[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Netcong 5-14-1996 by Ord. No. 96-4. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Unfit buildings — See Ch. 120.
Uniform construction codes — See Ch. 140.
Fire prevention — See Ch. 157.
Housing standards — See Ch. 186.
Land development procedures — See Ch. 194.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
LICENSING AUTHORITY
The Mayor and Borough Council of the Borough of Netcong.
OPERATOR
Any person, including any corporation or association of persons and any agency or instrumentality of state or local government, who or which operates or proposes to operate a rooming or boarding house.
OWNER
The holder of title in fee simple to premises and any lessor or sublessor of whom an operator is or proposes to become a sublessor in connection with an application for a rooming or boarding house license, or for renewal thereof, pursuant to this chapter.
ROOMING OR BOARDING HOUSE
Any rooming or boarding house licensed pursuant to N.J.S.A. 55:13B-1 et seq.
No rooming or boarding house shall be located or operated within the Borough of Netcong without first having applied for and received from the licensing authority a license for that purpose.
A. 
Every application for a license to operate a rooming or boarding house within the Borough of Netcong shall be made by the owner, in writing, shall be duly sworn to by the operator and shall set forth:
(1) 
The full name and address of the operator of the rooming or boarding house in whose name such license is to be issued.
(2) 
The location by street and number of the proposed rooming or boarding house.
(3) 
The full name and address of the owner of the premises upon which such house is located.
(4) 
What portion of the premises is intended to be used for rooming or boarding house purposes.
(5) 
The size of the house and the character of the material of which it is constructed.
(6) 
Whether or not the house is connected to the municipal sewer system.
(7) 
The number, location and dimensions of each sleeping unit.
(8) 
The number of windows in each sleeping unit.
(9) 
The number of bathrooms on each floor.
(10) 
The number and description of all bathing and shower facilities on each floor.
(11) 
The number of occupants provided for in each sleeping unit.
B. 
Each application must be accompanied by a deposit in full of the application fee as established in § 230-9 of this chapter.
[Amended 6-10-1997 by Ord. No. 97-6]
Each application for a license to operate a rooming or boarding house in the Borough of Netcong shall be filed with the Borough Clerk. Upon receipt of the fully completed application and application fee, the Borough Construction Official or his designee shall conduct an investigation to establish:
A. 
That the premises are in compliance with all applicable building, housing, health and safety codes and regulations;
B. 
That the location of the premises will not, in conjunction with the proximity of other rooming and boarding houses, lead to an excessive concentration of such facilities in the Borough or a particular section thereof, in accordance with the standards established in N.J.S.A. 40:52-14;
C. 
That the owner or owners are 21 years of age or older, citizens of the United States and residents of the State of New Jersey, and never convicted, in this state or elsewhere, of a crime involving moral turpitude or of any crime under any law of this state licensing or regulating a rooming or boarding house and have never had a license required pursuant to N.J.S.A. 55:13B-1 et seq. revoked;
D. 
That, if the owner or owners are a corporation, all officers and members of the board of directors of a corporation, and every stockholder holding 10% or more of the stock of the corporation, directly or indirectly having a beneficial interest therein, applying for a license have the same qualifications as set forth in Subsection C above;
E. 
That the operator or proposed operator of the rooming or boarding house meets the requirements for licensure by the Department of Community Affairs;
F. 
That the owner and operator, either individually or jointly, have established sufficient guarantee of financial and other responsibility to assure appropriate relocation of the residents of the rooming or boarding house to suitable facilities in the event that the license is subsequently revoke or its renewal denied; and
G. 
That the owner has paid all municipal property taxes due and owing on the rooming or boarding house, or in the case of an initial application, the applicant has paid all municipal property taxes due and owing on any other rooming or boarding house located within the Borough and owned by the applicant, provided that the owner has received written notice of any payment delinquency which has remained unpaid for more than 120 days.
[Amended 7-8-1999 by Ord. No. 99-14]
A. 
After completing the investigation authorized in § 230-4 of this chapter, the licensing authority shall determine whether to grant the license. A license, when issued, shall be valid for one year from the date of issuance and until such time as the licensing authority has acted upon an application for renewal, unless sooner terminated by revocation pursuant to § 230-7 of this chapter.
B. 
Not later than the 60th day preceding the anniversary date of issuance, the holder of a license shall make application to the licensing authority for its renewal. Application for a renewal shall follow the same procedure and requirements as prescribed for a new application.
A. 
The licensing authority may revoke a license granted under this chapter for any of the following reasons:
(1) 
A finding that there was any misstatement of material fact in the application upon which the license was issued.
(2) 
The occurrence of any fact which, had it occurred and been known to the licensing authority before issuance of the license, would have resulted in the denial of the application.
(3) 
Repeated violations or prolonged failure to correct any violation of any applicable building, housing, health or safety code or regulations.
(4) 
Refusal to allow access to any portion of the licensed premises at all reasonable times, with or without advance notice, in order that officers or agents of the licensing authority or any official charged with enforcement within the municipality of any building, housing, health or safety code or regulations applicable to the premises may determine compliance with such codes or regulations.
(5) 
Revocation by the Department of Community Affairs of the operator's license or other authorization to operate a rooming or boarding house on the premises.
(6) 
Notification by the Department of Community Affairs that the premises is not or is no longer suitable for operation of a rooming or boarding house on the premises.
(7) 
Failure or refusal to comply with any lawful regulation or order of the licensing authority.
B. 
A license shall not be revoked until five days' prior notice of the grounds therefor has been served upon the licensee, either personally or by certified mail addressed to the licensee at the licensed premises, and a reasonable opportunity given to the licensee to be heard thereon.
A. 
Upon a determination by the licensing authority to refuse the granting or renewal of a license or to revoke a license, the licensee affected shall be entitled to appeal to the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs for a review of the licensing authority's determination. The Commissioner shall have the authority to reverse the licensing authority's determination if he concludes that the application was improperly denied or the revocation was improperly imposed. Such review shall be in conformity with the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, N.J.S.A. 52:14B-1 et seq.
B. 
If an applicant for license renewal has made a timely and sufficient application for renewal in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, his license shall not expire until any appeals under this section have been finally determined and disposed of.
A. 
The yearly application fee for licensure of a rooming or boarding house shall be $200. For each annual renewal, the fee for the license shall be the same as the initial application fee.
B. 
If the application for a rooming or boarding house is denied by the licensing authority, 90% of the application fee shall be refunded to the applicant. Ten percent of the application fee shall be retained by the licensing authority to defray the expenses of the Borough in carrying out the provisions of this chapter.
Each and every operator of a rooming or boarding house in the Borough of Netcong shall provide and maintain a registry book, which shall contain the name and home address of each roomer or boarder, the date of arrival and departure and, if possessing or operating a motor vehicle, the make of vehicle and the license number. Said registry book shall be permanently located at said rooming or boarding house and shall be available at all times for inspection by authorized representatives of the Borough.
The owner of any rooming or boarding house that is in lawful operation on the date of enactment of this chapter shall apply for a license, as herein provided, within 60 days after this chapter shall take effect. If the owner of the premises applies for licensure as required herein, he shall be entitled to continue in operation until a final determination is made upon his application.
[Amended 8-10-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-20]
Any person, firm, or corporation violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to such penalties as are provided for in Article I of Chapter 1 of the Code of the Borough of Netcong.