[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Fort Lee 4-14-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any building, structure, or other facility, public or otherwise,
under the jurisdiction and control of the Borough of Fort Lee.
The taking of still or motion pictures, either on film, videotape
or similar recording equipment, for commercial or educational purposes,
intended for viewing on television or in theaters or for institutional
use or for advertising purposes.
All activities pertaining to the staging and/or shooting
of photograph(s) for sale or any commercial purpose. This term shall
not include private video photography or news media as defined herein.
Any film which is financed and/or distributed by a major
motion picture studio, including but not limited to the following:
The filming or videotaping of video or still photography
intended and used solely for private use.
Any and every public street, highway, sidewalk or square,
public park or playground or other public place within the Borough
which is within the jurisdiction and control of the Borough.
Filming or still photography produced to satisfy a course
or curriculum requirement at an accredited educational institution.
The student filmmaker must supply proof that they are currently enrolled
in any such educational institution.
A.
No person, firm or corporation shall film or permit filming within
the Borough of Fort Lee without first obtaining a permit therefor,
which permit shall set forth the location of such filming and the
date or dates when filming shall take place.
B.
Permits shall be obtained in the office of the Borough Clerk during normal business hours. Applications for such permits shall be in a form approved by the Borough Clerk and shall be accompanied by a permit fee as set forth in § 210-14. Incidental use of a public sidewalk or street which does not result in the closing of the street or sidewalk to public use shall not be considered filming on public land.
C.
Where filming takes place on private property, permission of the
owner must be obtained in writing.
D.
If a permit is issued and filming does not take place on the dates
specified due to inclement weather or other good cause, the Borough
may, at the request of the applicant, issue a new permit for filming
on other dates, without additional charge to the applicant, subject
to full compliance with all other provisions of this chapter.
E.
One permit shall be required for each location.
No permit shall be issued for filming at a particular location
in a residential zone within the Borough of Fort Lee which would permit
filming at said location on more than four days during any one calendar
year.
No permit shall be issued for filming upon public lands within
the Borough of Fort Lee unless the applicant for such permit:
A.
Provides proof of insurance coverage as follows: for bodily injury
for any one person, in the amount of $500,000; and for any aggregate
occurrence, in the amount of $1,000,000.
B.
Agrees, in writing, to indemnify and save harmless the Borough of
Fort Lee from any and all liability or damages from the use of such
public lands.
The holder of a permit shall take all reasonable steps to minimize
interference with the free passage of pedestrians and traffic over
public lands and shall comply with all lawful directives issued by
the Fort Lee Police Department with respect thereto.
The holder of a permit shall conduct filming in such a manner
as to minimize the inconvenience or discomfort to adjoining property
owners attributable to such filming and shall, to the extent practicable,
abate noise and park vehicles associated with such filming off the
public streets.
The holder shall avoid any interference with previously scheduled
activities upon public lands and limit, to the extent possible, any
interference with normal public activity on such public lands.
The holder of a permit shall take all reasonable steps to minimize
the creation and spread of debris and rubbish during filming and shall
be responsible for removing all equipment, debris and other rubbish
from the filming location upon the completion of filming or the expiration
of the permit, whichever comes first.
Filming shall be permitted only Monday through Friday, between
the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. or sundown, whichever is earlier,
in residential zones.
A.
The Borough Clerk may refuse to issue a permit whenever he/she determines,
on the basis of objective facts and after a review of the application
and a report thereon by the Police Department and by other Borough
agencies involved with the proposed filming site, that filming at
the location and/or the time set forth in the application would violate
any law or ordinance or would unreasonably interfere with the public's
use of public lands, unreasonably interfere with the use and enjoyment
of adjoining lands, unreasonably interfere with the use and enjoyment
of adjoining properties, unreasonably impede the free flow of vehicular
or pedestrian traffic or otherwise endanger the public's health,
safety or welfare.
B.
Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Borough Clerk denying or
revoking a permit or a person requesting relief may appeal to the
Mayor and Council. A written notice of appeal setting forth the reasons
for the appeal shall be filed with the Borough Clerk. An appeal from
the decision of the Borough Clerk shall be filed within 10 days of
the Borough Clerk's decision. The Mayor and Council shall set
the matter down for a hearing within 30 days of the day on which the
notice of appeal was filed. The decision of the Mayor and Council
shall be in the form of a resolution. A resolution supporting the
decision of the Borough Clerk or granting relief shall be approved
by the Mayor and Council at the first regularly scheduled public meeting
of the Mayor and Council after the hearing on the appeal, unless the
appellant agrees, in writing, to a later date for the decision. If
such a resolution is not adopted in the time required, the decision
of the Borough Clerk shall be deemed to be reversed and a permit shall
be issued in conformity with the application or the relief shall be
deemed denied.
The Mayor and Council may authorize a waiver of any of the requirements
or limitations of this chapter and may authorize filming other than
during the hours herein described or may permit filming at a particular
location in a residential zone on more than four days during any one
calendar year or may waive any other limitation or requirement of
this chapter whenever it determines that strict compliance with such
limitations will pose an unreasonable burden upon the applicant and
that such a permit may be issued without endangering the public's
health, safety or welfare.
The applicant shall notify the Fire Inspections Bureau 24 hours
before filming takes place and permit the Fire Inspectors to inspect
the site and the equipment to be used. The applicant shall comply
with all firesafety instructions issued by the Fire Inspector.
In addition to any and all other fees and costs mentioned in
this chapter, the applicant shall reimburse the Borough for any lost
revenue, including but not limited to repairs required to any public
property and any revenues that the Borough was prevented from earning
because of filming.
The schedule of fees for the issuance of permits authorized
by this chapter are as follows:
A.
Commercial filming permit: $250.
B.
Commercial still photography permit: $100 (fee subject to change
based on duration of shoot).
C.
Nonprofit or student films: no permit fee. Student films are otherwise
liable for all other costs except for filming or photography that
is part of a course of study at any educational institution or facilities
located within the Borough of Fort Lee.
D.
Daily filming fee, in addition to basic filming permit: $400 per
day.
E.
Daily filming fee for a major motion picture: $1,500 per day.
F.
Police/fire protection: an additional cost to be determined by the
Borough of Fort Lee Police and/or Fire Department(s).
G.
Use of Borough parks, Borough public lands, or Borough facilities
may incur additional fees in accordance with the Borough of Fort Lee's
facility use fee schedules.
The applicant will be required to hire one or more off-duty
police officers when deemed necessary by the Police Chief.
Any person violating this chapter or rules and regulations contained
herein shall be subject to, upon conviction, the penalty as provided
in the general Code.[1]
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to the filming
of news stories within the Borough of Fort Lee.
If any term or provision of this chapter is held to be illegal,
invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, in
whole or in part, such determination shall not affect the validity
of the remaining terms and provisions of this chapter.
To the extent that any provision of the Code of the Borough
of Fort Lee is found to conflict with this chapter, in whole or in
part, this chapter shall control.
In order to avoid accidental repeal of existing provisions,
the Borough Clerk and the Borough Council are hereby authorized to
change any chapter numbers, article numbers and/or section numbers
in the event that the codification of this chapter reveals that there
is a conflict between those numbers and the existing Code.
This chapter shall take effect upon passage and publication
as required by law.
