[Adopted 11-24-1969 by Ord. No. 31-1969]
[Amended 7-26-1976 by Ord. No. 7611; 4-21-1988 by Ord. No.
8811]
The owner of any premises in the City of Ventnor
City abutting a sidewalk or curb shall, at his/her own cost and expense,
keep and maintain such sidewalks or curb in good condition and state
of repair and shall not permit the same to fall into a state of disrepair
or to become unfit or unsafe to walk upon. In the event that such
sidewalk or curb or any part thereof becomes unsafe or hazardous to
the public or unfit to walk upon, the abutting owner, at his/her own
cost and expense, shall forthwith reconstruct or repair, as the facts
may require, such sidewalk or curb or that part thereof which requires
reconstruction or repair.
[Amended 7-26-1976 by Ord. No. 7611; 6-4-1979 by Ord. No. 7904; 10-5-1981 by Ord. No. 8139]
A.
All sidewalks to be constructed, reconstructed, improved,
or repaired shall be a minimum of five feet in width and aligned with
the sidewalk already existing within that block as determined by the
Construction Code Official. In the case where there is no alignment,
the edge of the sidewalk shall be placed not closer than 18 inches
from the face of curb. Sidewalk may consist of either broomed concrete
or brick paver finish.
[Amended 11-12-1998 by Ord. No. 9827; 12-1-2005 by Ord. No.
2005-16]
(1)
If concrete, it shall be a minimum of four inches
in thickness. All concrete shall be standard gray concrete, white
pigment may be added, and meeting both the mix design requirements
of Class B concrete, and installed in accordance with the NJDOT Standard
Specification for Road and Bridge Construction, as currently amended.
Colored concrete is not permitted.
(2)
If brick pavers are utilized, the paving unit shall
be placed on a NJDOT Class C concrete base of not less than four inches
in thickness. Paving units must then be installed in a one-inch thick
bituminous bed and tack coat over the concrete base. No sand bedding
will be permitted. Paving units shall be smooth face with no profiling
(rounding or other irregularity). Paving units may have the standard
45° bevel not greater than 1/4 inch with no rounding at the edges.
Paving units shall be laid with sand joints not greater than 3/8 inch.
All pavers shall be set level following the existing roadway profile
and complying with a standard two-percent cross slope from top of
curb.
(3)
When paving units are utilized in lieu of concrete,
it shall be implied that the property owner has accepted all liability
and responsibility for all claims or damage resulting from the use
of said pavers. Additionally, it shall be the property owner’s
sole responsibility for replacement and/or repair to said pavers for
any damage that may result from standard construction practices due
to a City-funded roadway improvement (curb and/or gutter installation)
and/or utility installation. The City accepts no liability as to damage
that may result to paving units as a result of road salt application.
B.
Curbs and gutters. All curbs to be constructed, reconstructed,
paved, repaved, improved or repaired shall be concrete. Concrete shall
conform to the requirements of the New Jersey State Highway Standard
Specification for Class B concrete. Concrete curbs shall be six inches
wide by 18 inches in depth. If concrete gutters are to be constructed,
the gutters shall be Class B concrete, six by 24 inches. Curbs and
gutters shall be cast separately; monolithic or one-piece curbs and
gutters shall not be permitted. Should the City of Ventnor City construct
said curbs upon the failure of the property owner to do so, said curb
shall be constructed of concrete. All curbs shall be constructed with
a six-inch reveal on the curb face except as provided below.
[Amended 9-6-1983 by Ord. No. 8331]
C.
Drop curbs/curb cuts. Curbs constructed, reconstructed,
paved, repaved, improved or repaired may be constructed with dropped
curb sections to provide access to off-street parking in accordance
with these specifications. Drop curbs shall consist of full depth
section with a minimum of two inches of curb reveal. Drop curbs/curb
cuts shall be limited to one section per dwelling unit per lot. Drop
curbs shall be a maximum of 12 linear feet for a single car-width
driveway, 18 linear feet for a double car-width driveway and two ten-foot
linear sections for circular driveways, provided that the lot width
is a minimum of 105 feet and the front yard setback is a minimum of
30 feet.
D.
Grades. Sidewalks and curbs shall be constructed,
reconstructed, paved, repaved, curbed, recurbed, improved and repaired
to conform as near as practicable to the established grade of the
street, road or highway or of the section thereof along which any
such improvement is proposed to be made, where said grade has been
established by law previous to the passage of this article.
[Amended 10-5-1981 by Ord. No. 8139; 2-4-1988 by Ord. No. 8803; 4-21-1988 by Ord. No. 8811; 12-6-1990 by Ord. No. 9024]
A.
