Wildwood Crest City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XIX
Administration, Enforcement, Violations and Penalties
§ 85-142 Administration.
These rules, regulations and standards shall be considered the minimum requirements for the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the Borough of Wildwood Crest. Any action taken by the appropriate municipal agency, under the terms of this Ordinance, shall give primary consideration to the above mentioned matters and to the welfare of the entire community. However, if the applicant or his agent can clearly demonstrate that, because of peculiar conditions pertaining to his land, the literal enforcement of one or more of these regulations is impracticable or will exact undue hardship, the appropriate municipal agency may permit one or more exceptions as may be reasonable and within the general purpose and intent of the rules, regulations, and standards established by this Ordinance.
§ 85-143 Enforcement.
[Ord. No. 1022 § 3; Ord. No. 1116 § 1]
A.
For any and every violation of the provisions of this Ordinance but excluding illegal or unsafe signs, the owner, contractor or other person or persons interested as lessee, tenants or otherwise in any building or premises where such violations have been committed or shall exist and who refuse to abate such violation within 72 hours after written or verbal notice has been provided. The Borough reserves the right to immediately remove any sign determined to be a threat to public health, safety or welfare.
B.
This Ordinance shall be administered and enforced by the Zoning Officer or any authorized representative of the Borough of Wildwood Crest or any proper officer of the Borough of Wildwood Crest.
The Construction Official shall cause any site improvements, building or structure to be inspected or examined and to order in writing compliance with the terms of this Ordinance from a construction standpoint. For purposes of such inspection, the Construction Official shall have the right to enter any building or premises during reasonable hours, subject to due process of law.
Zoning permits shall be issued by the Zoning Officer. Building permits and certificates of occupancy as required by ordinance shall be issued by the Construction Official.
§ 85-144 Certificate of Occupancy.
[Ord. No. 1022 § 3]
A.
The following shall be unlawful until a certificate of occupancy shall have been applied for and issued by the Construction Official:
1.
Occupancy and use of a building erected, reconstructed, restored, altered, or moved, or any change in use of an existing building;
2.
Occupancy, use, or any change in use of vacant land;
3.
Any change in use of a nonconforming use; and
4.
Occupancy and use of any enlargement to an existing structure.
A certificate of occupancy shall be deemed to authorize, and is required for, both initial occupancy and the continued occupancy and use of the building or land to which it applies.
B.
It shall be the duty of the Construction Official to issue a certificate of occupancy only when:
1.
The structure or part(s) thereof and the proposed use of the structure(s) and land conform to this ordinance and all other applicable codes and ordinances of the Borough;
2.
Prior conditional use, site plan, subdivision and variance approvals, as may be necessary, have been granted by the appropriate municipal agency or municipal agencies in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance and the proposed structure or part(s) thereof and the proposed use of the structure(s) and land comply with all conditions and requirements imposed as part of such approvals;
3.
All local taxes and assessments on the property have been paid; and
4.
A letter from each utility company has been received by the Borough stating that the utility has been inspected, has been installed in accordance with the approved plan and is ready for use.
5.
The Zoning Officer or any duly authorized representative signs off as to compliance with all applicable zoning requirements.
C.
A fee shall be charged for each certificate of occupancy in accordance with the Fee Ordinance of the Borough of Wildwood Crest.
D.
A certificate of occupancy shall be granted or denied in writing within 20 days from the date that a written notification is filed with the Construction Official that the erection of the structure is completed, unless additional time is agreed upon by the applicant in writing. If the application is denied the Construction Official shall state the reason for such denial on two copies of the application and return one copy to the applicant.
E.
With respect to any finally approved subdivision and/or site plan or subsection thereof, a certificate of occupancy shall be issued only upon completion of such portion of the following improvements as may be deemed by the Borough Engineer to be needed to serve the premises being offered for occupancy:
1.
Curbs.
2.
All utilities.
3.
Water supply and sewerage treatment facilities, which shall be functioning and servicing the property in question.
4.
Storm drainage facilities.
5.
Rough grading of the property.
6.
Base course of the street or streets serving the property.
7.
Base course of driveways and parking areas.
8.
Street names and traffic regulatory signs.
F.
With respect to any individual residential lot within a subdivision, a certificate of occupancy shall be issued only upon the completion of the following improvements, in addition to those listed herein above, to the extent the same are required as part of a subdivision approval:
G.
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.
H.
A temporary certificate of occupancy may be issued by the Construction Official for any structure or use for which approval has been granted although not all conditions of said approval have been complied with. Such temporary certificate of occupancy shall be issued only in extenuating circumstances and only subject to specific terms and conditions including, but not limited to, a timetable for achieving full compliance with all such conditions and for the completion of all required improvements and the receipt of a performance guarantee assuring the installation of the improvements as indicated on the approved plat or plan.
§ 85-145 Violations and Penalties.
[Ord. No. 1116 § 1]
Penalties shall be in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:49-5 and any amendments thereto. A person violating any of the provisions of this Ordinance shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than $100 or more than $2,000 and/or by imprisonment for any term not exceeding 90 days or by a period of community service not exceeding 90 days. For violations of any ordinance pertaining to unlawful solid waste disposal, the minimum penalty shall not exceed $2,500 and the maximum penalty shall not exceed $10,000.
The court before which any person is convicted of violating any ordinance of this Borough shall have power to impose any fine, term of imprisonment or period of community service not less than the minimum and not exceeding the maximum fixed in such ordinance.
Any person who is convicted of violating an ordinance within one year of the date of a previous violation of the same ordinance and who was fined for the previous violation shall be sentenced by a court to an additional fine as a repeat offender. The additional fine imposed by the court upon a person for a repeated offense shall not be less than the minimum or exceed the maximum fine fixed for a violation of the ordinance, but shall be calculated separately from the fine imposed for the violation of the ordinance.
Any person convicted of the violation of any ordinance may, in the discretion of the court by which he was convicted, and in default of the payment of any fine imposed therefor, be imprisoned in the County Jail or place of detention provided by the Borough for any term not exceeding 90 days or be required to perform community service for a period not exceeding 90 days.
If the Borough chooses to impose a fine in an amount greater than $1,250 upon an owner for violations of housing or zoning codes, it shall provide a thirty-day period in which the owner shall be afforded the opportunity to cure or abate the condition and shall also be afforded an opportunity for a hearing before a court of competent jurisdiction for an independent determination concerning the violation. Subsequent to the expiration of the thirty-day period, a fine greater than $1,250 may be imposed if a court has not determined otherwise or, upon reinspection of the property it is determined that the abatement has not been substantially completed.
§ 85-146 Selling Land Before Final Subdivision Approval.
If, before final subdivision approval has been granted, any person, as owner or agent, transfers or sells or agrees to transfer or sell any land which forms a part of a subdivision for which municipal approval is required in accordance with the provision of this Ordinance, except pursuant to an agreement expressly conditioned on final subdivision approval, such person shall be subject to a penalty not to exceed $1,000 and each lot disposition so made be deemed a separate violation. In addition to the foregoing, the Borough may initiate and maintain a civil action for injunctive relief and/or 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.