Longport City Zoning Code

Accessory buildings as part of principal buildings. Any accessory building attached to a principal building shall be considered part of the principal building, and the total structure shall adhere to the yard requirements for the principal building regardless of the technique of connecting the principal and accessory buildings.

Accessory buildings not to be constructed prior to principal buildings. No construction permit shall be issued for the construction of an accessory building for the purpose of occupancy prior to the issuance of a construction permit for the construction of the main building upon the same premises. If construction of the main building does not precede or coincide with the construction of the accessory building, the construction official shall revoke the construction permit for the accessory building until construction of the main building has proceeded substantially toward completion. There shall be no structure, aboveground deck or platform connecting the principal structure with the accessory structure.

Distance between adjacent buildings. The minimum distance between any accessory building and the principal structure shall be five feet.

Height and area of accessory structure. No accessory structure shall have a height greater than 12 feet above existing grade, which existing grade shall be determined by the Municipal Zoning Officer. Accessory structures shall not exceed 100 square feet in area per principal use.

Location. An accessory building or structure shall only be permitted with the rear yard of the lot as determined by the Municipal Zoning Officer. Said building shall be constructed not less than 12 inches to the rear and/or side property lines if of masonry construction and not less than three feet to the rear and/or side yard property lines if of other than masonry construction. No accessory building or structure shall be permitted within any sight triangle.

All permitted fences shall be situated on a lot in such a manner that the finished side of such fence shall face adjacent properties. No fence shall be erected of barbed wire, topped with metal spikes, nor constructed of any material or in any manner which may be dangerous to persons or animals.

On any lot in any district, no wall or fence shall be erected or altered so that said wall or fence shall be over six feet in height, to the highest point excepting the posts, in side and rear yard areas. Fence posts not exceeding six inches by six inches in area may be permitted to exceed the six-foot maximum height by no more than 12 inches. The six-foot-high fence may be extended from the principal building to the side lot line as long as said fence does not encroach into the front yard as defined in this chapter.

Sight triangle areas shall be required and shown on all plans for development of property, which property abuts an intersection with a street and/or alley. A sight triangle area shall contain no construction and/or vegetation which exceeds 42 inches above the finish elevation of the top of curb, if a street, or finish grade of the asphalt or concrete surface, if an alley. In addition, all fencing and/or walls along the distances established by said area shall be of a type that consists of not less than 50% open space within said fence mesh or wall.

For said street/street intersections, the sight triangle shall be measured along the property line a distance of 15 feet in each direction from the point of intersection of the street right-of-way lines. For said street/alley intersections, the sight triangle shall be measured along the property line a distance of 15 feet along the street property line and 10 feet along the alley property line from the point of intersection of the street/alley right-of-way lines. For said alley/Beach Terrace or alley/Ocean Breeze Terrace intersections, the sight triangle shall be measured along the property line a distance of 10 feet along the Ocean Breeze Terrace/Beach Terrace property line and 10 feet along the alley property line from the point of intersection of the alley/Ocean Breeze Terrace or alley/Beach Terrace right-of-way lines.

Bulkheads.

Fireplaces and firepits.

Insofar as is practical, side lot lines shall be either at right angles or radial to street lines.

Each lot must front upon an approved municipal, state or county street.

Where extra width had been dedicated for widening of existing streets, lots shall begin at such new street line, and all setbacks shall be measured from such line.

Monuments shall be installed for all newly created lots in compliance with the requirements of N.J.S.A. 46:23-9.11q(8). All lot corners shall be marked with a concrete monument or metal alloy pin of permanent character.

Landscaping.

Access.

Location of parking and loading. Required off-street parking and loading spaces shall be located on the same lot or premises as the use served, regardless of the number of spaces required by this chapter. No parking space may be located or placed within a designated fire lane, street, alley, driveway, landscaped area, traffic aisle, buffer area, sidewalk, turning area, or sight triangle.

Type of facility.

Electrical and/or electronic devices. All electrical or electronic devices shall be subject to the provisions of Public Law 90-602, 90th Congress, HR 10790, dated October 18, 1968, entitled "An Act for the Protection of Public Health and Safety from the Dangers of Electronic Product Radiation." Radiation products, as defined in DHEW Publication No. (FDA) 75-8003, shall be so limited and controlled that no measurable energy can be recorded at any point beyond the property boundaries. The applicant, upon request, shall produce certified data wherein measurements made in accordance with the procedure and standards set forth in the DHEW Publication No. (FDA) 75-8003 adequately demonstrate compliance with the minimum standards established by the act. All other forms of electromagnetic radiation lying between 100 KHz and 10 GHz shall be restricted to the technical limits established in the Federal Communication Commission's rules and regulations. Additionally, electric or electronic equipment shall be shielded so there is no interference with any radio or television reception at the lot line or beyond the operator's dwelling unit in the case of multifamily dwellings as the result of the operation of such equipment.

