[1988 Code § 107-1]
[1988 Code § 107-2]
It is the stated policy of the Borough that every business or commercial activity transacted or carried out within the Borough, unless expressly exempted by this chapter, shall be required to obtain a mercantile license in order to transact such business. Any business or commercial activity which is licensed by either the State of New Jersey or by the Federal government, or an agency thereof, shall be exempt from obtaining a mercantile license, but any such business which is conducted within the Borough shall, nonetheless, be required to register such Business with the Licensing Official of the Borough and pay the registration fee established herein. It is the opinion of the Board of Commissioners that each such licensing of businesses of every type conducted within the Borough is necessary for the protection of the public and to protect the public from unlawful or unscrupulous individuals and or practices; to establish the nature and location of all commercial activities in order to protect and promote the enforcement of the Land Use Ordinances and regulations of the Borough; to provide emergency response teams with adequate knowledge of the location and types of business entities within the borough in order to assist in a timely, efficient and appropriate response in the event of an emergency affecting such property or business or the employees or patrons thereof; to assist the Borough in future planning for the needs of the commercial community; for the purpose of assisting in the periodic review and updating of the Municipal Master Plan in order to assist the Borough in providing adequate facilities involving sewer, water, fire and police protection, traffic control, solid waste disposal and related services; and otherwise to promote public health, safety and welfare. In conjunction herewith, it shall be unlawful for any person(s) or entity to engage in peddling or hawking within the Borough without first obtaining a permit and license as provided in Chapter 122, Peddling and Soliciting.
[1988 Code § 107-3]
No person, firm or corporation shall engage in, carry on or manage any business herein after designated, including hawking and/or peddling, in the Borough, nor aid or assist as employee, clerk or otherwise in carrying on such business, nor use any wagon, vehicle, motor car, truck, stand, store or other place for which a license is required by the terms of this Article, unless a license therefor shall have been first obtained. (See also Chapter 122, Peddling and Soliciting).
[1988 Code § 107-4]
As used in this Article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Shall mean the Borough of Cape May Point, in the County of
Cape May, State of New Jersey.
Shall mean synonymous with the term "commercial activity"
or "commercial enterprises" as defined herein.
Shall mean any activity of a business, commercial or of a
professional nature, that involves either the marketing, sale or consumption
of goods or services or any combination thereof. It shall include
financial services and all general retail and service businesses.
Shall mean synonymous with the term "commercial activity"
as defined herein.
Shall mean synonymous with the term "vehicle" as defined
herein.
Shall mean any business conducted entirely within a detached
dwelling unit or an accessory building which occupation is purely
incidental and secondary to the use of the property for residential
purposes.
Shall mean (1) one or more motor vehicles owned or leased
by the operator of a commercial enterprise and used in the conduct
of such commercial enterprise.
Shall mean synonymous with the term "vehicles" as defined
herein.
[1988 Code § 107-5; New]
The following commercial or business enterprises shall be exempt
for the mercantile license provisions:
a.
Common carriers servicing the Borough or making deliveries within
the Borough, including Federal Express, United Parcel Service (UPS)
and other such similar carriers.
b.
Any business or profession that is licensed or regulated by the United
States of America or the State of New Jersey, but shall not include
arcades or the operation of games of skill or chance.
c.
Heating and fuel oil distributors, provided that no base of operation
is located within the Borough.
d.
Fund-raising activities or events sponsored by a nonprofit, religious,
charitable, civic or educational organization maintaining nonprofit
status in accordance with the requirements of the Internal Revenue
Code.
e.
Any business which has a base of operation outside the geographical
boundaries of the Borough of Cape May Point shall be permitted to
make deliveries within the Borough and, for the purposes of this Article,
shall not be construed as conducting or carrying on business within
the Borough.
f.
Appliance repairman.
g.
Businesses and commercial activities otherwise regulated under the
Cape May Point Borough Code.
