The Township Committee shall appoint a Zoning Officer to administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter, except as otherwise provided by law or by this chapter. Said Officer shall be appointed for the term of one year, beginning the first day of January, and shall receive such compensation for his/her services as shall be fixed from to time to time by ordinance of the Township.

The Zoning Officer shall perform the following duties:

The Zoning Officer shall have the right to enter any building or premise during the daytime in the course of his duties.

No person shall hereafter erect, locate or alter any building or portion thereof or begin or change the use of land or a structure without first obtaining a zoning permit therefor from the Zoning Officer. No zoning permit shall be issued except in conformance with the provisions of this chapter or, where authorized, upon written order of the Land Use Board or the Township Committee.

All requests for zoning permits shall be made in writing to the Zoning Officer on forms provided by the Zoning Officer and shall be signed by the owner of the land and/or structure involved in the request, or by his authorized representative or agent. The applicant shall include a description of the use or intended use or uses of the building and/or land. Each application shall be accompanied by a site plan drawn to scale, showing any existing or proposed building or open land uses and their exact relation to all lot and street lines. Accompanying the application also must be a written statement giving satisfactory evidence to the effect that the lines of the street boundaries have been accurately located and staked on the ground and that said application is intended to comply with all provisions of this chapter or any lawful order of the Land Use Board.

Except as provided otherwise in § 60-22, Conditional uses, and § 60-20, Subdivision and site plan review procedures, a zoning permit shall be granted or refused by the Zoning Officer within 10 days after he/she shall have received an application complete in all respects, together with any required fee(s).

Application file. An individual, permanent file for each application for a permit provided for by this chapter shall be established at the time the application is made. Said file shall contain one copy of the filed application and all supporting documents, maps and plans; notations regarding pertinent dates and fees and the like; as appropriate, one copy of the resolution of the Land Use Board or other applicable approving authorities in acting on the application; the date the permit applied for was issued or denied by the Zoning Officer, and a copy of the permit or documentation of the reasons for denying the permit.

Monthly report. The Zoning Officer shall prepare a monthly report for the Township Committee. Said report shall cite all actions taken by the Zoning Officer, including any referrals made by him, all permits and certificates issued and denied, all complaints of violations received and all violations found by him and the action taken by him consequent thereon. A copy of this monthly report shall also be transmitted by the Zoning Officer to the Tax Assessor, Land Use Board, and Construction Official at the same time it is transmitted to the Township Committee.

Any variance or conditional use approval that has been granted by the Planning Board in connection with a subdivision or site plan approval will expire upon the expiration of the subdivision or site plan approval unless the final subdivision plat, minor subdivision deed, or final site plan has been signed by the Planning Board Secretary and Chairperson prior to the subdivision or site plan approval expiration date. If the final subdivision plat, minor subdivision deed, or final site plan has been timely signed as aforesaid, the variance or conditional use approval will expire two years following the date of such final plat or plan signature (or according to such other deadline as may be imposed by the Board at the time of the approval) unless prior to such expiration date or deadline any structures for which the variance or conditional use approval was granted are lawfully completed, as evidenced by the issuance of a final certificate of occupancy or other final construction approval, and any use for which the variance or conditional use approval was granted is lawfully commenced.

Any other variance or conditional use approval that has been granted by the Planning Board will automatically expire two years following the date of the resolution memorializing such grant (or according to such other deadline as may be imposed by the Board at the time of the approval) unless prior to such expiration date or deadline any structures for which the variance or conditional use approval was granted are lawfully completed, as evidenced by the issuance of a final certificate of occupancy or other final construction approval, and any use for which the variance or conditional use approval was granted is lawfully commenced.

Unless governed by the expiration periods applicable to variance or conditional use approvals pursuant to Subsections A and B, above, all zoning permits shall expire one year following the date of issuance unless prior to such expiration date any structures for which the zoning permit was issued are lawfully completed, as evidenced by the issuance of a final certificate of occupancy or other final construction approval, and any use for which the zoning permit was issued is lawfully commenced.

Any person violating any of the provisions hereof shall, upon conviction, be subject to a penalty either by imprisonment for not more than 90 days or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or both, in the discretion of the court. Each and every day that any violation continues shall be considered a separate offense, punishable by a like fine or penalty.

The imposition of the above penalty shall not preclude the institution of a legal action for the abatement of any condition constituting a violation of this chapter.