[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of East Hanover 2-3-1977 by Ord. No. 5-1977.
Sections 75-2E(1)(d), 75-3, 75-4B(1), and 75-5 amended at time of
adoption of Code; See Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I. Other amendments
noted where applicable.]
A.
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119 et seq., known as
the "Uniform Construction Code Act of the State of New Jersey" (hereinafter
referred to as "the Act"), there is hereby established in the Township
of East Hanover a State Uniform Construction Code enforcing agency
to be known as "Uniform Construction Code Department of the Township
of East Hanover," consisting of a Construction Official, Building
Subcode Official, Plumbing Subcode Official, Electrical Subcode Official,
Fire Protection Subcode Official and one or more essential staff member
employees, which positions are hereby created. The Construction Official
shall be the chief administrator of the enforcing agency. He shall
have the power to overrule a determination of a subcode official based
on an interpretation of a substantive provision of the subcode which
such subcode official administers only if the Construction Official
is qualified to act pursuant to the Act as a subcode official for
such subcode. He may serve as subcode official of any subcode which
he is qualified under the Act to administer. A subcode official or
Municipal Engineer may serve as a Construction Official if otherwise
qualified under the provisions of the Act. Subcode officials or assistant
staff may be employed on a full- or part-time basis or hold other
positions within the Township of East Hanover.
B.
Each official position created in Subsection A hereof shall be filled by a person by resolution of the Township Committee of East Hanover in accordance with and as qualified for such position pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119 et seq., as amended, and N.J.A.C. 5:23; provided that in lieu of any particular subcode official, an on-site inspection agency may be retained by contract pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23. More than one such official position may be held by the same person, provided that such person is qualified pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119 et seq. and N.J.A.C. 5:23 to hold each such position.
C.
The public shall have the right to do business with
the Uniform Construction Code Department of the Township of East Hanover
at its offices located in the Municipal Building, except for emergencies
and unforeseen or unavoidable circumstances, during regular business
hours.
D.
The examination and approval of applications for permits
and the expiration or cancellation of permits shall be as follows:
(1)
The enforcing agency shall examine each application
for a construction permit. If the application conforms to the Act,
the code and the requirements of other applicable laws, administration
regulations and ordinances, it shall be deemed a completed application
and the enforcing agency shall approve the application and shall issue
a construction permit to the applicant. Every completed application
for a construction permit shall be granted, in whole or in part, or
denied within 20 business days. If a completed application is denied
in whole or in part, the enforcing agency shall set forth the reasons
therefor in writing. If an enforcing agency fails to grant, in whole
or in part, or deny a completed application for a construction permit
within the period of time prescribed herein, such failure shall be
deemed a denial of the application for purposes of an appeal to the
Construction Board of Appeals unless such period of time has been
extended with the consent of the applicant in writing. The enforcing
agency may approve changes in plans and specifications previously
approved by it if the plans and specifications when so changed remain
in conformity with law.
(2)
A construction permit issued in accordance with the
foregoing provisions, pursuant to which no construction has been undertaken
above the foundation walls within one year from the time of issuance,
shall expire. The enforcing agency may suspend, revoke or cancel a
construction permit in case of neglect or failure to comply with the
provisions of this chapter or the code or upon a finding by it that
a false statement or representation has been made in the application
for the construction permit.
(3)
The enforcing agency shall have all other powers as
enumerated in the Act and administrative regulations adopted with
reference thereto.
A.
There is hereby established a Construction Board of Appeals to hear appeals from decisions by the enforcing agency and pursuant to § 95-35D(4) of this Code.
[Amended 4-18-1996 by Ord. No. 4-1996]
(1)
Such Board shall consist of five members. At least
one Board member shall be a licensed architect or structural or civil
engineer of architectural engineering experience, and at least one
Board member shall be as qualified as a Plumbing Subcode Official
and one as qualified as an Electrical Subcode Official. No more than
two Board members shall be selected from the same business or profession.
Each Board member shall have had at least three years' experience
in construction, design or supervision as a licensed engineer or registered
architect; or, in the alternative, five years' experience in
construction, design or supervision as an architect or engineer with
a bachelor's degree in architecture or engineering, respectively,
from an accredited institution of higher education; or, as a further
alternative, 10 years' experience in construction, design or
supervision as a journeyman, in a construction trade or as a construction
contractor, subcontractor or inspector.
(2)
In addition to the five regular members, the Construction Board of Appeals shall include two special members, one of whom shall be a licensed professional engineer with municipal construction experience, and one of whom shall be a builder. The special members shall serve as additional members of the Board in any case involving an appeal of municipal fees pursuant to § 95-35D(4) of this Code.