[1988 Code § 107-6]
Every business conducted within the Borough which is licensed
or regulated by the United States of America or by the State of New
Jersey and, therefore, not subject to the mercantile license provisions
of this Article, shall, nevertheless, be required to register with
the Borough annually, pay a registration fee as established by this
Article and complete such registration as prescribed by the Borough.
Such registration shall terminate upon the sale or transfer of such
business and the transferee shall be required to register the business.
[1988 Code § 107-7]
Every license issued pursuant to this Article shall be for the
calendar year and shall expire on December 31 of that year. New businesses
shall be required to obtain a mercantile license prior to the commencement
of business operations.
[1988 Code § 107-8]
The Board of Commissioners shall appoint a Licensing Official
who shall be responsible for the issuance of mercantile licenses,
including licenses for hawking and peddling, and for the registration
of exempt businesses pursuant to this Article.
[1988 Code § 107-9]
A licensee is required to post a mercantile license issued by
the Borough in a conspicuous location in the licensed premises. The
posting shall be so arranged that the license can be readily observed
by the members of the public and by any enforcement authorities.
[1988 Code § 107-10]
Any license issued pursuant to this Article shall be issued
to the named licensee only and such license may not be assigned or
transferred. In the event of a sale or transfer of a business, the
new owners shall be required to apply for the appropriate license
in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
[1988 Code § 107-11]
a.
It is the intention of the Borough to impose a single mercantile
license fee on any one type of business or commercial activity conducted
by a single proprietor from a single location. If more than one type
of business or commercial activity is conducted from such location,
the Borough shall impose an additional fee which shall cover all other
businesses or commercial activities after the first.
b.
Whenever a business enterprise consists of two or more businesses
or commercial activities and one of the commercial activities is exempt
from obtaining any license required under this Article while one or
more other types are not exempt, the business operation within the
Borough which is not exempt shall be required to obtain a license.
The commercial activity which is otherwise exempt from licensing shall
nonetheless be required to register such commercial activity as required
by this Article, but the registration fee in such event shall be waived.
[1988 Code § 107-12]
All applications for licenses required hereunder shall be accompanied
by the required fee and shall be made to the Licensing Official of
the Borough a minimum of three weeks prior to the proposed effective
date of the license, and upon forms provided by the Licensing Official,
and shall contain at least the following information:
a.
The name and permanent local address and phone number of the applicant.
b.
If the applicant is a corporation, the name, address and phone number
of its registered agent and local agent.
c.
If a vehicle is to be used, a description, including the motor vehicle
license number and vehicle identification number.
d.
If the applicant is employed by another, the name and address of
the employer, together with the credentials establishing the exact
relationship.
e.
The days of the week and the hours of the day during which the licensed
activity will be conducted.
f.
A description of the nature of the business and the goods, property
and/or services to be sold or supplied.
g.
A statement as to whether the applicant has been convicted of any
crime and, if so, the day and place of conviction, the nature of the
offense and the punishment or penalty imposed.
[`988 Code § 107-13]
The contents of the license shall be in a form provided by the
office of the Licensing Official and shall contain the following information:
a.
The name and address and local phone number of the licensee covering
both the business location address and the residence address. If the
owner is a nonresident, there must be a local agent who has the full
delegated responsibility for the operation of the business or property.
b.
The type of the license and the nature of the licensed activity and
the number of the employees involved.
c.
If the licensed activity is conducted from a vehicle, the make, model,
license and vehicle identification number of the vehicle.
d.
The expiration date of the license.
e.
Any other appropriate information which the Board of Commissioners
may, by resolution, require. The Licensing Official shall keep a record
of all licenses issued which shall be kept in the office of the Municipal
Clerk.
[1988 Code § 107-14]
The fees for licenses and/or registrations for the hereinafter
designated businesses shall be as follows:
a.
Selling and/or renting all goods, wares and merchandise of any description:
$100.
[1988 Code § 107-15]
Any license or permit issued by the Borough may be revoked by
same after notice and a hearing for any of the following causes:
a.
