Township of Lebanon, NJ Article IV Administration

[Amended 3-2-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-03; 4-4-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-02]

§ 199-12 Staff; duties generally.

A. Administrator. The Township Committee shall appoint an administrative agent of the rehabilitation, accessory apartment, and market to affordable programs. The administrative agent may also act as the Township's Municipal Housing Liaison. In this capacity the administrative agent shall arrange for all mass mailings and advertising, shall make funding recommendations to the Township Committee as outlined herein, shall periodically report the progress of the program to the Township Committee and shall file annual reports with COAH as required by N.J.A.C. 5:97 and the settlement agreement.

(1) The administrative agent shall perform the duties and responsibilities of an administrative agent as are set forth in UHAC and which are described in full detail in the Operating Manual, including those set forth in N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.14, 16 and 18 thereof, which includes:

(a) Attending continuing education opportunities on affordability controls, compliance monitoring, and affirmative marketing as offered or approved by COAH;

(b) Affirmative marketing;

(c) Household certification;

(d) Affordability controls;

(e) Records retention;

(f) Resale and rerental;

(g) Processing requests from unit owners; and

(h) Enforcement, though the ultimate responsibility for retaining controls on the units rests with the municipality.

(i) The administrative agent shall have authority to take all actions necessary and appropriate to carry out its responsibilities, hereunder.

(2) The administrative agent, in conjunction with the Construction Code Official and Assessor, shall develop forms for use by households or owners wishing to participate in the programs. The administrative agent shall maintain a complete file for each application.

B. Construction Code Official. The Township Construction Code Official shall have primary responsibility for all housing inspections. For units proposed for rehabilitation, he shall determine the unit's substandard systems and eligibility, the scope of work needed to make the unit adequate and safe, and the estimated cost of improvements. For proposed accessory apartments, the Construction Code Official shall determine the estimated cost of improvements. He shall report his findings in the form of recommendations for funding to the administrative agent who shall list same on the agenda of the Township Committee. The Construction Code Official shall make periodic inspections and issue a report of completion to the administrative agent concomitant with the issuance of a certificate of occupancy for the unit upon completion of the rehabilitation, accessory apartment, or market-to-affordable unit creation.

C. Township Planner. For proposed accessory apartments and market to affordable units, the Township Planner shall determine whether the proposed units meet all applicable standards in §§ 199-8 and 199-9.

D. Tax Assessor. The Tax Assessor shall aid the Construction Code Official in his inspections and shall assist the administrative agent in arranging for mass mailings utilizing the Township's tax assessment records.

E. Township Attorney. A Township Attorney shall prepare all deed restrictions, lien documents, and any other legal documents he shall deem necessary and adequate to effectuate this chapter, the programs, and the regulations or requirements.

§ 199-13 Affirmative marketing.

A. The Township adopts, by passage of this ordinance, the following affirmative marketing plan, subject to approval of COAH or a court of competent jurisdiction, compliant with N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.15, as may be amended and supplemented.

(1) The administrative agent, in conjunction with the Tax Assessor and Tax Collector, shall arrange, at least once annually, for a mailing of brochures to all homeowners within the Township, announcing and explaining the availability of rehabilitation and accessory apartment assistance. In addition, the administrative agent shall arrange for and shall display, in public buildings throughout the Township, posters which advertise the program. Owners of nonpublic facilities may, upon request, also display posters (such as banks, churches, community service organizations). All brochures and posters shall specify the name of the contact person in the Township Municipal Building (with telephone number and address) who will provide more detailed information and, upon request, application packages.

(2) News releases shall be prepared and sent to the local print media at least quarterly and a public meeting shall be held in the initial stage of program implementation to familiarize interested parties with the procedures for program participation. Informational meetings shall be held with welfare organizations, community groups, personnel departments of local employers, social workers, civic and religious leaders, senior citizen groups, and fraternal organizations. Marketing efforts will continue until the programs are fully subscribed.

B. The administrative agent shall assure the affirmative marketing of all affordable units consistent with the affirmative marketing plan for the municipality.

