services Department, the Collier County Public Utilities Department (the
"Departments"), and any other division or department of Collier County needed to assist the said
transportation services division and/or the said community development and environmental
servises-Eliv-isien Departments in enforcement of this Ordinance.
Excavate or Excavation: Means any manmade cut, cavity, trench, or depression in the earth's
surface, formed by removal of earth, intended to change the grade or level of land, or intended to
penetrate or disturb the surface of the earth, including land beneath the waters of the state, as
defined in Section 373.019(22), Florida Statutes, and the term includes pipe bursting and
directional drilling or boring from one point to another point beneath the surface of the earth, or
other trenchless technologies.
Existing Facility: Means any construction, excavation, obstruction, hole, or other change to the
then existing structure and/or compaction of soil in any public right-of-way commenced prior to
the adoption of this Ordinance, for which a Collier County right-of-way construction permit has
not been granted.
Offending Material: Means any object placed, constructed, or grown in any public right-of-way
with or without a Collier County permit and that may endanger any person, damage the right-of-
way, restrict existing or planned drainage, or impair normal maintenance.
Responsible Party: Means the individual, person, firm, private or governmental entity,
corporation, association, department or authority under whose control, authorization, or direction
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any offending material has been placed, constructed or grown in any Collier County right-of-way,
including any right-of-way under such control of Collier County. Whenever the true identity of
any such responsible party remains unknown after diligent inquiry,"Responsible Party" shall then
include all owners of the fee title to the real property upon or over which the offending material
has been placed.
Sec. 110-31. Permits
A. It shall be unlawful for any Responsible Party to dig, excavate, obstruct, or place any
construction or other material, or perform any other work which disturbs the existing structure
and/or compaction of soil in any right-of-way provided for public use in Collier County, including
any public right-of-way maintained by Collier County within the boundaries of any municipal
corporation,without first obtaining a permit for such work from the Collier County Transportation
Operations Department County as specified herein or in the Handbook as defined in Section 110-
28. In addition, it shall be unlawful for any Responsible Party to park in any right-of-way provided
for public use in Collier County, unless otherwise authorized by the County.
B. Application for each permit shall be made on forms provided by the County. Such application
shall include,the following information:
1. The precise physical location of the construction.
2. The total linear feet of the proposed work area.
2,3. The type of facility to be constructed.
3-4. The method of construction to be used.
4 5. The expected time schedule for completion of construction.
6: 6. Sketches and drawings in duplicate to completely depict the nature of all the proposed
construction.
6-7. All other information required in the Handbook.
8. The number of active right-of-way permits issued by the County to the applicant.
9. If applicable, the name and contact information for the subcontractor hired by the applicant
to perform the work.
10. Additional information as may reasonably be required by the County due to unique
conditions of the project or the permit requested, for example, a lane closure permit differs
significantly from an overweight or oversize permit.
C. The permittee shall be responsible for all conditions of the permit and to pay the applicable
permit fee then established by resolution of the Board of County Commissioners (the Board).
D. The Collier County Transportation Operations Department County may take any of the
following actions on a permit application:
1. Approve the permit based on the application as submitted.
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2. Deny the permit based on insufficient information or site-specific information,.and.
or data inconsistent with the requirements of the hHandbook or the Collier County
Land Development Code (LDC), or a violation of the conditions described in this
Ordinance, any other applicable County Ordinances, federal or state law.
3. Issue a notice of intent to issue a permit valid for up to one year, based on the
applicant's proposed time frame for construction within the right-of-way. If work
will not begin within 30 calendar days of the date on which a permit would
otherwise be issued, then such notice of intent shall be issued in lieu of the actual
permit. Upon reactivation of the permit application by the applicant, the
transportation operations department County Manager,or designee, will review the
application to assure that no conditions have changed and either issue the permit or
revise any site-specific stipulations to the permit prior to issuance.
E. If the Collier County Transportation Operations Department County Manager, or designee,
denies the issuance of, suspends, or revokes such a permit, the applicant may appeal by filing a
written notice of appeal with the board (with a copy to the county clerk) Collier County Special
Magistrate, not later than ten working days after the effective date of the notice of denial. The
board Special Magistrate will hear the appeal within s90 30 days from the date of the written notice
of appeal at a regularly scheduled board meeting. The appellant may appear before the board
Special Magistrate; the decision of the beafEl Special Magistrate shall be final.
F.No permit shall be issued unless the proposed construction conforms to the then current edition
of the following referenced publications. In the case of conflict or inconsistency, the more
restrictive rule shall apply.
1. The hHandbook.
2. Construction methods or specifications contained in Florida Department of
Transportation(FDOT) Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction,
and the most current FDOT Road Design Standards, Construction, Maintenance
and Utility Operations on the State Highway System.
3. The most current FDOT Manual of Uniform Minimum Standards for Design,
Construction and Maintenance for Streets and Highways.
4. Collier County Land Development Code (LDC, unless exempt under the existing
LDC or current Florida Statutory law).
5. Collier County Maintenance of Traffic Policy (CMA Instruction 5807, latest
revision).
If standards for the proposed construction are not contained in these references,the Collier County
Community Development and Environmental Services Division and/or Transportation Operations
Department County Manager, or designee, may impose additional conditions and/or stipulations,
including as to sidewalks/bikeways, traffic control devices, and roadway improvements as part of
the permit for the proposed construction.
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G. All work performed under any Collier County permit shall be at the expense of the permittee
and at no expense to Collier County.
H. The Collier County Transportation Operations Department County Manager, or designee,may
suspend or revoke a permit whenever any stipulation and/or condition of the permit is not being
fully and promptly complied with, or when deemed essential by Collier County to protect the
physical safety of the public.
I. The County Manager, or designee, may also deny, suspend, or revoke all active permits where
the permittee, or the permittee's subcontractor, has caused damage to County property while
performing work under an issued permit. The County Manager, or designee, will send the
permittee the invoice for the repair of damaged County property upon the County's receipt of the
invoice. The County Manager, or designee, will restore the permittee's suspended and/or revoked
permits after the permittee reimburses the County for damage to the County's property.
J. The County Manager, or designee, shall have the authority to observe work in the County
owned right-of-way and issue stop work orders for any practices that the County Manager, or
designee, deems in violation of this Ordinance, any other or applicable County Ordinance, federal
or state law. The permittee shall have ten (10)days to cure the violation from the date of notice. If
the permittee fails to cure the violation within 10 days,then the County Manager,or designee, may
revoke the permit.
The following new section is hereby added to Ordinance Number 2003-37, as amended:
SEC.110-33: EXCAVATION WITHIN THE RIGHT-OF-WAY
Excavation activities within the public right-of-way shall also be subject to the following
requirements:
1. The permittee shall comply with the Underground Facility Damage Prevention and Safety
Act set forth in Chapter 556, Florida Statutes (2000), as it may be amended.
2. In addition to the requirements set forth in Section 556.105,Florida Statutes,the permittee
shall provide the Sunshine State 811-Call of Florida operator with the permit number
issued by the County covering the proposed excavation work. Prior to the commencement
of any excavation activities, each permittee shall obtain and provide to the County
evidence of a valid Sunshine 811 ticket.
3. The County, as a condition precedent to the issuance of a permit for excavation activities
within the right-of-way, shall require the applicant to secure a bond at the applicant's sole
cost and expense as follows:
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a. The bond shall be in an amount as determined by the County Manager,or designee,
in their sole discretion; and, unless otherwise required by the County Manager, or
designee, the amount of the bond shall be a minimum of$50,000.00.
b. The bond shall indemnify the County and private property owners against any
damage caused by the permittee, including the permittee's subcontractors, while
performing an excavation within the right-of-way.
c. The bond shall remain in effect for one (1) year after the satisfactory completion
of the permitted work. At the conclusion of one (1) year after the satisfactory
completion of the permitted work, the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) is
authorized to release the bond only after verification by the County staff that there
is no claim for damages to County property within the right-of-way.
d. Each right-of-way bond may secure no more than ten right-of-way permits at any
given time. Once a permit is issued and assigned to a specific bond, that permit
shall count toward the ten-permit maximum for the duration of the bond's lifecycle,
regardless of whether any work has commenced. Permits assigned to a bond may
not be substituted, exchanged, or replaced with any other permit after issuance.A
permit canceled by the permittee before any work has begun shall continue to count
toward the ten-permit allocation for that bond and shall not be replaced with
another permit. If the permittee submits applications for additional right-of-way
permits that would exceed the ten-permit limit of an existing bond, the permittee
shall provide an additional bond meeting the requirements of this section prior to
issuance of any additional permits. The County shall not issue more than ten right-
of-way permits secured under a single bond. At the sole discretion of the County
Manager or designee, additional permits may be approved without the need for an
additional bond in the event of an emergency or if the permittee does not have an
outstanding unpaid invoice from the County for damage to the County's property.
