[Added 6-2-2006 by Ord. No. 2003-3]
A.
Where permitted. Notwithstanding any provision of
this section to the contrary, one affordable accessory apartment shall
be permitted on a lot within the R-80 and R-100 Zoning Districts which
meets the following requirements:
(1)
The lot must fully conform to the minimum lot area and the minimum lot width requirements specified for the subject zoning district in the schedule entitled “Schedule of Area, Yard and Building Regulations” as referenced within § 215-66 and found in this chapter of the Code of the Borough of Pennington;
(2)
The lot must have only one single-family detached
dwelling situated thereon.
B.
Definition. For the purpose of this section, the definition
of an affordable accessory apartment shall be as follows:
(1)
An affordable accessory apartment shall be a self-contained
residential dwelling unit with a kitchen, sanitary facilities, sleeping
quarters and a private entrance which is created to be occupied by
a low-income household in accordance with the applicable provisions
of the Substantive Rules of the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing
(COAH) at N.J.A.C. 5:93-1 et seq. The affordable accessory apartment
may be created within an existing dwelling unit, may be created within
an existing structure on the lot or may be an addition to an existing
dwelling unit or accessory building.
C.
Requirements. All “affordable accessory apartments”
shall meet the following requirements:
(1)
The minimum yard requirements and maximum lot coverage specified for the subject zoning district in the schedule entitled "Schedule Of Area, Yard And Building Regulations" as referenced within § 215-66 shall be adhered to, provided that any existing yard dimension that is less than a minimum required dimension shall be permitted to remain, but shall not be made less by providing the affordable accessory apartment and provided further that any existing lot coverage that is more than the maximum permitted percentage shall be permitted to remain, but shall not be made more by providing the affordable accessory apartment.
(2)
All affordable accessory apartments shall comply with
all applicable statutes and regulations of the State of New Jersey
in addition to all local building codes.
(3)
The affordable accessory apartment shall be rented
only to a household which is a low-income household at the time of
initial occupancy of the unit.
(4)
The affordable accessory apartment shall, for a period
of at least 10 years from the date of the issuance of a certificate
of occupancy, be rented only to low-income households.
(5)
Rents of "affordable accessory apartments" shall be
affordable to low-income income households in accordance with the
applicable provisions at N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.4 of COAH's Substantive Rules
and shall specifically include an allowance for utilities in accordance
with N.J.A.C. 5:93-7.4 (h).
(6)
No more than six affordable accessory apartments shall
be permitted within the Borough of Pennington.
(8)
Each affordable accessory apartment shall have living/sleeping
space, cooking facilities, a kitchen sink and complete sanitary facilities
for the exclusive use of its occupants. It shall consist of no less
than two rooms, one of which shall be a full bathroom, and the gross
floor area shall be at least 350 square feet but shall not exceed
800 square feet.
(9)
The affordable accessory apartment shall have a separate
door with direct access to the outdoors. The door to the affordable
accessory apartment shall not result in the placement of an additional
door on the front facade of the principal dwelling.
(10)
The potable water supply and sewage disposal
system for the affordable accessory apartment shall be adequate.
(11)
At least one off-street parking space shall
be provided for each affordable accessory apartment in addition to
the parking spaces required for the principal dwelling on the lot.
No affordable accessory apartment shall reduce the number of required
off-street parking spaces on a lot.
(12)
The affordable accessory apartments shall be affirmatively marketed as low-income housing to households within the East Central Housing Region consisting of Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean Counties, in accordance with COAH's Substantive Rules and the Affirmative Marketing Plan provisions in Subsection F of this section hereinbelow.
(13)
In the case of an existing accessory apartment
previously created illegally on the subject property, the owner is
entitled to legitimize the accessory apartment as an affordable accessory
apartment under the terms of this section provisions, provided that
all of the requirements of this section and all related COAH criteria
shall apply, except that no subsidy need be provided by the Borough.
D.
Administration of the affordable accessory apartment
program. The Borough of Pennington shall designate by resolution an
outside administrative agency, approved by COAH, as the administrative
entity to administer the affordable accessory apartment program in
accordance with the following:
(1)
The administrative entity shall administer the affordable
accessory apartment program, including advertising, income qualifying
prospective renters, setting rents and annual rental increases, maintaining
a waiting list, distributing the subsidy, securing certificates of
occupancy, qualifying properties, handling application forms, filing
deed restrictions and monitoring reports and affirmatively marketing
the affordable accessory apartment program.
(2)
The administrative entity shall only deny an application
for an accessory apartment if the project is not in conformance with
COAH's requirements and/or the provisions of this section. All denials
shall be in writing with the reasons clearly stated.
(3)
In accordance with COAH requirements, the Borough
of Pennington shall provide at least $10,000 to subsidize the creation
of an affordable accessory apartment conforming to the requirements
of this section and COAH requirements. Prior to the grant of such
subsidy, the property owner shall enter into a written agreement with
the Borough of Pennington insuring the following:
E.
Application procedures.
(1)
Each application for the creation of an affordable
accessory apartment shall submit the following information to the
administrative entity:
(2)
All Pennington Borough building permit fees shall
be waived for the development of an affordable accessory apartment
which complies with the provisions of this section. Any annual license
and inspection fees, if required, shall be paid by the property owners
of the subject lot.
(a)
A sketch of floor plan(s) showing the location,
size and relationship of both the affordable accessory apartment and
the primary dwelling within the building or in another structure;
(b)
Rough elevations showing the modification of
any exterior building facade to which changes are proposed; and
(c)
A site development sketch showing the location
of the existing dwelling and other existing buildings; all property
lines; proposed addition if any, along with the minimum building setback
lines; the required parking spaces for both dwelling units; and any
natural or man-made conditions which might affect construction.
F.
Affirmative marketing plan. The administrative entity
shall be responsible to prepare and execute an affordable accessory
apartment marketing plan which shall, at a minimum, consist of the
following:
(1)
At least one well publicized public meeting to be
held in the Borough of Pennington Municipal Building to discuss and
explain the affordable accessory apartment program;
(2)
A large poster highlighting the main features of the
affordable accessory apartment program to be prepared and hung in
the Borough of Pennington Municipal Building at all times; and
(3)
The issuance of periodic press releases to the official
newspapers of the Borough of Pennington regarding the affordable accessory
apartment program in order to further inform the public regarding
the program.
