No building shall hereafter be erected and no existing building shall be moved, structurally altered, rebuilt, added to or enlarged, nor shall any land be used for any purpose other than those included among the uses listed as permitted uses in each zone by this chapter and meeting the requirements set forth in the appended schedule. Nor shall any open space contiguous to any building be encroached upon or reduced in any manner except in conformity to the area and bulk requirements, off-street parking requirements and all other regulations designated in the schedule and this chapter for the zone district in which such building or space is located. In the event of any such unlawful encroachment or reduction, such building or use shall be deemed to be in violation of this chapter and the certificate of occupancy applying thereto shall become void.
A. 
No structure shall be built within 50 feet of the bed of a stream carrying water on an average of six months of the year. No building shall be constructed on land subject to periodic overflow or on land which has an average water table within two feet of the ground surface.
B. 
Existing natural features such as trees, brooks, drainage channels and views shall be retained. Whenever such features interfere with the proposed use of such property, a retention of the maximum amount of such features consistent with the use of the property shall be required.
A. 
Undersize lots of record. Any parcel of land with an area or width less than that prescribed for a lot in the zone in which said lot is located, which parcel was under one ownership at the date of adoption of this chapter or any subsequent amendment applying thereto and where the owner thereof owned no adjoining land on the date the zoning regulations first creating the undersize lot took effect, may be used as a lot for any purpose permitted in the zone, provided that the minimum area requirements for such lot shall be 5,000 square feet of lot size and 50 feet of lot width; further provided that the minimum side yard of any building shall be no less than 10 feet; and further provided that all other regulations prescribed for the zone by this chapter are complied with. Lots which are not of the required minimum area or width may be used for any purpose permitted in the zone in which they are located if such lots were included in a subdivision plat which was either duly approved under the Municipal Planning Act of 1953 prior to the effective date of this chapter or the amendment creating the undersize lot, but subsequent to January 1, 1954 (the effective date of such Act), or granted tentative approval under said Act prior to the effective date of this chapter but within three years from the date of such tentative approval, and provided further that the final subdivision plat in either instance shall have been duly recorded in the office of the County Clerk within the time required by law.
[Amended 5-12-1981 by Ord. No. 81-4]
B. 
Height. The height limitations of this chapter shall not apply to silos, belfries, cupolas and domes not used for human occupancy, nor to chimneys, ventilators, skylights, water tanks, similar features and necessary mechanical appurtenances usually carried above the roof level. Such features, however, shall be erected only to such height as is necessary to accomplish the purpose they are to serve. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to prevent the erection above the building height limit of a parapet wall or cornice for ornament (and without windows) extending above such height limit not more than five feet. Public and quasi-public buildings and other similar permitted uses shall increase the front, rear and side yards by one foot for each foot by which such building exceeds the height limit herein established for such zone in which it is located, and further provided that in no case shall any building have a height greater than 50 feet unless explicitly permitted by the schedule of this chapter.
C. 
In the case of irregularly shaped lots, the minimum width of the rear property line may be reduced to not less than 50% of the minimum lot width requirement, provided that the front property line meets minimum lot width requirements and the lot meets minimum lot area requirements.
D. 
Wherever there is a pronounced alignment of buildings and depth of front yards on one side of a street within a given block and said alignment existed at the time of enactment of this chapter, any new buildings erected on such side of such street within such block shall conform in alignment to those on adjoining lots, notwithstanding the front yard requirements set forth in Article IV of this chapter.
A. 
Continuation. Any lawful use of a building or land existing or authorized by a building permit at the effective date of this chapter may be continued although such use does not conform to the provisions of this chapter. Nothing herein contained shall permit the continuation of a nuisance.
B. 
Extension. A nonconforming use of a building or land may be extended up to 25% of the area occupied by such use at the effective date of this chapter, provided that the Planning Board may authorize as a conditional use the extension of more than 25%. Any extension or enlargement shall be immediately adjacent to the existing nonconforming use and shall conform to the area and height regulations of the district in which it is situated.
[Amended 5-12-1981 by Ord. No. 81-4]
C. 
Changes. A nonconforming use of a building or land may be changed to a nonconforming use of the same or more restricted classification. Whenever a nonconforming use of a building or land has been changed to a use of a more restricted classification or to a conforming use, such use shall not thereafter be changed to a use of a less restricted classification.
D. 
Abandonment. If a nonconforming use of a building or land is voluntarily abandoned and ceases for a continuous period of one year or more, subsequent use of such building or land shall be in conformity with the provisions of this chapter.
E. 
Reversion. No nonconforming use shall, if once changed into a conforming use or more restricted use, be changed back to a less restricted use or revert to its former use, except as may be permitted under the provisions of the Municipal Land Use Law, being Chapter 291 of the Laws of 1975 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.), permitting appeals, variances and conditional uses to be allowed by the Planning Board.