e. If a bond securing one or more right-of-way permits expires, is canceled, becomes
inactive, or is otherwise withdrawn, all right-of-way permits secured by that bond
shall be automatically deemed suspended or inactive as of the date the bond
becomes inactive. No work may continue under any suspended or inactive permit,
and no new right-of-way permits shall be issued to the permittee until acceptable
replacement security is provided and verified by the County.
f. If any right-of-way permit secured by a bond expires without completion, or if the
permittee is issued a written notice of violation and fails to initiate corrective action
within the timeframe specified by the County,all other active right-of-way permits
secured by that bond shall be automatically suspended until the violation is
corrected or acceptable replacement security is provided.
g_ The bond shall be from a surety company authorized to do business in the State of
Florida and shall meet the requirements of the Department of the Treasury Fiscal
Service, "Companies Holding Certificates of Authority as Acceptable Sureties on
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Federal Bonds and as Acceptable Reinsurance Companies."
h. An irrevocable letter of credit from a financial institution operating within Collier
County, Florida (or other alternative forms of surety as permitted under Florida
law) or cash bond may be sufficient in place of the bond.
i. All such bonds, letters of credit, or cash bonds shall be approved as to form by the
County Attorney and held by the Clerk's Board Minutes and Records Department.
L The bond requirements in this section shall not apply to right-of-way permits for
single-family residential driveway improvements.
k. The permittee may elect to post an annual bond in the amount of Five Hundred
Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) in lieu of posting a bond for every ten permits as
described in subsection (d.). Such bond shall secure right-of-way excavation
activities for up to 150 permits, and the permittee shall be exempt from the
requirements of subsections (a.) and (d.). All permits issued pursuant to this
subsection during the annual bond period shall be secured by the annual bond.The
permittee shall submit proof of bond continuation to the County annually on the
anniversary of the bond issuance date. At the sole discretion of the County
Manager or designee, additional permits may be approved without the need for an
additional annual bond in the event of an emergency or if the permittee does not
have an outstanding unpaid invoice from the County for damage to the County's
property.
4. The County, water and sewer districts, and municipality-owned shall be exempt from the
bonding requirements described in paragraph 3. of this section.
The following Sections of Ordinance 2003-37 are hereby renumbered as follows:
SECTION110 33 110-34. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION OF THIS ORDINANCE.
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SECTION 110 3/1 110-35. CONFLICT AND SEVERABILITY.
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SECTION 100 35 110-36. PENALTIES.
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Except as renumbered, these sections remain otherwise unchanged.
SECTION TWO: CONFLICT AND SEVERABILITY.
In the event this Ordinance conflicts with any other ordinance of Collier County or other
applicable law, the more restrictive shall apply. If any phrase or portion of the Ordinance is held
invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a
separate, distinct and independent provision and such holding shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portion.
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SECTION THREE: INCLUSION IN THE CODE OF LAWS AND ORDINANCES.
The provisions of this Ordinance shall become and be made a part of the Code of Laws and
Ordinances of Collier County, Florida. The sections of the Ordinances may be renumbered or
relettered to accomplish such, and the word "ordinance" may be changed to "section," "article," or
any other appropriate word.
SECTION FOUR: EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Ordinance shall be effective upon filing with the Florida Department of State except
for the bond requirements outlined in Section 110-33(3.)which shall be effective on April 1,2026.
PASSED ANDXULY ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Collier County,
Florida, this /0 day of Fed ivar y , 2026.
ATTEST: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Crysta4 K.4S. 1, lerk of Courts COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA
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y:
* R { d7 Dan Kowal, C airman
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signatutisCYre tT only
Approved`as to form and legality:
hi3 orciim n.:':e fl:,cd with t3h:4
Secretory of Sep,,•*:`s .rffic t p
OLD L_._uy ofce 2DZb
Courtney L. DaSilva 2/3/26 and acknow? .dgc tl of that
Assistant County Attorney fiii=• received this • _w- day
off .c, ZD � X
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FLORIDA DEPARTMENT Of STATE
RON DESANTIS CORD BYRD
Governor Secretary of State
February 11, 2026
Crystal K. Kinzel
Clerk of Court
Collier County
3329 Tamiami Trail E, Suite #401
Naples, FL 34112
Dear Crystal Kinzel,
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 125.66, Florida Statutes, this will acknowledge receipt of your
electronic copy of Collier County Ordinance No. 2026-06, which was filed in this office on February 11,
2026.
Sincerely,
Alexandra Leijon
Administrative Code and Register Director
AL/dp
R. A. Gray Building • 500 South Bronough Street • Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0250
Telephone: (850) 245-6270