When the sewer runs under the street
Plenty of laterals meet the main out under the pavement, and in Fairview Heights that changes the job. Chapter 33 of the city code requires a permit from the Director of Public Works and Streets before anyone digs in a street, alley or sidewalk. The permit needs a $2,500 bond, it is issued only to a prequalified or bonded contractor, and that contractor answers for the cut for a full year afterward.
Emergencies are allowed for. A dig that cannot wait can start right away, as long as the permit is applied for by the next business day, so a broken line on a Friday night does not have to sit until Monday.
About the houses in Fairview Heights
The median house here was built in 1974, toward the end of the years when Orangeburg and mortared clay were still going into the ground. A camera run from the clean-out shows which one you have and where it is failing, and tells us before we ask for a street permit whether the problem is under the lawn or under the road.