B.
Appointment of members, special members and alternates.
[Amended 4-18-1996 by Ord. No. 4-1996]
(1)
The Mayor shall appoint the Board members and any
alternate members. For the members first appointed, the Township Committee
shall designate the appointees' terms so that one shall be appointed
for a term of one year, one for a term of two years, one for a term
of three years and two for terms of four years. At the expiration
of such terms and thereafter, appointments shall be made for terms
of four years. Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired term. All
terms shall be on a calendar year basis. Members may be removed by
the Township Committee after a hearing, for good cause shown.
(2)
The Mayor shall appoint such number of alternates
as may be appropriate, for terms not to exceed four years, or may,
in the alternative, appoint alternates on a case-by-case basis.
(3)
The Mayor shall appoint the special members for terms
not to exceed four years.
(4)
No regular or alternate Board member may be a member
of the enforcing agency, the decisions of which are subject to the
review of the Board.
C.
The members of the Board of Appeals shall annually
elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman and a Secretary/Clerk, who shall
be a municipal employee of the enforcing agency designated by the
Construction Official, and the Board of Appeals shall adopt bylaws
governing its internal affairs and operations in conformance with
this chapter, the Act and administrative regulations adopted with
reference thereto.
D.
All members of the Construction Board of Appeals shall
serve without compensation but shall be entitled to reimbursement
for out-of-pocket expenses incurred in the performance of their duties,
and the Board of Appeals shall be authorized to avail itself of the
legal services of the Township Attorney as the need may arise.
E.
Administration and enforcement.
(1)
Appeal procedure.
(a)
Right of appeal. Whenever the enforcing agency
shall: deny a completed application for a construction permit, refuse
or fail to act upon a completed application for a construction permit,
refuse to grant a variation pursuant to Article 6 of the Act hereof
or make any other decision pursuant or related to the Act or Code,
including the assessment of any monetary penalties, an owner or his
authorized agent may appeal to the Construction Board of Appeals.
(b)
The application for appeal shall be taken within
20 days of the receipt of written notice of the denial or other decision
on the application for a construction permit. Where no notice of denial
has been forthcoming, appeal may be taken within 20 days after the
expiration of 20 days from the time of filing of a completed application
for a construction permit.
(c)
The application for appeal shall be in writing,
filed with the Board, briefly setting forth the appellant's position.
Such application shall state the name and address of the appellant,
the address of the building or site in question, the permit number
and shall reference the specific sections of the code in question
and the extent and nature of the appellant's reliance on them.
The appellant may append to his written application any data or information
that he may deem appropriate to his cause. The enforcing agency shall
make available to the Board the full record of the application below,
which shall include a detailed explanation of the reasons for the
denial of the appellant's request.
(d)
(e)
The time for appeal may be extended upon application
in writing to the Secretary of the Board or may be extended at any
regular or special meeting of the Board, by the affirmative vote of
a majority of the Board.
(2)
Procedure of the Board.
(a)
The Board shall meet upon notice of the Chairman
or at stated periodic meetings, if warranted by the volume of work.
The hearing shall be recorded and copies made available upon request
at the expense of the requesting party.
(b)
All hearings shall be open to the public. The
appellant, his representatives or legal counsel and the enforcing
agency through the Construction Official or the appropriate subcode
official shall be granted an opportunity to be heard.
(c)
When five qualified members are not present
to consider a specific appeal, either the appellant or the enforcing
agency may request a postponement of the hearing. If there is no such
request for a postponement, any decision made by the members present
shall be binding and shall be considered as a decision of the full
Board. No meetings shall be conducted unless there are at least three
members of the Board present. No specific combination of business
or profession represented on the Board need be present, unless an
affirmative vote of the members present determines that such is necessary
in the public interest.
(d)
Any member of the Board of Appeals who shall
not have been present at any hearing or formal meeting of the Board
of Appeals dealing with any appeal shall be permitted to vote on and
make a decision thereon, provided he has read the transcript or listened
to the recording of all previous proceedings on said appeal and certifies
thereto as to the date, time and place he did so.
(3)
Decision of the Board.
(a)
The Board shall hear the appeal, render a decision
thereon and file its decision with a statement of the reasons therefor
with the enforcing agency from which the appeal has been taken not
later than 10 business days following the submission of the completed
application for appeal, unless such period of time has been extended
with the consent of the appellant. Such decision shall also be filed
with the State Division of Housing and Urban Renewal, Bureau of Housing
Inspection, Attention: Uniform Construction Code Appeals File, 363
West State, Trenton, New Jersey 08625. Decisions of the Board shall
be available for public inspection at the offices of both the Bureau
and the enforcing agency during normal business hours.
