Pilesgrove City Zoning Code

It shall be the duty of the Township Engineer to monitor all land disturbances and all land improvements undertaken in the Township pursuant to approval of a subdivision and/or site plan in accordance with the applicable provisions of this chapter.

Prior to the commencement of any land disturbance or any land improvement, the developer shall arrange for and attend a preconstruction meeting with the Township Engineer. At said meeting, the subject subdivision plat and/or site plan shall be identified, marked and dated by the Township Engineer with an acknowledgment as to its conformity to the subdivision and/or site plan approved by the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, including any conditions of approval written in the approval resolution. Thereafter, the marked and dated subdivision and/or site plan shall be filed in the office of the Township Clerk.

Written communication.

In accordance with § 145-61F of this chapter, all improvements for both site plans and subdivisions shall be inspected during the time of their installation under the supervision of the Township Engineer. At the time of inspection, in addition to an evaluation and determination of the sufficiency of the engineering aspects of the improvements, the Township Engineer shall evaluate and determine the correctness of the improvements relative to all aspects of the approved subdivision and/or site plan. Should any improvement, whether completed or under construction, be found by the Township Engineer to be contrary to the subdivision and/or site plan as approved by the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment, including any imposed conditions, such fact shall immediately be orally communicated to the developer or his/her appropriate representative on-site and, thereafter, shall be communicated by the Township Engineer, in writing, to the developer or his/her attorney.

A copy of the written communication shall be immediately filed in the office of the Township Clerk, and additional copies shall be immediately forwarded to the Chairman of the Planning Board or to the Chairman of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, and to the Board's Attorney.

On the day following the oral communication to the developer or his/her representative, the improvement found by the Township Engineer to be contrary to the subdivision and/or site plan shall be corrected so as to conform to the approved subdivision and/or site plan or the Township Engineer shall:

The developer immediately shall comply with any issued stop-work order and/or any other conditions imposed by the Township Engineer; otherwise the Township Engineer shall communicate, in writing, within two working days, the particulars of the developer's noncompliance to the Attorney of the Planning Board or to the Attorney of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be.

It shall be the duty of the Construction Official to monitor the construction of any building or structure in the Township. No new structure and no improvement to the interior of any existing structure shall be undertaken until a construction permit is obtained from the Construction Official in accordance with N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.14 and Subsection D of this section.

It shall be the duty of the Construction Official, in accordance with N.J.A.C. 5:23-4.5, to keep a record of all applications and all construction permits which are either issued or denied, with notations of any conditions involved, including the actual elevation (National Geodetic Vertical Datum) of the lowest floor area of any structure and/or the elevation to which a structure has been floodproofed in floodplain areas, which data shall form a part of the Township public records. A monthly report of construction permits shall be filed with the Township Committee, and continuous reports of construction permits shall be filed with the Tax Assessor.

Should any construction, whether completed or in process, be found by the Construction Official to be contrary to the approved construction plans and/or the Uniform Construction Code of the State of New Jersey, such fact shall immediately be noticed to the landowner or his/her appropriate representative on-site. The Construction Official shall issue, in writing, to the landowner or his/her attorney a notice of violation and orders to terminate, directing the discontinuance of the illegal action or condition and the correction of the violation pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.30.

A copy of the written communication shall be immediately filed in the office of the Township Clerk, and additional copies shall be immediately forwarded to the Mayor and to the Township Attorney.

The construction improvement found by the Construction Officer to be contrary to the approved construction plans and/or the Uniform Construction Code shall be corrected so as to conform to the applicable construction requirements, or the Construction Official shall, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.31:

The landowner immediately shall comply with any issued stop-construction order and/or any other conditions imposed by the Construction Official; otherwise, the Construction Official may communicate, in writing, the particulars of the landowner's noncompliance to the Township Attorney pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.31.

It shall be the duty of the Zoning Officer to inspect the uses, land and structures in the Township and order the owner, in writing, to remedy any condition found to exist in violation of any provision of this chapter and/or any approved subdivision and/or site plan by the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, including any conditions of approval written in the approval resolution; no structure or land shall be used in violation of this chapter and/or any approved subdivision and/or site plan.

Should any use, land or structure be found by the Zoning Officer to exist in violation of any provision of this chapter and/or any approved subdivision and/or site plan, such fact shall immediately be orally communicated to the landowner or his/her appropriate representative on-site and, thereafter, shall be communicated by the Zoning Officer, in writing, to the landowner or his/her attorney.

A copy of the written communication shall be immediately filed in the office of the Township Clerk, and additional copies shall be immediately forwarded to the Township Attorney and to the Chairman of the Planning Board or to the Chairman of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, and to the Board's Attorney.

On the day following the oral communication to the landowner or his/her representative, the use, land or structure found by the Zoning Officer to exist in violation of any provision of this chapter and/or any approved subdivision and/or site plan shall be corrected so as to conform to this chapter and any subdivision and/or site plan approval, or the Construction Official, at the Zoning Officer's request, may revoke the certificate of occupancy and, in any case, shall notify the Township Attorney and the Township Engineer of the violation via a written communication.

