The purpose of this article is to enable the Township of Jackson
to take effective action to assure that excesses arising from irresponsible
rentals, when they occur, shall not be repeated and that landlords
be held to sufficient standards of responsibility in order to preserve
the peace and tranquility of the Township for its permanent residents.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
following meanings:
A licensed attorney of the State of New Jersey appointed
by the governing body, who shall not be an owner or lessee of any
real property within the Township of Jackson, nor hold any interest
in the assets of or profits arising from the ownership or lease of
such property.
The person or persons who own or purport to own a building
that contains no more than four dwelling units in which there is rented,
or offered for rent, housing space for living or dwelling under either
a written or oral lease. In the case of a mobile home park, landlord
shall mean the owner of an individual dwelling unit within the mobile
home park.
A complaint for a violation of any provision of Title 2C
of the New Jersey Statutes or any municipal ordinance governing disorderly
conduct, upon or in proximity to any rental premises, and attributable
to the acts or incitements of any of the tenants of those premises
which has been substantiated by prosecution and conviction in any
court of competent jurisdiction.
If in any twenty-four-month period a specified number, which
shall not be less than two complaints on separate occasions, of conduct
upon or in proximity to any rental premises, and attributable to the
acts or incitements of any of the tenants of those premises, have
been substantiated by prosecution and conviction in any court of competent
jurisdiction as a violation of any provision of Title 2C of the New
Jersey Statutes or any municipal ordinance governing disorderly conduct,
the municipal governing body or any officer or employee of the municipality
designated by the governing body for the purpose may institute proceedings
to require the landlord of those premises to post a bond against the
consequences of future incidents of the same character.
A.Â
The governing body, or officer or employee designated pursuant to § 245-12, shall cause to be served upon the landlord, in person or by registered mail to the address appearing on the tax records of the Township, notice advising of the institution of such proceedings, together with particulars of the substantiated complaints upon which those proceedings are based, as well as the time and place at which a hearing will be held in the matter, which shall be in the municipal building, municipal court or other public place within the municipality, and which shall be no sooner than 30 days from the date upon which the notice is served or mailed.
B.Â
In the event a tenant is convicted of any of the conduct described in § 245-12, the governing body or officer or employee designated pursuant to § 245-12, shall cause notice advising that the conduct specified has occurred to be served on the landlord, in person or by registered mail to the address appearing on the tax records of the Township.
A.Â
At the hearing convened pursuant to this article, the Hearing Officer
shall give full hearing to both the complaint of the Township and
to any evidence in contradiction or mitigation that the landlord,
if present or represented and offering such evidence, may present.
The Hearing Officer may consider, to the extent deemed relevant by
the Hearing Officer, prior complaints about the residents of the property,
even if those complaints did not result in a conviction. At the conclusion
of the hearing, the Hearing Officer shall determine whether the landlord
shall be required to post a bond in accordance with the terms of this
article.
B.Â
Any bond required to be posted shall be in accordance with the judgment
of the Hearing Officer, in light of the nature and extent of the offenses
indicated in the substantiated complaints upon which the proceedings
are based, and shall be adequate in the case of subsequent offenses
to make reparation for:
(1)Â
Damages likely to be caused to public or private property and damages
consequent upon disruption of affected residents' rights of fair
use and quiet possession of their premises;
(2)Â
Securing the payment of fines and penalties likely to be levied for
such offenses; and
(3)Â
Compensating the municipality for the costs of repressing and prosecuting
such incidents of disorderly behavior; however, no such bond shall
be in an amount less than $500 or more than $5,000. The municipality
may enforce the bond thus required by action in the Superior Court,
and shall be entitled to an injunction prohibiting the landlord from
making or renewing any lease of the affected premises for residential
purposes until that bond or equivalent security, in satisfactory form
and amount, has been deposited with the municipality.
C.Â
A bond or other security deposited in compliance with this section shall remain in force for a period of not less than two nor more than four years, as recommended by the Hearing Officer. Upon the lapse of the specified period, the landlord shall be entitled to the discharge thereof, unless prior thereto further proceedings leading to a forfeiture or partial forfeiture of the bond or other security shall have been had under § 245-15, in which case the security shall be renewed, in an amount and for a period that shall be specified by the Hearing Officer.
A.Â
If, during the period for which a landlord is required to give security pursuant to § 245-14, a substantiated complaint is recorded against the property in question, the governing body or its designee may institute proceedings against the landlord for the forfeiture or partial forfeiture of the security, for an extension of the period for which such security is required, or for an increase in the amount of security required, or for any or all of those purposes.
B.Â
Any forfeiture or partial forfeiture of security shall be determined by the Hearing Officer solely in accordance with the amount deemed necessary to provide for the compensatory purposes set forth in § 245-14. Any decision by the Hearing Officer to increase the amount or extend the period of the required security shall be determined in light of the same factors set forth in § 245-14, and shall be taken only to the extent that the nature of the substantiated complaint or complaints out of which proceedings arise under this section indicates the appropriateness of such change in order to effectually carry out the purposes of this article. The decision of the Hearing Officer in such circumstances shall be enforceable in the same manner as provided for in § 245-14.
C.Â
A landlord may recover from a tenant any amounts of security actually
forfeited as described in this section
