[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of East
Orange 5-19-2014 by Ord. No. 11-2014. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The Director of the Department of Policy, Planning and Development
is hereby ordered to develop and maintain a list that details vacant
lots owned by the City of East Orange that are suitable for hosting
community gardens. The Director of the Department of Policy, Planning
and Development shall also develop and maintain a list that details
the locations of existing community gardens that have been approved
by the City of East Orange. Both lists shall be published on the City's
website and maintained by the City's Custodian of Records. In
addition, both lists shall be updated and certified on an annual basis
by the Director of the Department of Policy, Planning and Development.
No person, group and/or entity shall be permitted to establish,
maintain and/or operate a plot in a community garden unless it has
completed an application, signed a license and indemnification agreement
and paid the requisite fee. The application, license agreement and
fee must be submitted on an annual basis. All plots shall be divided
into eight-foot-by-eight-foot sections. The annual licensing fee for
an eight-by-eight plot shall be $30 for residents and $50 for nonresidents.
This fee is nonrefundable. Applications and fees shall be submitted
to the Tax Collector and/or her designee. Persons who have been deemed
to be one-hundred-percent disabled veterans are still required to
complete the registration process; however, they will be exempted
from paying the annual fee.
Participation in the community garden program will be subject
to the following rules and regulations:
A.
Hours. Operating hours for community gardens shall be from 8:00 a.m.
to 7:00 p.m. No one is permitted to enter a community garden during
nonoperating hours. The entranceway to community gardens shall be
locked during nonoperating hours.
B.
Gardening season. Planting, harvesting and work related to same may
only be performed during the gardening season. The gardening season
shall commence on May 1 and conclude on November 1.
C.
Rules of conduct. All gardeners must maintain good conduct and civil
behavior at all times. Verbal and/or physically abusive behavior will
not be tolerated. All gardeners and their visitors shall comply with
all applicable laws, rules and regulations of the United States, the
State of New Jersey and the City of East Orange. Gardeners shall also
be bound by the rules and regulations that are in place for the use
of the City's parks and recreation areas.
D.
Pets. Pets and other animals are prohibited from entering gardening
areas.
E.
Structures. Elaborate garden structures, fountains or the use of
multiple decorative items are prohibited. The City of East Orange
shall have the sole discretion to determine whether a structure violates
this provision. In addition, no permanent improvements may be erected
at a community garden unless they are expressly approved by the City
of East Orange.
F.
Smoking. Smoking is prohibited on the premises of community gardens.
G.
Maintenance. All waste, weeds and other refuse shall be disposed
of off site by the licensee generating same. All areas of the garden
shall remain free of trash, dead plants and other debris. Tires and
similar structures that retain or allow standing water to accrue are
prohibited. This provision shall not be construed so as to bar licensees
from maintaining devices that are used to collect rain water. The
City of East Orange shall have the sole authority to determine whether
a device runs afoul of this provision.
H.
Signage. Each community garden shall have a sign that is prominently
displayed, indicating that it is a community garden. Signs shall be
supplied by the City's Department of Policy, Planning and Development. The rules and regulations
governing activity at community gardens shall also be prominently
displayed at each community garden on signs supplied by the City's
Department of Policy, Planning and Development. Each individual eight-by-eight-foot
plot shall also have signage indicating the identity of its current
licensee.[1]
I.
Invasive species. No invasive species of plants may be planted in
a community garden. The City of East Orange shall have the sole authority
to determine whether a plant is an invasive species.
J.
Cultivation methods.
(1)
Licensees shall nurture and develop plants in the garden, including
watering, fertilizing, pruning, weeding and harvesting, as required.
The City of East Orange reserves the right to bar the usage of fertilizers
and/or herbicides that it deems to be harmful. Licensees must immediately
notify the City's Department of Planning, Policy and Development
in writing if they unable or unwilling to maintain their plot.
(2)
In-ground conventional gardening, wherein plants are placed directly
into native soil, is banned. Raised bed gardening, wherein soil and
plants are placed into three-foot- to four-foot-wide beds that are
raised six inches to waist-high above native soil, shall be the sole
method of cultivation that is permissible in community gardens. The
City of East Orange shall have the sole authority to determine whether
a plot is in compliance with the raised bed gardening requirement.