C. In implementing the affirmative marketing plan, the administrative agent shall provide a list of counseling services to low- and moderate-income applicants on subjects such as budgeting, credit issues, mortgage qualification, rental lease requirements, and landlord/tenant law.

D. The costs of advertising and affirmative marketing of the affordable units shall be the responsibility of the developer, sponsor or owner, unless otherwise determined or agreed to by the Township.

E. In compliance with the settlement agreement, the Township shall include in its affirmative marking plan pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.15(f)(5), the following: Fair Share Housing Center (510 Park Boulevard, Cherry Hill, NJ 08002), the New Jersey State Conference of the NAACP, the Latino Action Network (P.O. Box 943, Freehold, NJ 07728), East Orange NAACP (P.O. Box 1127, East Orange, NJ 07019), Newark NAACP (P.O. Box 1262, Newark), NJ 07101, Morris County NAACP (P.O. Box 2256, Morristown, NJ 07962), and Elizabeth NAACP (P.O. Box 6732, Elizabeth, NJ 07206). The Township shall, as part of its regional affirmative marketing strategies during its implementation of this plan, provide notice to those organizations of all available affordable housing units. The Township also agrees to require any other entities, including developers or persons or companies retained to do affirmative marketing, to comply with this paragraph.

§ 199-14 Application and forms.

The administrative agent shall develop appropriate forms for program implementation as follows:

A. Application form which shall cover all general data such as owner's and applicant's name; occupancy status; present rent (if applicable); number of persons in household; location and number of units, including number of bedrooms; income level and sources of income for proposed occupants; a description of the work to be done; and, for accessory apartments, a plot plan and construction plan.

B. Income verification forms which shall be signed by the applicant so that the administrative agent may mail them to the employer for verification. If unemployed, the applicant shall supply such other evidence as will reasonably establish the income level, such as social security statements, tax returns, dividend statements, etc. The administrative agent shall keep all financial disclosures made by an applicant confidential. In making recommendations to the Township Committee, the income need not be disclosed in public session except by means so as to establish that the income level is below the applicable low- or moderate-income levels established by the Council on Affordable Housing.

C. For vacant units where an owner-applicant may apply for and receive a rehabilitation or accessory apartment loan pursuant to this chapter, the owner shall agree to provide all necessary documents and a verification as outlined in this section, for prospective occupants, so as to adequately demonstrate compliance with all local and state regulations cited herein. An owner-applicant is a person who owns a housing structure proposed for rehabilitation, or a building proposed for an accessory apartment, and is applying to create a rental unit.

D. Affordability controls shall be clearly identified in the application package, and shall be in conformance with this chapter and COAH's rules. A sample deed restriction and/or rehabilitation loan agreement shall be supplied to the applicant.

E. Supporting documents shall be submitted evidencing proof of ownership.

F. Applications shall be considered in the order in which they are received by the Township.

§ 199-15 Application procedures.

A. Filing. All interested applicants may obtain an application package from the administrative agent. Questions as to income eligibility or administrative procedures may be directed to the administrative agent. Assistance regarding unit eligibility, accessory apartment standards, scope of work, and obtaining cost estimates will be provided by the Construction Code Official. The Construction Code Official and Administrative Agent shall arrange for special times to make themselves available to assist the public, which shall include daytime and evening hours. All completed applications shall be presented to the administrative agent.

B. Administrative agent's review.

(1) The administrative agent shall, within five business days, review the application to determine its completeness and the income level of the applicant. If the applicant's income exceeds the eligibility standard, the applicant will be so notified and a confirming letter shall be kept in the file. If the application is complete and the stated income level is eligible, the administrative agent shall transmit a copy of the package to the Construction Code Official for review. Thereafter, the administrative agent shall verify the income with the applicant's employer on the forms provided. Once verified, the Clerk shall so notify the Construction Code Official.

(2) For vacant units, the owner need not be income eligible, but he or she shall provide adequate documentation at the time of occupancy that the sales price or rental rate is affordable as defined in this chapter, and that the prospective occupants are income eligible.

