All development of land and buildings in the
Borough of Rockaway shall conform to the design and performance standards
established herein unless otherwise specifically excluded from compliance
with this chapter. The standards contained herein shall be considered
minimum requirements.
All development in the Borough shall conform
to the Borough's Official Map and Master Plan, or any elements of
the Master Plan adopted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-28.
All work shall be done in conformance with the
current construction standards of the Borough or, in lieu thereof,
the current edition of the New Jersey State Highway Department Standard
Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction, 1961, with amendments
and revisions thereto, and with the New Jersey Department of Transportation
standard construction details.
A.
Retention of natural features required. Existing natural
features, such as trees, brooks, drainage channels and views, shall
be retained. Whenever such features interfere with the proposed use
of the property, a retention of the maximum amount of such features
consistent with the use of the property shall be required.
B.
Streams and stream beds. No structure shall be built
on a lot any side of which fronts on a natural watercourse unless
a permit or certificate of exemption has been issued by the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection or its successor agency as
required by law. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter,
no building or structure shall hereinafter be erected, moved, altered,
added to or enlarged within a distance of 25 feet from the high-water
mark of a watercourse or other body of water. In addition, an easement
of not less than 15 feet along each side or edge of said watercourse
or other body of water shall be provided. No building, structure or
other impervious areas shall be permitted to be constructed within
said easement or restricted area.
C.
Topsoil. No person shall strip, excavate or otherwise
remove topsoil for other than reuse on the same lot. Topsoil moved
during the course of construction in a subdivision or site plan shall
be redistributed so as to provide at least six inches of cover to
all areas of the tract and shall be properly stabilized by seeding
or planting.
D.
Preservation of landscape. The landscape shall be
preserved in its natural state, insofar as practicable, by minimizing
tree and soil disturbance/removal. Grade changes shall be in keeping
with the general appearance of the neighboring developed areas. Adequate
shade trees shall be provided. Prior to the disturbance of any site
for development, the applicant shall place a "limit of disturbance"
fence around the area of the tract to be disturbed during construction.
Said fence shall clearly delineate the areas to be disturbed, and
the applicant or developer shall effectively limit the development
to those areas within the limits of said disturbance fence. The location
of the fence shall be reviewed and approved by the Borough Engineer.
[Amended 9-25-2008 by Ord. No. 24-08]
A critical or steep slope is a slope with a
grade of 15% or greater.
A.
Whenever development is proposed for areas containing
critical slopes (defined as a grade of 15% or greater) the following
standards shall apply:
(1)
Fifteen percent to 19.9%: not more than 33 1/3%
of such areas shall be developed and/or regraded or stripped of vegetation.
(2)
Twenty percent to 29.9%: not more than 25% of such
areas shall be developed and/or regraded or stripped of vegetation.
(3)
Thirty percent and higher: not more than 15% of such
areas shall be developed and/or regraded or stripped of vegetation.
B.
Individual lot grading and soil erosion and sediment
control plans shall be submitted to the Land Use Board for all development
applications proposing to clear, grade or develop property containing
critical slope areas; such plans for the development of an individual
single- or two-family lot shall be submitted to the Borough Engineer.
All submissions made under this subsection shall be in a form acceptable
to the Borough Engineer.
[Amended 7-11-2002 by Ord. No. 10-02; 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
C.
Information required.
(1)
For all applications for development containing land
with critical slopes the following mapped information and data shall
be prepared by a licensed professional engineer or land surveyor and
submitted to the Land Use Board for review:
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
(a)
(b)
All flood hazard areas, lakes, ponds, marshes,
bogs, swamps, brooks and perennial and intermittent streams, whether
natural or man-made.
(c)
A wetland delineation line prepared by a qualified
expert and verified in a letter of interpretation by the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection and Energy (NJDEPE).
(d)
Soil data from the soil survey of Morris County
showing each soil type and soil symbol.
D.
Where the minimum required setbacks and/or actual
front yard setbacks contain critical slope areas, driveways shall
be permitted to be constructed and cross the minimum required and/or
actual setbacks which contain said areas.
E.
No application for development on a property containing
critical slopes shall be deemed complete by the administrative officer
until such required information is submitted for review by the Land
Use Board.
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