(b)
Such decision may affirm, reverse or modify
the decision of the enforcing agency or remand the matter to the enforcing
agency for further action. Whenever the Board shall reverse or modify
the decision of the enforcing agency, its statement of reasons therefor
shall fully explain the nature and extent of its disagreement with
the enforcing agency.
(c)
Decisions of the Board shall be by a concurring
vote of three members. Failure to secure three concurring votes shall
be deemed a confirmation of the decision of the enforcing agency.
Any dissenting member may attach a statement of reasons in opposition
to the decision of the Board.
(d)
Every action of the Board shall be by resolution
and copies shall be forwarded by certified or registered mail to the
appellant or his representatives.
(e)
Failure of the Board to hear an appeal and render
and file a decision thereon within the time limits prescribed in this
section shall be deemed a denial of the appeal for the purposes of
a complaint, application or appeal to a court of competent jurisdiction.
(f)
The enforcing agency shall take immediate action
in accordance with the decision of the Board unless otherwise stayed
by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(g)
Any party, including the enforcing agency, may
within 30 days appeal from the decision of the Board to a court of
competent jurisdiction.
The fees for permits and certificates under this chapter shall be as set out in Chapter 79, Fees and Licenses.
A.
The Construction Official shall, with the advice of
the subcode officials, prepare and submit to the Township Committee,
biannually, a report recommending a fee schedule based on the operating
expenses of the agency and any other expenses of the municipality
fairly attributable to the enforcement of the State Uniform Construction
Code Act.
B.
Surcharge fees.
(1)
In order to provide for the training, certification and technical support programs required by the Uniform Construction Code Act and the regulations, the enforcing agency shall collect, in addition to the fees provided for in § 75-3, a surcharge fee per cubic foot of volume of new construction as set out in Chapter 79, Fees and Licenses. Said surcharge fee shall be remitted to the Bureau of Housing Inspection, Department of Community Affairs, on a quarterly basis for the fiscal quarters ending September 30, December 31, March 31 and June 30, and not later than one month next succeeding the end of the quarter for which it is due. In the fiscal year in which the regulations first become effective, said fee shall be collected and remitted for the third and fourth quarters only.[1]
(2)
The enforcing agency shall report annually at the
end of each fiscal year to the Bureau of Housing Inspection, and not
later than July 31, the total amount of the surcharge fee collected
in the fiscal year. In the fiscal year in which the regulations first
become effective, said report shall be for the third and fourth quarters
only.
Fire limits shall be established in accordance
with the Uniform Construction Code, Section 5:23-4.7 of the New Jersey
Administrative Code, and fire limits shall be enforced in accordance
with the provisions of the BOCA Basic Building Code, Article 5, as
supplemented and amended from time to time.
A.
Any person or corporation, including an officer, director
or employee of a corporation, who:
(1)
Violates any of the provisions of the Act or rules
promulgated thereunder;
(2)
Constructs a structure or building in violation of
a condition of a building permit;
(3)
Fails to comply with any order issued by an enforcing
agency; or
(4)
Makes a false or misleading written statement or omits
any required information or statement in any application or request
for approval to an enforcing agency, shall be subject to a penalty
of not more than $500.
B.
Anyone who knowingly refuses entry or access to an
inspector lawfully authorized to inspect any premises, building or
structure pursuant to this chapter or who unreasonably interferes
with such an inspection shall be subject to a fine of not more than
$250.
C.
With respect to Subsection A(3) of this section, a person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each day that he fails to comply with a stop construction order validly issued by an enforcing agency and for each week that he fails to comply with any other order validly issued by an enforcing agency. With respect to Subsection A(1) and (4) of this section, a person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each violation of any provision of the Act or rules promulgated thereunder and for each false or misleading written statement or omission of required information or statement made in any application or request for approval to an enforcing agency. With respect to Subsection A(2) of the section, a person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each violation of the conditions of a construction permit.
D.
The above-mentioned penalties are subject to change
through amendments or supplements to the Act and/or the administrative
regulations duly adopted pursuant thereto. Payment of a money judgment
pursuant hereto brought by the municipality shall be remitted to the
Municipal Treasurer of the Township of East Hanover.
The powers enumerated in the Act shall be interpreted
broadly to effectuate the purposes thereof.
A copy of this chapter, certified to be a true
copy, shall be forwarded by the Clerk of the Township of East Hanover
to the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs as required by the
Act, along with all requisite reports, immediately upon passage.
This chapter shall be retroactively effective
to January 1, 1977, immediately upon passage and publication and compliance
with applicable law.
