Township of Hanover, NJ Motels

A group of attached, semidetached or detached one- or two-story structures consisting of individual dwelling units, each unit consisting of a bedroom, bathroom and closet space and each having a separate entrance leading from a parking space for the use of the unit's occupants. The units, with the exception of the apartment of the manager or caretaker, are designed and used exclusively or primarily to accommodate automobile transients and have no cooking facilities. "Motel" shall include tourist court, auto court, motor lodge and motor court hotel.

PERSON

Includes persons, partnership, firm, company, corporation, tenant, owner, lessee, licensee and any of their agents, representatives, servants and employees.

§ 179-3 License required.

No person or persons shall engage in the business of conducting a motel without first having applied for and obtained from the Township of Hanover a license to do so. No such license shall be issued to any person who has been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude within a period of five years prior to the date of filing an application for a motel license, nor shall any such license be issued to any corporation in which any stockholder holding 5% or more of the stock thereof or in which any director or officer thereof shall have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude within said five-year period.

§ 179-4 Application information.

Each applicant for such license shall make written application on forms prescribed and supplied by the Township Committee setting forth:

The full name, residence and post office address of the applicant.

The exact location of the proposed licensed premises: block no., lot no. and street address.

A description of the buildings, structures and accommodations upon said lands, including a statement of the number of dwelling units, the maximum number of persons who can be accommodated at any one time, a description of the character of said buildings as to size, type of construction and whether or not the same are fireproof and a description of the automobile parking facilities.

The name and address of the owner of said lands and buildings.

The name or names of persons on the licensed premises upon whom process may be served.

Whether any person constituting the individual or partnership applicant or whether the corporate applicant or any stockholder holding 5% or more of the stock thereof or any director or officer thereof has ever been convicted of any crime and if so the details thereof, including the date thereof, the nature of the crime, the court in which the conviction was entered and the punishment imposed.

In the case of corporate applicants, the names and residences of all stockholders holding 5% or more of the stock thereof and the names and residences of all directors and officers of said corporate applicant.

§ 179-5 Inspections.

The Township Clerk shall forthwith forward said application to the Health Officer and Secretary of Fire Bureau of the Township who shall inspect the premises to determine whether or not the premises comply with Board of Health and fire ordinances and regulations.

If the premises do not comply, said officers shall attach to said application a written list of recommendations and return the same to the Township Clerk who in turn shall return said application to the applicant.

If the premises do so comply, said officers shall attach thereto certificates of approval. The Township Clerk shall present said application with said certificates of approval attached to the Township Committee.

The Township Committee shall thereupon cause to be made such further investigation of the premises and of the information set forth in said application as it may deem necessary and shall determine on the basis of said investigation and application whether or not such license shall be granted.[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: Original Section 4 which immediately followed this section and dealt with the annual license fee was deleted 7-11-1991 by Ord. No. 16-91.

§ 179-6 Term, validity, display and transfer of license.

A license issued under the provisions of this chapter shall be good for a term of one year, commencing January 1 and expiring December 31; provided, however, that any license issued during the year 1961 shall run from the date of issuance to December 31, 1961, and the fee therefor accordingly apportioned as of the date said license is issued.

Each license shall be valid only to the applicant to whom it is issued and to such applicant to whom the license may be transferred as hereinafter provided.

All licenses shall be displayed at a prominent place on the licensed premises.

On application made therefor setting forth the same matters and things as are required by this chapter to be set forth in an original application, the Township Committee, with the consent of the licensee and upon payment of a fee of 10% of the annual fee for the license sought to be transferred, may transfer to such applicant any license issued hereunder, but said ten-percent fee shall be retained by the Township whether the transfer is granted or not.

Any change in any of the information set forth in the application during the term of the license shall forthwith be communicated in writing by the licensee to the Township Clerk.

§ 179-7 Suspension or revocation of license.

Any license issued under this chapter may be suspended or revoked for any violation of this chapter or for any conviction of any licensee or of any stockholder holding 5% or more of the stock thereof, or director or officer thereof, of a crime involving moral turpitude after due notice of the charges in a hearing by the Township Committee of the Township of Hanover, at which time the licensee shall be afforded full opportunity to be heard.

§ 179-8 Minimum standards.