C. Township Planner's and Construction Code Official's review.

(1) The Construction Code Official shall review the application package, and within 10 business days of receipt of same, shall (with the Tax Assessor) arrange for an inspection of the property. For rehabilitation proposals, he shall prepare a work write-up that details the unit's substandard characteristics and scope of work, all of which shall be in compliance with this chapter. A copy of the work write-up shall be sent to the applicant within 10 days of the inspection. The Construction Code Official shall prepare an in-house cost estimate to be kept in the file confidentially, until a contractor's proposal for the rehabilitation work is received. The applicant shall obtain at least one contractor's estimate (typical time frame of 10 business days) and return same to the Construction Code Official. If the Construction Code Official finds that the estimate is within 10% of his estimate, he shall prepare a recommendation for funding to be sent to the administrative agent for inclusion on the Township Committee's agenda. If the estimate is too high or too low, the applicant may elect to obtain a new estimate, or may request the contractor to meet with the Construction Code Official to resolve the discrepancy.

(2) For proposed accessory apartments, the Township Planner shall review the application for conformance with the zoning standards established in § 199-8 of this chapter and Chapter 400, Zoning, and provide its findings to the Construction Code Official and Township Committee. The Construction Code Official shall review the findings of the Township Planner, the proposed plot plan and the construction plan for conformance with the construction standards in § 199-8. The applicant shall submit a cost estimate for the proposed scope of work for review by the Construction Code Official. If the Township Planner and the Construction Code Official find that the proposed accessory apartment complies with the standards of § 199-8, and that the estimate is within 10% of the Construction Code Official's independent estimate, then the Construction Code Official shall prepare a recommendation for funding to be sent to the administrative agent for inclusion on the Township Committee's agenda. If the standards of § 199-8 are not met, then the Construction Code Official shall prepare a report for the applicant and Township Committee identifying the standards which are not satisfied.

D. Township Committee authorization. Recommendations for funding shall be sent by the Construction Code Official to the Municipal Housing Liaison for inclusion on the agenda of the Township Committee. If all program criteria have been met, the Committee shall approve the funding of the improvements for the funds reserved for the program and shall authorize the Township Attorney to prepare a rehabilitation accessory apartment, or market to affordable loan agreement and deed restriction or lien so as to ensure that a lien position may be held by the Township. The work may then be authorized by the Construction Code Official as provided in § 199-22. For rehabilitation projects, the loan principal shall include only capital costs. Administrative expenses to be budgeted (such as the inspection costs, attorney's fees, and processing expenses incurred by the Municipal Housing Liaison) shall be paid by the Township and not charged to the borrower. For any two-year period, the average capital expense (hard cost) for units in the rehabilitation program shall be $10,000, and the Township Committee may authorize the expenditure of up to $30,000 on a rehabilitated unit. The Township Committee shall provide at least $25,000 to subsidize the creation of each low-income accessory apartment. The Township Committee shall provide $30,000 to subsidize the creation of a low-income market-to-affordable unit.

E. Inspections. For rehabilitation and accessory apartment projects, the Construction Code Official shall periodically inspect the premises during construction. Payments will be made to the contractor at 50% performance (40% of the cost) and upon completion (the balance due). Change orders shall require approval by the Township Committee if additional funding is required beyond the contract amount. Otherwise, applicant and Construction Code Official concurrence shall be the only necessary authorization. Upon completion, the Construction Code Official shall issue a completion report to the administrative agent stating that the work has been undertaken in conformance with the program, this chapter, and the applicable codes, and that the unit has been brought up to compliance with the relevant housing or building code for rehabilitated units, or the relevant accessory apartment standards for new accessory apartments.

F. Reports to the Township Committee. At least quarterly, the administrative agent shall report the program's progress to the Committee, including an accounting report supplied by the Chief Financial Officer/Treasurer as to funds expended. The report shall state the status of units under review or under construction, and the efforts which will be undertaken to meet program goals in the future. Every two years, with the first report being due in August 2019, the administrative agent shall file a progress report with the Council on Affordable Housing and Fair Share Housing Center.