Fraud or misrepresentation in any application for a permit or license.
b.
Fraud, misrepresentation or other dishonesty in the conduct of the
licensed activity.
c.
Violation of any provision of any felony, crime or any disorderly
persons offense involving moral turpitude.
d.
Conviction of the licensee for any felony, crime or any disorderly
persons offense involving moral turpitude.
e.
Conduct of the licensed activity, whether by the licensee themselves
or of their agents or employees, in an unlawful manner or in a manner
that constitutes a breach of the peace or a menace to the public health,
safety or general welfare.
[1988 Code § 107-16]
a.
Notice of a hearing for a revocation of a license or permit shall
be given, in writing, by the Licensing Official. The notice shall
specifically set forth the ground upon which the proposed revocation
is based and the time and place of the hearing. It shall be served
by mailing a copy to the licensee at his/her last known address by
certified mail, return receipt requested, at least five days prior
to the date set for the hearing.
b.
At the hearing, the licensee shall have the right to appear and be
heard, to be represented by an attorney, to present witnesses in his/her
own behalf, to cross-examine opposing witnesses, and to have a permanent
record made of the proceedings at his/her own expense. The Borough
shall revoke or suspend the license if it is satisfied by a preponderance
of the evidence that the licensee is guilty of the act or acts charged.
c.
The Borough may issue another license to the person whose license has been revoked or denied as provided in this Section 107-16 if, after the hearing, it is satisfied, by clear and convincing evidence, that the acts which led to the revocation or denial will not occur again or, otherwise, no person whose license has been revoked or denied, nor any person acting for him/her, directly or indirectly, shall be issued another license to carry on the same activity.
[1988 Code § 107-16]
This Article shall be enforced by the Licensing Official(s),
the Code Enforcement Official(s) and/or the Chief and members of the
Police Department providing service to the Borough.
[1988 Code § 107-17]
The Board of Commissioners is hereby authorized to adopt rules
and regulations pertaining to the enforcement of this Article. Such
rules and regulations shall be adopted by formal resolution and, once
adopted, shall have the force and effect of law, and the violation
of any such rule or regulation shall subject the violator to the penalty
provisions of this Article.
[1988 Code § 107-19]
All real estate taxes, municipal liens and assessments and water
and sewer charges shall be paid currently as a condition precedent
to the issuance of any license herein, when applicable. Whenever the
applicant for such license is not the owner of the building which
is in default of payment of municipal taxes and other charges, the
applicant shall be entitled to an issuance of a mercantile license
upon the filing of an affidavit with the Municipal Clerk indicating
that the owner(s) of the property who are in default of their obligations
to the Borough have no interest, direct or indirect, in the operation
of the business sought to be licensed pursuant to this Article. If
such affidavit is later found to be false, it shall be cause for the
revocation of the mercantile license and for prosecution under the
penalty provisions of this Article.
[1988 Code § 107-20]
a.
Nothing contained within this Article shall be construed as intending
to license any business or commercial activity conducted in any location
which is contrary to or prohibited by the zoning and land use ordinances
of the Borough.
b.
In order to obtain any license hereunder, an applicant must demonstrate
the business or commercial activity as being conducted in a zone and
at a location where such activity is permitted by the zoning and land
use ordinances of the Borough. The Licensing Official may, prior to
issuing a mercantile license, refer the application to the Zoning
Officer for a certification that the business or commercial activity
complies with the zoning and land use ordinances of the Borough. In
the event that such business or commercial activity does not so comply,
the mercantile license shall be denied.
c.
Any mercantile license which has been issued or renewed and which
is subsequently found to be issued in violation of the zoning and
land use ordinances of the Borough shall be subject to revocation.
[1988 Code § 107-21]
Any person, firm, association, partnership or corporation violating any section of this Article shall, upon conviction, be liable to the penalty stated in Chapter 1, Section 1-5. All of the aforesaid, however, shall be in the discretion of the Municipal Court Judge or other officer having jurisdiction.
