Hope Township City Zoning Code
§ 20-28.2
Accessory Apartment Program.
a.
Purpose. The purpose of this program is to help meet Hope Township's fair share housing obligation through the subsidization of up to 10 voluntary conversions of existing single-family dwellings or accessory buildings in the Township to accommodate accessory apartments for occupancy by very-low-, low-, and moderate-income households.
b. ACCESSORY APARTMENT APPLICANT
Definitions. As used in this subsection, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
A self-contained residential dwelling unit with a kitchen, sanitary facilities, sleeping quarters, and a private entrance, which is created within an existing home or through the conversion of an existing accessory structure on the same site or by an addition to an existing home or accessory building or by the construction of a new accessory structure on the same site.
The person or persons applying for funds to create an accessory apartment in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.
c.
Regulations.
1.
The maximum number of creditable accessory apartments shall be equal to no more than 10.
2.
All accessory apartments shall meet the following conditions:
(a)
Accessory apartments are permitted in every zoning district throughout the Township of Hope, provided that the units are affordable to very-low-, low-, and moderate-income households.
(b)
Accessory apartments shall comply with all applicable statutes and regulations of the State of New Jersey in addition to all building codes.
(c)
At the time of initial occupancy of the unit and for at least 30 years thereafter, the accessory apartment shall be rented only to a household which is either a very-low-, low- or moderate-income household.
(d)
There shall be a recorded deed or declaration of covenants and restrictions applied to the property upon which the accessory apartment is located, running with the land and limiting its subsequent rental or sale of the unit and the accessory apartment.
(e)
Pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.9,[1] the Hope Township accessory apartment program shall not restrict the number of bedrooms in any accessory apartment.
[1]
Editor's Note: In accordance with N.J.S.A. 52:14B-5.1b, Chapter 93, Substantive Rules of the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing for the Period Beginning June 6, 1994, expired on 10-16-2016.
(f)
The appropriate utility authority must certify that there is water and sewer infrastructure with sufficient capacity to serve the proposed accessory apartment. Where the proposed location is served by an individual well and/or septic system, the additional capacity necessitated by the new unit must meet the appropriate NJDEP standards.
d.
Administration.
1.
The accessory apartments program shall be affirmatively marketed by the Township's administrative agent in accordance with UHAC and the Township's Affirmative Marketing Plan.
2.
The administrative agent shall administer the accessory apartment program, including income qualifying of prospective renters, setting rents and annual rent increase, maintaining a waiting list, distributing the subsidy, securing certificates of occupancy, qualifying properties, handling application forms, filing deed restrictions and monitoring reports, and the development of applications for interested owners.
3.
The Township shall provide at least $10,000 per unit to subsidize the creation of each accessory apartment.
e.
Eligibility.
1.
Only owners of existing dwelling units within the Township of Hope are eligible to apply for the accessory apartments program. Eligibility is further determined by the following criteria:
(a)
The owner must agree to rent the accessory apartment to a very-low-, low-, or moderate-income household. Proof of each prospective tenant's income qualifications shall be required by the administrative agent.
(b)
Any existing code deficiencies in the portion of the building to be devoted to the accessory apartment unit shall be corrected, and the unit shall be brought up to code standard.
(c)
The owner of the accessory apartment shall agree, by written contract, to comply with all of the requirements of Subsection 20-28.1, Affordable Housing Requirements and Regulations, of the Code of the Township of Hope.
(d)
Property owners wishing to apply to create an accessory apartment shall submit a completed application form to the administrative agent. Accompanying the form shall be a report from the Township's Construction Code Official, ruling on whether the structure proposed to contain the accessory apartment meets applicable code requirements.