Where in the opinion of the Construction Code Official
or his designated representative, a block within the municipality
of Ventnor City has been developed to at least 50%, the Construction
Code Official or his designated representative shall be required to
notify all property owners on that block that it shall be necessary
to install a sidewalk and curb along their property if such sidewalk
and curb do not exist. Notice by the Construction Code Official or
his designated representative shall be served, in writing, upon the
owner of the lands in question requiring the owner to take action
within a sixty-day period of the date of service of said notice, which
shall be by certified mail. Whenever any lands are unoccupied and
the owner cannot be found within the City, said notice may be mailed,
postage prepaid, to his/her post office address as it is ascertained
from the latest tax rolls of the City of Ventnor City. In the case
where an owner is a nonresident of the municipality or his/her post
office address cannot be ascertained, then the notice may be inserted
for four weeks, once a week, in the official newspaper of the City
of Ventnor City, New Jersey.
B.
Where, in the opinion of the Construction Code Official
or his designated representative, a sidewalk or a curb is in an unsafe
or hazardous condition, the Construction Code Official or his designated
representative shall issue a notice, in writing, to be served upon
the owners of said abutting lands requiring the necessary specified
work to said curb or sidewalk to be done by said owner within the
period not less than 30 days from the date of the service of said
notice, which shall be by certified mail. Whenever any lands are unoccupied
and the owner cannot be found within the City, said notice may be
mailed, postage prepaid, to his/her post office address as it is ascertained
from the latest tax rolls of the City of Ventnor. In a case where
an owner is a nonresident of the municipality or his/her post office
address cannot be ascertained, then a notice may be inserted for four
weeks, once a week, in the official newspaper of the City of Ventnor
City.
[Amended 4-21-1988 by Ord. No. 8811; 12-6-1990 by Ord. No.
9024]
In the case where the owner of such lands as set forth in § 197-23A or B shall not comply with the requirements of such notice, it shall be lawful for the City, upon filing due proof of service or publication of the aforesaid notice, to cause the required work to be done and paid for out of the City funds available for that purpose. The cost of such work shall be certified by the City Engineer, who shall verify the same and turn it over to the Tax Assessor. Upon filing these said certifications, the amount of the cost of such work shall be and become a lien upon said abutting lands in front of which such work was done and be collected in the manner provided by law for the collection of other assessments or liens; in addition thereto, the City of Ventnor City, as its option, may maintain an action in any court of competent jurisdiction.
[Added 7-21-1988 by Ord. No. 8822]
Should it be determined by the Ventnor City
Construction Code Official that the need for an existing curb cut
no longer exists through abandonment of the off-street parking area
served by the curb cut, the property owner shall be notified, in writing,
by the Building Department requesting the property owner to eliminate
the existing curb cut by installing concrete curbing with a reveal
of six inches. Should the property owner fail to remove said curb
cut within 30 days of notification, the City shall proceed to perform
all work necessary in eliminating the curb cut at the expense of the
property owner.
[Added 4-21-1988 by Ord. No. 8811]
The City may each year include in its annual
budget or tax ordinance an appropriation for curb and/or sidewalk
repairs in addition to any existing maintenance fund, out of which
appropriation all cost of construction and/or repair of curbs or sidewalks
during the year may be charged when it becomes necessary for the Public
Works Department to make such repairs and/or construction pursuant
hereto. All money recovered or paid to the City under the provisions
of this section, other than penalties as hereinafter set forth, shall
be credited to the account out of which such work was paid.
[Added 4-21-1988 by Ord. No. 8811; amended
at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Whenever any curb or sidewalk is required to be repaired, reset or relaid in the City of Ventnor City, application for a permit shall be made by the owner of the abutting lands or his contractor to the Construction Code Official, specifying grade, dimensions, mixed materials and method of construction or repair to be used. The Construction Code Official shall examine said specifications and, upon approval of the City Engineer, in compliance with all the provisions of this article, shall grant a permit to the applicant. Fees for said aforesaid permit shall be as set forth in Chapter 114, Fee Schedule.
[Added 4-21-1988 by Ord. No. 8811[1]]
A.
The failure of any applicant or owner or his contractor,
servant or agent to construct or repair such curbs and/or sidewalks
in accordance with the specifications filed by him for the purpose
of securing that permit under the terms of this article shall be and
constitute a violation hereof.
B.
Any person violating the terms of this article or
refusing or neglecting to comply with any of the provisions hereof
shall, upon conviction therefor, be subject to a fine of not more
than $1,000 or imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not
more than 90 days, or both, in the discretion of the court before
whom such conviction is had. In addition to or as a substitute for
the previously mentioned fine, the imposition of community service
shall be authorized as an additional penalty, which community service
shall not exceed 90 days.
[Amended 2-2-1989 by Ord. No. 8903; 1-9-1997 by Ord. No. 9616]
C.
Each day's persistence in the things or acts prohibited
by this article shall be and constitute a separate and distinct offense,
subject to any and all penalties prescribed in this article.
