Hamilton Township City Zoning Code
ARTICLE X
Supplementary Regulations and General Modifications; Exceptions and Additions
§ 550-311 Interpretation and application of regulations generally.
In interpreting and applying these regulations, the requirements contained in this chapter are declared to be the minimum requirements necessary to carry out the purpose of these regulations. Except as hereinafter provided, these regulations shall not be deemed to interfere with, abrogate, annul or otherwise affect in any manner whatsoever any easements, covenants or other agreements between parties. Whenever the provisions of these regulations impose greater restrictions upon the use of land or buildings or upon the height of buildings, or require a larger percentage of lot to be left unoccupied than the provisions of other ordinances, rules, regulations or permits or any easements, covenants or other agreements between parties, the provisions of these regulations shall govern.
§ 550-312 Use regulations.
[Amended 1-20-1993 by Ord. No. 93-008; 3-16-2005 by Ord. No. 05-009]
A.
Effect of zoning.
(1)
Zoning affects all land. No land shall be used except for a purpose permitted in the district in which it is located.
B.
Pending application for building permits. Nothing in this chapter shall require any change in the overall layout, plans, construction, size or designated use of any development, building, structure or part thereof for which official approvals and required building permits have been granted prior to February 1, 1979.
C.
Expiration of variances, special use permits and conditional use approvals.
(1)
All variances, special use permits and conditional uses which have been approved prior to February 1, 1979, shall expire within six months of the date of the passage of this chapter, unless building permits are secured and construction commences. Notwithstanding the above, those variance and conditional use approvals which have been outstanding for less than one year shall expire within one year of the date of the passage of this chapter unless building permits are secured and construction commences.
(2)
Variances, special use permits, and conditional use approvals associated with subdivision and/or site plan approval shall have expiration dates which coincide with the expiration date of the subdivision and/or site plan approval as prescribed by the Municipal Land Use Law, Chapter 291, compiled as N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
(3)
All other variances and/or conditional use approvals not referenced in Subsection D(1) or (2) above shall expire within two years of publication of their approval by either the Zoning Board of Adjustment or Planning Board, unless the applicant has successfully fulfilled all conditions imposed by the Zoning Board of Adjustment or Planning Board and obtained a certificate of occupancy from the Township. The Zoning Board of Adjustment or the Planning Board may grant one extension, not to exceed one year in time, for the expiration of a variance and/or a conditional use approval.
D.
Street access to lots. No building shall be erected on a lot which does not have frontage upon an improved street, which shall be either a public street, a publicly approved street or a publicly maintained street.
E.
Substandard buildings or structures. No building or structure shall be used or occupied if such building or structure is in need of major structural repairs or is unsafe or unsanitary or if the premises do not have connection with the Township sanitary sewerage system or alternative sewage facilities approved by the Health Officer.
F.
Notification of property owners. Wherever in this chapter there is a requirement for the notification of property owners, the provisions shall apply irrespective of municipal boundary lines.
G.
Parking, loading and vehicular access.
(1)
Off-street parking and loading regulations. No building shall be erected or structurally altered except in conformity with the off-street parking and loading regulations specified in this chapter.
(2)
Vehicular access to streets, roads or highways. In all districts, provisions shall be made for sufficient on-site or -lot vehicular turnaround space to permit a vehicle to enter a street, road or highway in a forward manner. The above shall not apply to minor residential streets.
(3)
Parking of commercial vehicles in residential zones and on residential properties in any zone. One commercial vehicle owned or used by a resident of the premises shall be permitted to be parked on a public street or parked or garaged on a lot as an accessory use in accordance with the Code of the Township of Hamilton. The provisions of this chapter must be met on the single lot for which the use is accessory to the main use of the premises. The provisions shall not be deemed to limit the number of commercial trucks or cars used upon an active farm for agricultural purposes or construction equipment which is used on the site for construction purposes.
[Amended 10-5-2021 by Ord. No. 21-054; 8-20-2024 by Ord. No. 24-031]
H.
Stripping of topsoil. No person shall strip, excavate or otherwise remove topsoil for sale.
I.
Public utility corporations. All facilities, such as pumping stations, repeater stations and electric substations, which require a structure above grade, shall harmonize with the character of the neighborhood and shall have adequate fences and other safety devices. A site plan shall be furnished to the Planning Board for review and approval.
J.