All motels which may hereafter be constructed in the Township of Hanover shall be subject to the following minimum standards of design, maintenance and use, which standards shall be deemed as supplementary to such other requirements as may be set forth by the Township Planning Board regarding site plan approval:

Each dwelling unit shall consist of a sleeping room, bathroom and closet area.

A sleeping room shall have a minimum floor area of 300 square feet, but in any event not less than 100 square feet for each person for whom said unit is designed. Each sleeping room shall have two fully screened windows on separate walls of the sleeping room having a total area of not less than four square feet per person and in any event not less than a total of 12 square feet.

A bathroom shall have a minimum of 25 square feet and shall consist of a lavatory, toilet and bath or shower with hot and cold water. Each bathroom shall have at least one window not less than three square feet in size or a ventilating skylight not less than three square feet in size.

It shall be the duty of the licensee to heat each dwelling unit when occupied so that a minimum temperature of 68° F. is maintained therein at all times when the outside temperature is 60° F. or below.

Each dwelling unit shall provide sufficient artificial lighting.

Each dwelling unit shall be cleaned daily and clean towels shall be supplied daily.

Bed sheets and pillow cases shall be changed each day, but if an occupant uses the same dwelling unit the bed linen may be changed every other day.

The lawns, flower beds and the premises shall be maintained in a neat and clean condition at all times.

All entrances, exits, driveways and parking areas shall be lighted between sunset and sunrise.

Each licensee shall at all times maintain upon the licensed premises a register consisting of consecutively numbered pages and which shall be preserved for three years upon the licensed premises. No person shall occupy and no licensee shall permit any person to occupy any dwelling unit on the licensed premises unless each person or the head of the party who is to occupy such dwelling shall first:

(1)

Display to the licensee or a duly authorized agent of the licensee written evidence of his identity and residence.

(2)

Write in the register his full name and address and the state license or registration number of the motor vehicle conveying him to the licensed premises.

(a)

If the registrant does not write in the register the information herein required, it shall be the duty of the licensee or his duly authorized agent to write in said information.

(b)

In addition to the foregoing information, the licensee or his duly authorized agent shall write in the register the name or number of the dwelling unit occupied by each registrant, the date and hour of registration and the date and hour the registrant surrenders the same.

Said register shall be kept and preserved by the licensee and shall be available upon request at any hour of the day or night to any regular or special police officer authorized by the senior officer in charge to investigate or inspect said register.

It shall be the duty of the Police Department to inspect the licensed premises from time to time at any hour of the day or night to determine that the provisions of this chapter are being complied with.

No motel or any rental space therein shall be occupied by the same guest or guests for a consecutive period exceeding 30 days.

It shall be the joint and individual responsibility of the licensee and the manager or other person designated as being in charge of the operation of the motel to:

(1)

See that the provisions of this chapter are complied with and enforced and report promptly to the proper authorities any violations of this chapter or any other violation of law which may come to his attention.

(2)

Report to the Board of Health all cases of persons or animals affected with any communicable disease, on or about the motel premises.

(3)

Prevent the running loose of dogs, cats or other animals or pets, on or about the motel premises.

(4)

Maintain, in convenient places, approved by the Fire Bureau in writing, hand fire extinguishers, in good operating condition, of at least two-and-one-half-gallon capacity, approved by the Underwriter's Laboratories, Inc., in the ratio of one to each three motel units.

(5)

Prohibit the lighting of open fires on the premises without written permission from the Chief of the Fire Department.

(6)

Prohibit the use of any motel unit by a greater number of occupants than that which it is designed to accommodate.

(7)

Provide a central garbage and trash collection station, as well as a central storage facility properly screened from view and built and located as approved by the Board of Health and the Building Official of the Township of Hanover.

§ 179-9 Compliance with other regulations.

Notwithstanding the provisions hereof, such buildings shall be erected and maintained in full compliance with any and all ordinances affecting the erection, construction and maintenance of buildings and the appurtenances thereto and operation thereof unless specifically modified or exempt therefrom by the terms of this chapter.

§ 179-10 Violations and penalties.

[Amended 7-11-1991 by Ord. No. 16-91]

Any person violating the provisions of this chapter upon conviction for each and every violation thereof shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period not exceeding 90 days, or both, at the discretion of the Judge.