Glare. No use shall produce a strong, dazzling light or reflection of a strong, dazzling light or glare beyond its lot lines. Exterior lighting shall be shielded, buffered and directed so that glare, direct light or reflection will not become a nuisance to adjoining properties, adjoining dwelling units, adjoining districts or streets.

Heat. No use shall produce heat perceptible beyond its lot lines. Further, no use shall be permitted which would cause the temperature to rise or fall in any body of water from the existing background temperature.

Noise. Noise levels shall be designed and operated in accordance with local regulations and those rules established by the New Jersey State Department of Environmental Protection as currently adopted and amended.

Odor. All reasonable measures shall be taken to minimize odors emanating from nonagricultural operations, and the applicant shall present evidence of measures to comply. Said measures shall be subject to approval and inspection of the Planning Board.

Storage and waste disposal. No materials or wastes shall be deposited upon a lot in such form or manner that they may be transferred off the lot by natural causes or forces, nor shall any substance be deposited which can contaminate an underground aquifer or otherwise render such underground aquifer undesirable as a source of water supply or recreation or which will destroy aquatic life. All materials or wastes which might cause fumes or dust or which constitute a fire hazard or which may be edible or otherwise attractive to rodents or insects shall be stored indoors and enclosed in appropriate containers adequate to eliminate such hazards. All residential and commercial uses shall comply with the municipal ordinance for recycling as currently amended. All commercial uses shall provide private trash pickup by a licensed contractor.

Ventilation. No use shall obstruct the natural ventilation of adjacent uses nor contaminate the air with excessive heat or odor. Further, no air conditioners or exhaust fans shall be permitted to discharge exhausted air unless set back from all property lines 10 feet or equipped with baffles to deflect the discharged air away from the adjacent use.

Vibration. There shall be no vibration which is discernible to the human sense of feeling beyond the immediate lot.

General provisions. No signs may be placed on or attached to a building or erected independently for any purpose other than to advertise a permitted business or use conducted on the same premises. No billboards shall be erected or replaced which are not in accordance with the standards established in this chapter. Unless otherwise specified in this chapter, the erection of any sign shall require a construction permit. No sign of any type shall be permitted to obstruct driving vision, traffic signals, traffic directional and identification signs, other places of business or other signs or windows of the building on which they are located. No sign shall be attached to trees, fences, posts, stumps, utility poles or other signs, but shall be freestanding or attached to buildings in an approved manner. The Borough of Longport and the Borough Free Public Library are hereby exempt from the provisions of this subsection and may display any sign, banner, advertisement, flyer, etc., as approved by the Mayor.

Fencing.

Lighting. All pool/hot tub/spa lighting shall be contained within the structure and below the waterline. Area lighting shall be in conformance with § 167-23. No floodlights are permitted.

Floodplain. All pool equipment shall be placed on a foundation with a finished elevation not less than the base flood elevation for the lot as designated on the DFIRM. With the exception of pools and spas placed within rear yard patios and decks along the Atlantic Ocean and Risley's Channel (between the principal structure and bulkhead/seawall), no pool coping shall be higher than two feet above the top of the curb elevation on the street abutting said lot. For pools placed within the setbacks abutting alleys or Beach Terrace, no pool coping shall be higher than two feet above the existing asphalt or concrete pavement or existing curb, whichever is the higher.

Setbacks.

All pools shall have an exterior walkway. A continuous exterior walkway shall have a minimum width of three feet from the waterline to a maximum width of four feet. Any walkway wider than four feet shall be considered a patio and meet the setback requirements for patios in the respective zoning district. Noncontinuous pool walkways consisting of solid step stones not greater than 24" x 24" and spaced not less than 18 inches apart shall not be required to meet the setback requirements.

The coping around a pool shall maintain a setback of at least 3.5 feet from any driveway or designated parking area.

Aboveground swimming pools are prohibited. An "aboveground swimming pool" is defined as a pool of any shape constructed entirely above the final property grade. Aboveground pools are capable of being easily disassembled and reassembled to their original configuration.

An as-built survey shall be required after construction for all new swimming pools to confirm that all setbacks and ordinance requirements are compliant.

All pools shall have a minimum clearance of three feet around the entire pool to ensure safe access. If plantings are provided around a pool area, they shall be maintained to ensure that there is always a minimum clearance of three feet between the water line and vegetation.

Where there is a question as to the suitability of a lot for its intended use due to factors such as flood conditions, severely limited soils or similar circumstances, the Planning Board may, after investigation, withhold approval of such lot or lots until such time as the subdivider has presented adequate proof to the satisfaction of the Planning Board, that the lot or lots are suitable for the intended use or that the subdivider will employ construction techniques that will enable the applicant to negate any unsuitability to the satisfaction of the Borough Engineer.

If the soils of the site are not satisfactory for the intended construction, the plans shall be designed to eliminate or overcome the poor soils condition. The Borough Engineer may require that soil borings be performed at the site at his direction in order to determine the extent of poor soils and subsoil groundwater conditions. The measures may include, but are not limited to, underdrains, subbase outlet drains and soil excavation and replacement with approved embankment material.