Railroads. No railroad right-of-way shall be used for any other purpose than the location of railroad tracks, spur tracks, loading and unloading platforms, structures, facilities or uses incidental to railroad operation, provided that none of the above uses, except railroad tracks, shall be permitted where a railroad right-of-way is adjacent to or within 150 feet from any residentially zoned property on the same side of the right-of-way proposed to be used for spur tracks, loading and unloading platforms, structures, facilities or uses incidental to railroad operation.[2]
K.
Public election voting places. The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed as to interfere with the temporary use of any property as a voting place in connection with a municipal or other public election.
L.
Location of certain traffic-generating uses. No use or structure involving, as a principal part of the conduct of a business, the use or servicing of motor vehicles, such as an automobile and gasoline service station, automobile sales area, new and used car lots, community garage or parking area, public garage, storage garage, drive-in business, distribution plant, motor freight terminal or any other use or structure which generates substantial or concentrated vehicular traffic, shall be located within 600 feet of a church, school, library, hospital, charitable institution or place of public assemblage, public park, playground, fire station or an institution for the care or housing of children or the aged and when the uses or structures are located along the same street, road or highway. Similarly, no use or structure such as second-mentioned above shall be located closer than 600 feet to a use or structure such as first-mentioned above. The distances between uses and structures shall be measured in a straight line from the nearest boundary of the lot of one such use to the nearest boundary of the other use.
M.
Building setbacks along easements. No building or structure shall be closer than 10 feet to a storm drain, water, sanitary sewer, gas or electrical easement or right-of-way, unless otherwise approved by the Township Engineer.
N.
Accessory buildings.
(1)
Accessory buildings attached to principal building. An accessory building attached to the principal building shall comply in all respects with the yard requirements of this chapter in respect to the principal building.
(2)
Accessory buildings on corner lot. Accessory buildings on corner lots shall not be erected closer to the street line than the front yard required on the adjacent lot.
(3)
Accessory buildings prior to principal buildings. No building permit shall be granted for the construction of an accessory building until such time as a building permit shall have been granted for the construction of the principal building upon the premises. Construction of the principal building shall either precede or be simultaneous with construction of the accessory building. An accessory building shall not be located on a lot unless a principal building is also located on that same lot.
O.
[3]Trailers and trailer camps; sales.
(1)
House trailers. No house trailer, mobile home or other similar habitable mobile equipment may be parked or stored in any district except in accordance with the following regulations:
(a)
Not more than one trailer shall be parked or stored on any lot.
(b)
No trailer shall be parked or stored within 10 feet from a rear lot line or side lot line.
(c)
No trailer shall be parked or stored in any required side yard or front yard.
(d)
No trailer shall be occupied in any district for more than 48 hours, except as provided in Subsection R(1)(f) below.
(e)
No trailer, whether intended for residence or otherwise, shall be affixed to, nor shall there be affixed to it, any permanent wall, patio, room, foundation or other permanent structure or part of a structure.
(f)
In the event of a residential structure on a lot experiencing a disaster, natural or man-made, such as flood, fire, etc., the administrative officer may grant permission to allow one house trailer to be parked or stored and occupied temporarily on that lot while the residential structure is being rebuilt or repaired. The house trailer may not be parked or stored and occupied longer than 180 days. One extension of 60 days may be granted by the administrative officer. If the residential structure is not ready for occupancy within the time periods prescribed above, a use variance must be sought from the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
(2)
House trailer camps and sales. Trailer camps, trailer parks, commercial storage of house trailers and house trailer sales are specifically prohibited in all districts.
(3)
Use of trailer bodies for storage. Trailer bodies may not be used for storage on any property in any zoning district in the Township.
P.
Dog runs. Dog runs may be permitted as accessory uses to residential properties, provided that they adhere to accessory building requirements of the district and are maintained on a daily basis, except that no portion of the run shall be located less than 15 feet from any lot line. Runs may not have fences which exceed six feet in height.
R.
Trash removal from disturbed land.
(1)
All excavated material, refuse, rubbish, solid waste, trade waste, trash and garbage must be removed on a weekly basis by the developer from any land disturbed for development.
(2)
Appropriate safeguards must be made to ensure that such materials do not travel to adjacent properties.
(3)
Any of the above materials which appear on adjacent properties are subject to removal on a weekly basis.
S.
Disinterment of animal remains. The disinterment and/or removal of animal remains buried in a pet cemetery is prohibited.
T.
Separation of certain outdoor uses from residential property and zone. No commercial activity which is conducted outside of an enclosed building, which involves the potential release of gasoline or diesel fumes, use of high-intensity illumination or involves vehicular queuing or traffic generation, such as a gasoline service station, shall be established or commenced within 500 feet of a residential property or residential zone. Also, no residential use shall be established closer than 500 feet to such activity. The five-hundred-foot distance shall be measured in a straight line from the nearest activity area or structure supporting such outdoor activity to the nearest boundary of the residential property or residential zone.
