Erosion and Sediment Control and/or Stormwater Management Bond - City of Virginia Beach, VA in Virginia

Brief Summary

This bond has no standard amount. The City of Virginia Beach sets it project by project, based on the erosion, sediment and stormwater measures on your approved plan, so the number comes from your plan review and not from a price list. A surety bond lets a developer or contractor post that security for a premium instead of locking up cash in escrow or a line of credit through a bank letter of credit while the site is open.

The City of Virginia Beach requires a performance bond before it issues land disturbance approval for work under its Erosion and Stormwater Management ordinance, Appendix D of the City Code. Virginia Code 62.1-44.15:34 authorizes the City, as the VESMP authority, to require a reasonable performance bond with surety, cash escrow, letter of credit or a combination. The bond is written on the City's Erosion & Sediment Control/Land Disturbing Activity/Stormwater Management Permit Performance Bond form, and the City must refund or release it within 60 days after its conditions are met.

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How to Apply for a Erosion and Sediment Control and/or Stormwater Management Bond:

• Get the approved erosion and stormwater plan and the required bond amount from the City during plan review.
• Identify the principal exactly as the City will list the applicant on the land disturbance approval.
• Complete the bond application and review the quoted premium.
• Have the surety execute the City's Erosion & Sediment Control/Land Disturbing Activity/Stormwater Management Permit Performance Bond form.
• Deliver the executed bond to the Virginia Beach Development Services Center before land disturbance approval is issued.
• Request release once the City's conditions are completed. The City must refund or terminate the security within 60 days.

Detailed Information About the Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control and/or Stormwater Management Bond:

Who posts this bond

Virginia Beach administers erosion and stormwater control locally under its Erosion and Stormwater Management ordinance, which the City updated in March 2022 along with its Public Works Design Standards Manual. The applicant for land disturbance approval posts the bond. State agencies and federal entities are excluded from the bonding authority in Virginia Code 62.1-44.15:34.

How the amount is set

There is no fixed figure. State law calls for a reasonable performance bond sized so the City can carry out the required erosion, sediment and stormwater measures at the applicant's expense if the applicant fails to. In practice the amount follows the measures shown on the approved plan for your site, and the City gives you the required figure during plan review. Confirm the number with the Development Services Center before you order the bond, because the surety writes the exact penal sum the City requires.

What the bond guarantees

The bond guarantees that you will comply with the conditions the City imposes on your land disturbing activity. If you fail to act after proper notice and within the time allowed, the City can do the work itself and draw on the security. If the City's reasonable cost exceeds the amount of security it holds, state law lets it collect the difference from you directly, so the bond is a floor on your exposure and not a ceiling.

Forms and filing

The City publishes its own form, the Erosion & Sediment Control/Land Disturbing Activity/Stormwater Management Permit Performance Bond, on the Planning Department Sureties page. A letter of credit must follow the City's standard format for letters of credit, also posted there. Submit through the Development Services Center, which can be reached at (757) 385-4621 or DSC@vbgov.com. Confirm the current form version and filing steps with the DSC before the bond is issued.

Release

Under Virginia Code 62.1-44.15:34, within 60 days after the City's conditions are completed, the bond or the unexpended or unobligated portion of it must be refunded to the applicant or terminated. Premium is set by the surety based on the bond amount, the principal's credit and financial strength, and its experience with site work of similar size.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control and/or Stormwater Management Bond:

• City of Virginia Beach as obligee.
• The City's own performance bond form for erosion, sediment control, land disturbing activity and stormwater permits.
• Penal sum equal to the amount the City sets for your approved plan.
• Alternatives the City may accept under state law include cash escrow, a letter of credit in the City's standard format, or a combination.
• Owner or principal credit and financial review by the surety.

Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control and/or Stormwater Management Bond FAQs:

Official and Additional Resources for the Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control and/or Stormwater Management Bond: