West Orange City Zoning Code

No person or organization shall film or permit filming on public land or on private property where such filming involves the use of public property for the operation, placement or temporary storage of vehicles or equipment utilized in such filming, including, but not limited to, any temporary structure, barricade or device intended to restrict or block off pedestrian or vehicular traffic, without first having obtained a permit from the Director of the Department of Planning, (Director) which permit shall set forth the approved location of such filming and the approved duration of such filming by specific reference by day or dates. Said permit must be readily available for inspection by the Township and any of its employees or agents at all times at the site of the filming.

All permits shall be applied for and obtained from the Department of Planning during normal business hours. Applications for such permits shall be in a form approved by the Director and shall be accompanied by a permit fee as set forth in Subsection d. The applicant shall submit a copy of the completed application to the Chief of Police and Fire Chief simultaneous with the submission to the Planning Director.

If a permit is issued and, due to inclement weather or other good cause, filming does not in fact take place on the date specified, the Director may, at a request of the applicant, issue an amended permit for filming on other dates subject to full compliance with all other provisions of this chapter. No additional fee shall be paid for this amended permit.

No permit shall be issued by the Director unless applied for prior to seven days before the requested shooting date; provided, however, that the Mayor may waive the seven-day period if, in his or her judgment, the applicant has obtained all related approvals and adjacent property owners or tenants do not need to be notified.

No permit shall be issued for filming upon public land unless the applicant shall provide the Township with satisfactory proof of the following:

The holder of the permit shall take all reasonable steps to minimize interference with the free passage of pedestrians and traffic over public land and shall comply with all lawful directives issued by the Township with respect thereto.

The holder of a permit shall conduct filming in such a manner as to minimize the inconvenience or discomfort to adjoining property owners attributable to such filming and shall, to the greatest extent practicable, abate noise and park vehicles associated with such filming off the public streets. The holder shall avoid any interference with previously scheduled activities upon public land and limit, to the extent possible, any interference with normal public activity on such public lands. Where the applicant's production activity by reason of location or otherwise, will directly involve and/or affect any businesses, merchants or residents, these parties shall be given written notice of the filming at least three days prior to the requested shooting date and be informed that objections may be filed with the Director. Said objections shall form a part of the applicant's application and be considered in the review of same. Proof of service and notification to adjacent owners shall be submitted to the Township Clerk at least two days before the requested shooting date.

(Reserved)

The Director may refuse to issue a permit whenever he or she determines, on the basis of the objective facts and after review of the application and a report thereon by the Police Department and by other Township agencies involved with the proposed filming site, that filming at the location and/or the time set forth in the application will violate any law or ordinance or would unreasonably interfere with the use and enjoyment of adjoining properties, unreasonably impede the free flow vehicular or pedestrian traffic or otherwise endanger the public's health, safety or welfare. Further, the Township reserves the right to require one or more on-site police officers in situations where the proposed productions may impede the proper flow of traffic, the cost of said police officers to be borne by the applicant as a cost of production. Where existing electrical power lines are to be utilized by the production, an on-site licensed electrician may be similarly required if the production company does not have a licensed electrician on staff.

Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Director denying or revoking a permit or a person requesting relief under Subsection d,8 may appeal to the Township Council. A written notice of appeal setting forth the reasons for the appeal shall be filed with the Municipal Clerk. An appeal from a decision of the Director shall be filed within 10 days of the Director's decision. The Township Council shall set the matter down for a hearing within 30 days of the date on which the notice of appeal was filed. The decision of the Township Council shall be in a form of a resolution supporting the decision of the Director at the first regularly scheduled public meeting of the Township Council after the hearing on appeal, unless the appellant agrees in writing to a later date for the decisions. If such a resolution is not adopted within the time required, the decision of the Director shall be deemed reversed, and a permit shall be issued in conformity with the application or the relief shall be deemed denied.

The Director may authorize the waiver of any of the requirements or limitations of this subsection if the Director determines that a waiver thereof may be granted without endangering the public health, safety and welfare. In determining whether to issue a waiver under this section, the Director shall consider the following factors:

Copies of the approved permit will be sent to the Police and Fire Departments before filming takes place, and to The New Jersey Motion Picture and Television Commission. The applicant shall permit the Fire Prevention Bureau or other Township inspectors to inspect the site and the equipment to be used at any time, if deemed necessary. The applicant shall comply with all safety instructions issued by the Fire Official or other Township Inspectors and employees.

In addition to any other fees or costs mentioned in this subsection, the applicant shall reimburse the Township for any loss of revenue, such as parking meter revenue, repairs to public property or other revenues or expenses that the Township has either incurred or been prevented from earning because of the filming.

The permit shall be readily available for inspection at all times at the site of the filming.

Basic filming permit: an amount to be prescribed by Resolution.

Daily filming fee payable in addition to the basic filming permit are as follows:

The following groups shall be exempt from the basic filming permit and per diem fees, and instead shall be charged only a meager fee to be prescribed by Resolution, one-time fee for filming: