[Adopted 5-22-1997 by Ord. No. 97-9]
No owner of real property shall rent an illegal apartment as
defined in the ordinances of the Borough of Wallington or permit same
to be occupied by any tenant(s) or other person(s).
In the case of displacement of any person(s) by enforcement of this article or other applicable laws or regulations, any owner of real property who, in violation of law or ordinance, rents an apartment or unit to such person(s) shall pay to the Borough of Wallington all relocation costs incurred pursuant to the Relocation Assistance Law of 1967, N.J.S.A. 52:31B-1 et seq., and the Relocation Assistance Act, N.J.S.A. 20:4-1 et seq., and Ordinance 94-3 (see Article I of this chapter), upon presentation to the owner of a statement of such relocation costs from the displaced tenant.
In the event that the relocation costs to be paid to the Borough
of Wallington with regard to any parcel of real property shall not
be paid within 10 days after the date due, interest shall accrue and
be due to the Borough of Wallington on the unpaid balance at the rate
of 18% per annum until the costs, and the interest thereon, shall
be fully paid to the Borough of Wallington.
In the event that the relocation costs to be paid to the Borough
of Wallington with regard to any parcel of real property shall not
be paid within 10 days after the date due, the unpaid balance thereof
and all interest accruing thereon shall become a lien on the parcel.
To perfect the lien, a statement showing the amount and due date of
the unpaid balance and identifying the parcel, which identification
may be sufficiently made by reference to the assessment map of the
municipality, shall be recorded with the Bergen County Clerk and,
upon recording, the lien shall have the priority of a mortgage lien.
Alternatively, upon adjudication of liability hereunder by a
court of competent jurisdiction, the court may, in its discretion,
order the owner of the parcel of real property to pay directly to
the displaced tenant all relocation costs for which the tenant has
not received payment from the Borough of Wallington, as required to
be paid pursuant to the Relocation Assistance Law of 1967, N.J.S.A.
52:31B-1 et seq., and the Relocation Assistance Act, N.J.S.A. 20:4-1
et seq. Any court order or judgment in this regard shall be considered
to be both in persona and in rem.
In addition to paying damages as set forth in §§ 238-8 through 238-12 above, the owner of the real property shall also return to the displaced tenant any security deposit, together with interest thereon, plus any rental payment required to be apportioned, upon notification by the enforcement official that the illegal apartment or dwelling unit must be vacated.
[Amended 6-27-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-4[1]]
For purposes of determining violations of this article, each
and every day of continued rental or occupancy shall be deemed to
be a separate and distinct violation.
The provisions of this article shall be enforced by all members
of the Borough Police Department, the Construction Code Official,
the Code Enforcement Officer and/or the Health Officer of the Borough
of Wallington.
