[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Dunellen 12-17-1952. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter may be cited as the "Used Car Ordinance of the Borough of Dunellen."
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, partnership or corporation to use any vacant lot or land in the Borough of Dunellen for the display or storage for sale of used or new motor vehicles without first obtaining a license or licenses therefor as herein provided. No such business shall be conducted except in compliance with the provisions of this chapter.
Whenever two or more motor vehicles are displayed or stored for sale in or on any such vacant lot or land, a license, as herein required, shall be obtained, and a separate license shall be required for each separate place of business conducted by the same owner. The license shall authorize the licensee to conduct the said business on the premises described in the license, and said license shall not be assignable to any other person nor to any other premises without the consent of the Council.
Every applicant for a license to engage in said business, including the business of exchanging new or used motor vehicles, shall file with the Municipal Clerk, together with the license fee required by this chapter, a written application, signed and sworn to by the applicant or by an authorized officer of the applicant if a corporation. This application shall state:
A. 
The name and address of the applicant or applicants and, if a firm or corporation, the names and addresses of the partners or officers and the registered agent, as the case may be. If the business is to be conducted under a trade name, such name shall be stated in the application.
B. 
The place of previous employment or occupation of the applicant or applicants or of the partners or officers, as the case may be, and whether or not said applicant or applicants or partners or officers have ever been convicted of crimes.
C. 
The detailed nature of the business to be conducted.
D. 
A sketch of the premises upon which the business is to be conducted showing dimensions and frontages on streets, the distance to the nearest street intersecting the street upon which the premises front if an interior lot and, if a corner lot, showing the streets upon which said lot fronts and also showing existing or proposed entrances or exits to the said premises and, if a building exists on said premises, showing the location of the same or of any proposed building and its type and dimensions.
E. 
If the applicant is not the owner of the premises where said business is to be conducted, the property owner's consent to the carrying on of said business endorsed on the said application.
The application forms shall be prepared by the Municipal Clerk and shall be made available to applicants. The Municipal Clerk may require such information from the applicant in addition to that provided for in § 107-4 hereof as he may deem pertinent to the application.
The premises of the applicant, existing or proposed, may, in the discretion of the Mayor and Council, be ordered to be inspected by a Borough official, and the Mayor and Council may, in its discretion, require reports of such inspection prior to the granting or renewal of any license issued or to be issued under this chapter and may require that such inspecting official approve said application and the premises to be licensed prior to the issuance of any license. No license under this chapter shall be issued, renewed, assigned or transferred except by approval of the Mayor and Council.
No motor vehicle shall be displayed, stored, parked or located for sale or exchange on any sidewalk or street or part thereof nor on the licensed premises within two feet of the sideline of any street nor within five feet of any school, residence, church or place of assembly. The corners, as shown on the sketch submitted with the application, shall be physically marked on the ground by the installation of a prominently visible post or similar marker designating the limits of the licensed premises. Any license issued under the provisions of this chapter shall state the dimensions of the premises to be licensed.
The hours during which any licensed premises may be used for the conduct of such business shall be as follows: on weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and on Sundays from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. All illumination on said vacant lot or land other than advertising signs and other than the minimum necessary to provide protection, such as guard or night lights, shall be extinguished no later than 10:00 p.m. on weekdays and no later than 9:00 p.m. on Sundays. Such illumination as is used shall be installed and constructed in such a manner as to deflect the lights from the public highway and adjacent buildings. The purpose of this provision is to provide for the safety of the traveling public by the elimination of the glare of uncovered lights in the Borough of Dunellen.
Any licensee violating any of the provisions of this chapter, willfully making a false statement in his application or committing any crime or nuisance on the licensed premises or for any other just cause, may have his license revoked or suspended after notice and hearing by the Police Committee. The licensee shall be given at least five days' notice of the hearing, in writing, mailed to the licensee at any address set forth in the application or shall be served personally on the licensee or upon any officer, registered agent or partner of the licensee, as the case may be.
All licenses shall be for a term of one year from the first day of January in each year. The respective fees for any such license shall be prorated according to the effective date of such license if issued after January first and shall be based on the respective annual fees as is provided in this chapter. Where the license fee deposited with the application exceeds such prorated fee, a refund of the excess shall be made to the licensee.
This chapter is deemed necessary and proper for the protection of persons and property and for the preservation of the public safety and welfare of the Borough of Dunellen and to reduce traffic hazards and congestion in the public streets, and this chapter is also passed for the purpose of raising revenue and regulating the business referred to in this chapter.
A. 
The annual license fees shall be as follows: $75 for any lot not exceeding 2,000 square feet, plus $25 for each additional 1,000 square feet; provided, however, that the total fee in any event shall not exceed $525 annually.
[Amended 5-5-2003 by Ord. No. 03.20]
B. 
In computing the square footage of any given lot, the area covered by a permanent building erected on said lot shall not be considered.
Any person, member of a firm, partnership or corporation violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction in the Municipal Court, be subject to a fine not exceeding $500 or imprisonment in the county jail for a period not exceeding 90 days, or for both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the Judge. Each day that a violation is permitted to exist shall constitute a separate offense.