[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Woodcliff Lake 1-29-1979 by Ord. No. 79-3 (Ch.
120 of the 1985 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Woodcliff
Lake Fence Ordinance."
No person shall erect or maintain on property
owned or controlled by him any hedge, wall or fence that is higher
than three feet above curb level, nor any obstruction to vision other
than a post not exceeding one square foot in cross-section, within
a triangular area on such property, located on the corner of intersecting
streets, measured by the right-of-way line of the intersecting streets
and the projection of a line joining points 25 feet from the corner
along each right-of-way of such intersecting streets.
Any fence or hedge in violation of this chapter
shall be removed by the owner or occupant of the premises upon which
it is located within 10 days after receiving notice to do so from
the Construction Code Official or Zoning Officer. Notice may be served
by delivering a copy personally to any occupant of the premises above
the age of 14 years, to whom the contents shall be made known, or
by sending a copy by regular mail to the owner of the property at
his last known address.
In the event that the owner of the property
upon which the fence, wall or hedge is maintained fails to remove,
relocate or reduce it in height within 10 days after being served
with a notice to do so, the Construction Code Official or Zoning Officer
may cause the fence, wall or hedge to be removed, relocated or reduced
in height so that it complies with the provisions of this chapter.
In the event that such action by the Construction Code Official or
Zoning Officer is necessary, the cost of doing the work shall be certified
to the Mayor and Council, who shall examine the certificate and, if
found reasonable, shall cause the cost of doing the work to be charged
against the land upon which the work was performed. The amount charged
shall become a lien upon the land and shall be added to and become
part of the taxes next assessed against and land upon which the work
was performed and shall bear interest and be collected and enforced
in the same manner as taxes. The removal, relocation or reduction
in height by the municipality of any fence, wall or hedge shall be
in addition to any penalty imposed for violation of this chapter.
No fence or wall, except a retaining wall, shall
be erected in the municipality which exceeds the following height
limitations:
A.
No solid fence shall exceed the height of five feet
above the ground.
B.
No three-quarter open fence shall exceed the height
of six feet above the ground.
C.
No combination solid fence and three-quarter open
fence shall exceed the height of six feet above the ground. A combination
solid and three-quarter open fence shall have at least the top one
foot of the fence open.
D.
No fence in excess of four feet in height shall be
erected between the street line and the front building line of the
premises.
E.
No fence shall be erected and no hedge, shrubs or
trees shall be planted within the right-of-way lines of any street.
Any fence which is considered to have a face
or front side shall be erected so that such face or front side is
placed outward from the area being enclosed.
[Amended 4-15-1985 by Ord. No. 85-4]
All private pools in the municipality shall
be completely and continuously surrounded by a permanent, durable
wall, fence or barrier.
All fences within the municipality shall be
properly maintained in a safe and attractive condition, free from
any defects.
A.
Fence erection permit required. It shall be unlawful
for any person to erect or relocate any fence within the municipality
without first obtaining a fence erection permit from the Construction
Code Official. The Construction Code Official shall issue permits
only for such fences as are permitted by this chapter.
B.
Application. The application for a fence erection
permit shall be made upon forms provided by the Construction Code
Official, in triplicate, and shall contain or have attached the following
information:
(1)
Name, address and telephone number of the applicant
and the owner of the premises.
(2)
Location of the premises where the fence is to be
erected.
(3)
Sketch of the plan of the fence.
(4)
Description and specifications of the fence, including
size, height and dimension, materials to be used and size and percentage
of openings.
(5)
Sketch of the premises in question, which shall show
the streets abutting the nearest intersection and shall approximately
indicate the location of structures within 50 feet of the fence.
C.
Permit issued if application is in order. It shall
be the duty of the Construction Code Official, upon filing of an application
for a fence erection permit, to examine the application, and if it
shall appear that the proposed fence is in compliance with all of
the requirements of this chapter and all other laws and ordinances
of the municipality, he shall then issue the fence erection permit.
If the fence is not erected within the period of six months after
the date of the issuance of the permit, the permit shall become null
and void.
This chapter shall be enforced by the Construction
Code Official and/or Zoning Officer.
[Amended 4-15-1985 by Ord. No. 85-4]
For each and every violation of the provisions
of this chapter, the owner, lessor, lessee, occupant, fence erector
or contractor or other person interested in the premises upon which
the violation has been committed shall be subject to a fine of not
more than $1,000 or imprisonment not to exceed 90 days, or both, in
the discretion of the court. Each day that a violation continues shall
be deemed to constitute a separate offense.