U.
Separation of certain motor vehicle intensive uses from residential property and zone. No activity which, by virtue of its commercial nature involves intensive motor vehicle use, including but not limited to twenty-four-hour convenience stores and/or automobile or gasoline service stations, particularly if the service station is located adjacent to or is part of the convenience store, shall be established or commenced within 500 feet of a residential property or residential zone. Also, no residential use shall be established closer than 500 feet to such activity. The five-hundred-foot distance shall be measured in a straight line from the nearest activity area or structure supporting such activity to the nearest boundary of the residential property or residential zone.
§ 550-313 Area and yard regulations.
[Amended 1-20-1993 by Ord. No. 93-008; 11-4-2005 by Ord. No. 05-025]
A.
Area.
(1)
Conformity with area regulations. Except as hereinafter provided, no building shall be erected, reconstructed, converted, enlarged, structurally altered or moved on a lot or moved to another lot, unless such building or enlargement conforms to the area regulations of the district on which such building is located.
(2)
Maintenance of required yards. No yard or other open space for each and every building existing February 1, 1979, or for any building erected thereafter shall be encroached upon or reduced in any manner, except in conformity with these regulations. No yard for one principal building shall be considered as a yard for any other principal building, and no yard on one lot shall be considered as a yard for a principal building on another lot. Shrubbery, driveways, off-street parking spaces, retaining walls, fences, curbs and planting screens or planted buffer strips shall not be construed to be encroachments on yards.
(3)
Reduction or change in lot size. No lot shall be reduced in size so as to produce a land parcel which is not in conformity with these regulations, unless the land parcel is combined with other land to produce a conforming lot or unless said parcel is needed and accepted for public use.
(4)
Required front yard and area for lots on streets and roads proposed for right-of-way widening. Where a building lot has frontage upon a street or road which is proposed for right-of-way widening, the required front yard shall be measured from the proposed future right-of-way line. The area between the existing right-of-way line and the proposed right-of-way line shall not be included in the minimum required lot area.
(5)
Substandard lots of record. Where a lot existed of record either by subdivision or filed map or on Township records as of February 1, 1979, having an area of lesser dimensions than that required by this chapter, and the owner of such lot does not own any other parcel or tract adjacent thereto, said lot may nonetheless be used for a one-family dwelling or for any nondwelling use permitted in the district in which it is located, provided that the lot is of sufficient size to assure adequate and safe facilities for the disposal of sewage and waste products, and provided that there is adequate separation between sewage and waste disposal systems and all water supplies, as determined by the Division of Health, except that no building may be erected on a lot of a width and area less than the following:
District | Lot Width (feet) | Lot Area (square feet) |
|---|---|---|
RRC | 300 | 120,000 |
R-15 | 75 | 10,000 |
R-10 | 60 | 8,000 |
R-7 | 40 | 4,000 |
(6)
Adjoining lots. When two or more adjoining lots of record with continuous frontage are in one ownership at any time after February 1, 1979, and such lots individually are less than the requirements set forth by this chapter, then such group of lots shall be considered as a single lot or several lots of minimum permitted width and area for the district in which located.
B.
Yards; general; permitted obstructions in required yards.
(1)
All required yards shall be unobstructed except as provided herein. Since required yards shall be open to the sky, an obstruction shall include the projection of a structure into such spaces at any level above ground.
(2)
Projection into yards of a porte cochere; cornices, eaves, belt courses, sills, canopies or other similar architectural features; chimneys; open fire escapes; open balconies, porches, platforms or landing places; open ornamental fences, hedges, landscape architectural features or guard railings around depressed ramp areas; screening walls or fences; and landscape features such as trees, shrubs or flowers are permitted, subject to the terms and specifications contained in this subsection.
(3)
Signs may be located within or project into a required yard, subject to conditions of § 550-124.
(4)
Parking and loading areas may occupy a required yard, subject to provisions established for the district in which located.
(5)
An arbor, trellis, flagpole or recreation yard may be permitted in any required yard.
(6)
Handicap access structures shall be permitted in all residential zones to project into required front, rear and side yard setbacks subject to review and approval of the administrative officer.
C.
Front yards.