Every application for a construction permit shall be accompanied by two sets of plans drawn in ink or a blueprint showing the actual shape and dimensions of the lot to be built upon; the exact location, size and height of all existing and proposed structures and substructures; all existing easements; a delineation and description of any proposed extensions of public utilities; the existing or intended use of each structure; the number of dwelling units the structure is designed to accommodate; the number and location of off-street parking spaces and off-street loading areas; and such other information with regard to the lot and neighboring lots as may be necessary to determine and provide for the enforcement of this chapter. Additionally, all requirements for construction permits contained in the Uniform Construction Code (N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.15) shall be met. All dimensions on these plans relating to the location and size of the lot to be built upon shall be based on an actual survey of the lot by a licensed surveyor in the State of New Jersey.

The fee for each construction permit shall be governed by the terms of the ordinance entitled "An Ordinance of the Township of Pilesgrove in the County of Salem establishing a State Uniform Construction Code Enforcing Agency and A Construction Fee Schedule, pursuant to Chapter 217, Laws of New Jersey 1975[1] and Title 5, Chapter 23 of the New Jersey Administrative Code, including any amendments or supplements which may from time to time be adopted.

A construction permit shall be granted or denied, in writing, within 20 working days of a complete application unless additional time is agreed upon, in writing, by the applicant. One copy of such plans shall be returned to the owner when such plans have been approved or denied by the Construction Official, together with such permit as may be granted.

The lot and the location of the structures thereon shall be staked out on the grounds before construction is started, and a copy of the construction permit shall be posted conspicuously on the premises affected whenever construction work is being performed thereon. Additionally, all other requirements for construction permit procedures set forth in the Uniform Construction Code at N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.16 shall be met.

No construction permit shall be issued for any structure until prior site plan, subdivision and variance approvals, as may be necessary, have been granted by the appropriate federal, state, county or municipal agency or agencies in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and until all review and inspection fees and all local taxes and assessments on the property have been paid.

Additionally, any proposed extensions of public utilities shall be reviewed and approved by the Township Engineer prior to the issuance of a construction permit, and a written communication of the results of such reviews and a statement of approval or denial shall be provided by the Township Engineer to the Construction Official; the application for the construction permit shall be accompanied by an additional fee of $500 for such a review when applicable.

It shall be unlawful to use or permit the use of any structure or part(s) thereof until a certificate of occupancy shall have been issued by the Construction Official pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.33. Any change of use from one category of permitted use to another category of permitted use shall require a new certificate of occupancy.

Additionally, any use requiring site plan approval shall require a new certificate of occupancy. It shall be the duty of the Construction Official to issue a certificate of occupancy only when:

The fee for a certificate of occupancy shall be in the amount of 10% of the new construction permit fee which would be charged by the department pursuant to these regulations. The minimum fee shall be $65, except for one- or two-family (use group R-3 of the building subcode) structures of less than 5,000 square feet in area and less than 30 feet in height and/or structures on farms used exclusively for the storage of food or grain or the sheltering of livestock; in such cases the minimum fee shall be $35.

Unless additional time is agreed upon by the applicant, in writing, a certificate of occupancy shall be granted or denied, in writing, within 10 working days from the date that a written notification and a certified location or field survey, signed and sealed by a New Jersey state licensed surveyor, is filed with the Construction Official stipulating that the erection of the structure and all required site improvements are completed pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.23 and 5:23-2.24.

With respect to any finally approved subdivision and/or site plan or subsection thereof, a certificate of occupancy shall be issued only upon the written confirmation by the Township Engineer to the Construction Official of the completion of the following improvements as such improvements may be required as part of subdivision and/or site plan approval:

With respect to any individual residential lot within a subdivision or any building containing townhouses or apartments, a certificate of occupancy shall be issued only upon the written confirmation by the Township Engineer to the Construction Official of the completion of the following improvements, in addition to those listed in Subsection E(4) hereinabove, to the extent the same are required as part of a subdivision and/or site plan approval:

A copy of any issued certificate of occupancy shall be kept on file at the premises affected and shall be shown to the Construction Official upon request. Additionally, a copy of an issued certificate of occupancy shall be provided by the Construction Official to the Secretary of the Planning Board or to the Secretary of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, for placement in the applicable site plan or subdivision application file.

Should the Construction Official decline to issue a certificate of occupancy, his reason for doing so shall be stated on two copies of the application, and one copy shall be returned to the applicant.

Temporary certificate of occupancy.

A monthly report of the certificates of occupancy issued shall be filed with the Tax Assessor. A record of all certificates of occupancy pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23-4.5 shall be kept in the office of the Construction Official, and copies shall be furnished on request to any person having a proprietary or tenancy interest in the structure or land affected. The charge for each copy shall be established by resolution of the Township, except that there shall be no charge to a municipal agency.

The following shall be prohibited until a certificate of occupancy is issued by the Construction Official:

Whether there exists a duly established Planning Board and whether there is a duly adopted ordinance controlling the subdivision of land;

Whether the subdivision, as it relates to the land shown in the application, has been approved by the Planning Board and, if so, the date of such approval, any conditions attached to such approval and any extensions and terms thereof showing that the subdivision, of which the subject lands are a part, is a validly existing subdivision; and

Whether such subdivision, if the same has not been approved, is statutorily exempt from the requirements of approval as provided in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. and as defined in this chapter.

Any violation of any provision of this chapter shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 for each offense and/or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days. The following individuals shall be subject to potential punishment:

Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.

The imposition of penalties herein shall not preclude the Township or any other person from instituting an action to prevent an unlawful construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, conversion or use or to restrain, correct or abate a violation or to prevent the illegal occupancy of a building, land or premises.

For injunctive relief.

To set aside and invalidate any conveyance made pursuant to such a contract or sale, if a certificate of compliance has not been issued in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-56.