[Amended 5-12-1981 by Ord. No. 81-4]
Fences may be erected, altered or reconstructed in accordance with the following regulations and in accordance with all other provisions of this chapter:
A. 
Fences running parallel to the front property line may be erected, altered or reconstructed to a height not to exceed three feet above ground level when located within 40 feet of the street line toward which the front entrance of any dwelling in a residential zone faces.
B. 
Fences running parallel to the front property line may be erected, altered or reconstructed to a height not to exceed six feet above ground level when located more than 40 feet from the street line in a residential zone or when located in the yard area of any use in a business zone.
C. 
Fences running parallel to side or rear yard lines may be erected, altered or reconstructed to a height not to exceed six feet when located in side or rear yards of any dwelling in a residential zone.
D. 
The foregoing restrictions shall not be applied so as to prevent the erection of an open wire fence not exceeding eight feet above ground level anywhere within a public park, public playground or school premises.
E. 
All fences must be erected within the property lines, and no fence shall be erected so as to encroach upon a public right-of-way.
F. 
All fences shall be maintained in a safe, sound and upright condition.
G. 
If the Construction Official, upon inspection, determines that any fence or portion of any fence is not being maintained in a safe, sound or upright condition, he shall notify the owner of such fence, in writing, of his findings and state briefly the reasons for such findings and order such fence or portion of such fence repaired or removed within 15 days of the date of the written notice.
[Amended 8-13-1991 by Ord. No. 91-5]
H. 
These restrictions shall not be applied so as to restrict the erection of a wall for the purpose of retaining earth.
I. 
Temporary fences, such as orange safety fences, snow fences, expandable fences and collapsible fences may not be erected on any residential property without first being approved by the Construction Official in writing. The owner of the temporary fence must remove the temporary fence within 30 days from the date of the Construction Official's approval, or seek an extension of time from the Construction Official for the fence to remain in excess of 30 days.
[Added 9-12-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-6]
A. 
No lot shall have erected upon it more than one principal residential building. No yard or other open space provided for any building for the purpose of complying with the provisions of this chapter shall be considered to provide a yard or open space for any other building.
B. 
An accessory building attached to a principal building shall comply in all respects with the yard requirements of this chapter for the principal building. Detached accessory buildings shall be located to the rear of the front building line of the principal building, and if located in a side yard area, shall conform to side yard requirements of the schedule.
C. 
All yards facing on a public street shall be considered front yards and shall conform to the minimum front yard requirements for the zone in which located. Corner lots shall provide the minimum front yard requirements for the respective zone for both intersecting streets, for both principal and accessory buildings.
[Amended 8-12-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-4[1]]
Areas devoted to drainage or stormwater management basins shall not be included in the calculation of lot area or credited towards the minimum area of a lot. The lot area of a freestanding drainage or stormwater management basin shall not be subject to the bulk and area requirements otherwise applicable to the zoning district in which the basin is located.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed original § 169-11, Single-family dwelling in business or industrial area, amended 5-12-1981 by Ord. No. 81-4; 8-13-1991.
[Amended 5-12-1981 by Ord. No. 81-4]
Notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter, a property owner may build a single-family dwelling conforming to the R-5 requirements in any business or industrial area. However, before the building permit will be issued for such construction, a letter will be written by the Construction Official informing the applicant of the potential consequences of such construction in such area.
Wherever the property line of a business or industrial zone of a lot abuts or is across the street from a residential zone, a buffer area shall be established which shall include an area of land 25 feet in width as measured from said street or property line.
A. 
Within said buffer area, no use, activity or sign shall be established other than such driveways as are necessary to provide proper means of ingress to and egress from the parking area.
B. 
Within said buffer area, a solid and continuous landscape screen shall be planted and maintained. Said landscaping shall consist of massed evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs of such species and size as will produce, within two growing seasons, a screen at least four feet in height and of such density as will obscure 75% of the glare of automobile headlights emitted from the premises throughout the full course of the year.
C. 
The landscape screen described above shall be located so as to be not closer than 10 feet to a property line or street line.
D. 
The entire buffer strip shall be graded and planted with grass seed or sod and such other shrubbery or trees as may be desired by the owner. The entire area shall be attractively maintained and kept clean of all debris and rubbish. In the event that any of the plantings in accordance with the above requirements do not live, they shall be replaced within one year.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 169-13, Garden apartments and townhouses, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed 8-12-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-4.
[Added 8-12-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-8]
All classes of cannabis establishments or cannabis distributors or cannabis delivery services, as said terms are defined in Section 3 of P.L. 2021, c. 16,[1] are prohibited from operating in the Borough of Newfield, but not the delivery of cannabis items and related supplies by a delivery service.
[1]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 24:6I-3.