(1)
Multiple-frontage lots. Any building constructed on a lot having a frontage on two or more streets shall be so located as to comply with the regulations governing the front yard restrictions and setbacks on all streets on which such lot has frontage. In the case of an interior through lot, the owner shall elect and so designate on the site plan which yard shall be the required rear yard and the required front yard. The designated rear yard shall be attractively landscaped and maintained so as to conform to the character of the front yards in the general area. In the case of a corner lot, driveway access shall be from the lesser of the two streets. In the case of existing buildings, the front shall be determined by the official address of the building.
(2)
Determination of frontage for irregularly shaped lots. The minimum frontage requirements for irregularly shaped lots shall be measured at the rear line of the required front yard, but in no case shall the lot width at the street line be less than 2/3 of the minimum lot width required by this chapter.
(3)
Reduction of front yard setback requirements for substandard lots of record existing by subdivision, filed map or on Township records as of February 1, 1979. In any residential district where the average setback line for existing buildings on all lots located wholly or partly within 200 feet of any lot, and within the same block and zoning district and on the same side of the street as such lot, is less than the minimum setback required in the district, the administrative officer may waive the front yard setback requirement as contained in this chapter and set front yard setback requirements at not less than the existing average setback distance for all lots within 200 feet. When lots within the 200 feet are vacant, the vacant lot shall be considered as having the minimum required setback for the purpose of computing an average setback distance.
(5)
Fire escapes. Fire escapes are not permitted in front yards.
(6)
Open balconies. Open balconies, not covered by a roof or canopy, which extend above the level of the first floor of the building, may be erected to project into front yards, provided that such structures are not more than 30 inches in depth.
(7)
Porches, platforms or landing places. Open structures, such as steps, platforms, paved terraces or landing places, which do not extend above the first-floor level of the building and which have no wall more than 30 inches high, may project into a required front yard for a distance not exceeding 10 feet.
(8)
Awnings and movable canopies. An awning or movable canopy may project into a required front yard not more than 10 feet.
(9)
Bay or bow window. A bay or bow window may project into a required front yard not more than 30 inches.
D.
Side yards.
(1)
Side yard requirements for substandard lots of record in closely built areas. Where a lot existed of record either by subdivision, filed map or on Township records as of February 1, 1979, and the owner of such lot does not own any other parcel or tract contiguous thereto, the administrative officer may waive the side line requirements as contained in this chapter and set side line requirements in keeping with the character of the immediate neighborhood.
(2)
Determination of side yards for irregularly shaped lots. Where the application of side yard regulations is impractical for substandard lots or lots of peculiar shape or location, such regulations may be modified and the side yard requirements determined by the administrative officer in keeping with the character of the immediate area.
(3)
Architectural features. Architectural features may project into a required side yard a distance not greater than the following:
(4)
Fire escapes. An open or lattice-enclosed fireproof outside fire escape may project not more than six feet into a required side yard.
(5)
Open balconies. Open balconies, not covered by a roof or canopy, which extend above the level of the first floor of the building, may be erected to project into side yards not more than 30 inches.
(6)
Movable awnings and canopies. A movable awning or canopy may project into a required side yard not more than four feet.
(7)
Bay or bow window. A bay or bow window may project into a required side yard not more than 30 inches.
E.
Rear yards.
(1)
Determination of rear yards for substandard or irregularly shaped lots. Where the application of rear yard regulations is impractical for substandard lots or lots of peculiar shape or location, such regulations may be modified and the rear yard requirements determined by the administrative officer in keeping with the character of the immediate area.
(3)
Fire escapes. An open or lattice-enclosed fireproof outside fire escape may project not more than six feet into a required rear yard.
(4)
Open balconies. Open balconies, not covered by a roof or canopy, which extend above the level of the first floor of the building, may be erected to project into rear yards not more than 30 inches.
(5)
Steps, platforms, paved terraces or landing places. Open structures, such as steps, platforms, paved terraces or landing places, which do not extend above the first-floor level of the building and which have no wall more than 30 inches high, may project into a required rear yard for a distance not exceeding 10 feet.
(6)
Awnings and movable canopies. An awning or movable canopy may project into a required rear yard not more than 10 feet.
(7)
Bay or bow windows. A bay or bow window may project into a required rear yard not more than 30 inches.
F.
Site plan. Any addition or alteration to an existing conforming, nonresidential structure which does not exceed 2,000 square feet of enclosed and roofed area; which does not involve any variance nor waiver request; which involves a site which previously received formal site plan approval; which, in the opinion of the Administrative Officer, meets parking and other applicable requirements of the requested construction; may be approved by the Administrative Officer through application for an administrative waiver of site plan review.
[Added 8-20-2024 by Ord. No. 24-031]