[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Atlantic Highlands as indicated in article histories.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Development regulations — See Ch. 150.
[Adopted 10-9-1984 by Ord. No. 842]
[Amended 5-8-1991 by Ord. No. 994-91]
Any owner and/or applicant for a certificate
of occupancy, a certificate of continued occupancy, permit, license,
variance, subdivision of land, construction permit, subcode permit,
easement or any other relief that can be granted by the governing
body or any official, officer, board, agency or subagency, regarding
any real estate or activity upon or in any real estate located in
the Borough of Atlantic Highlands, as a condition for the issuance
or renewal of any of the aforementioned permits, licenses, etc., shall
secure in writing from the appropriate Borough officer, a statement
that all real estate taxes, water charges, sewer charges and assessments
have been paid to a current basis for the property on which the activity
or business in question is to take place. In the event that property
taxes or assessments are unpaid to a current basis, no permits or
licenses shall be issued until all such payments have been made by
or on behalf of the property owner.
No relief referred to in § 323-1 of this article shall be issued by the governing body, board, agency, subagency, officer or employee unless all real estate taxes, water charges and/or sewer bills have been paid through the calendar year quarter of the time of the application.
[Amended 5-8-1991 by Ord. No. 994-91]
Whenever a property owner has failed to pay
the taxes due on the property for at least three consecutive quarters,
the Borough may, upon notice to the licensee and property owner, revoke
or suspend any license or permit until the payment of the delinquent
taxes and assessments is made. Upon payment of the delinquent taxes
or assessments, the license or permit shall be restored.
[Amended 5-8-1991 by Ord. No. 994-91]
The provisions of this article shall not apply
to nor include any alcoholic beverage license or permit issued pursuant
to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act.
[Amended 5-8-1991 by Ord. No. 994-91]
The provisions of this article shall apply to
all other permits and licenses issued by, or requiring approval of,
the Borough of Atlantic Highlands, or any of its Boards or Agencies
or Offices, including but not limited to:
A.
Permits required pursuant to the Uniform Construction
Code.
B.
Certificates of occupancy, provided, however, that
if a certificate of occupancy is needed for closing of title, a conditional,
temporary certificate of occupancy may be issued upon delivery of
executed contracts to the Borough Clerk for the sale of said property.
The conditional, temporary certificate of occupancy shall be contingent
upon the payment of all taxes at the time of closing of title; and
if not paid at closing, the conditional, temporary certificate of
occupancy shall be deemed revoked.
C.
Food establishment licenses.
D.
Soil removal permits.
E.
Tree removal permits.
F.
Amusement licenses.
[Adopted 12-13-1995 by Ord. No. 9-95]
The Legislature has determined that various statutes authorized
by N.J.S.A. Const. Art. 8 § 1, par. 6, permitting municipalities
to grant, for periods of up to five years, exemptions from taxation
in areas in need of rehabilitation, have proven to be effective in
prompting construction and rehabilitation of residential and commercial
structures threatened with economic decline. The Legislature adopted
Chapter 441 of the Laws of 1991 (N.J.S.A. 40A:21-1 et seq.) so as
to consolidate and make more coherent the most useful features of
such statutes. Chapter 441 provides that if the governing body determines
that there are trends in the municipality toward deterioration which
it believes will, unless countered by such incentive, inexorably tend
toward further deterioration, the governing body may adopt an ordinance
granting tax exemptions throughout the municipality to the same extent
as if the municipality's neighborhoods had been determined to be in
need or rehabilitation. It is the opinion of the Council that in the
present economic times there exists an unwillingness of owners of
property to properly maintain and improve their properties arising
from the perception that the making of such improvements will cause
taxes to rise. These feelings create a circle whereby repairs and
improvements are delayed, deterioration begins to set in, and the
neighborhood itself begins to deteriorate. The Borough Council believes
that by exempting for a limited period a portion of such improvements
from taxation, much of the unwillingness and fear noted would be dissipated
and owners and investors would be encouraged to rehabilitate and improve
properties. By doing so, they would improve the Borough and preserve
the Town for the future. The Council, being cognizant of these facts,
does hereby grant the tax exemptions set forth in this article.
A.
Definitions. As used in this article, terms shall
be defined as in N.J.S.A. 40A:21-3.
B.
Tax exemption amount declared.
(1)
Dwellings. In determining the value of real property,
the Borough shall regard the first $25,000 in the Assessor's full
and true value of improvements for each dwelling unit, primarily and
directly affected by the improvement, in any dwelling more than 20
years old, as not increasing the value of the property for a period
of five years notwithstanding that the value of the property to which
the improvements are made is increased thereby. During the exemption
period, the assessment on the property shall not be less than the
assessment thereon existing immediately prior to the improvement(s)
unless there is damage to the dwelling sufficient to warrant a reduction.
[Amended 6-25-2008 by Ord. No. 07-2008]
(2)
Multiple dwellings, commercial or industrial structures.
In determining the value of multiple dwellings, or commercial or industrial
structures, the Borough shall regard the first $25,000 in the Assessor's
full and true value of improvements for each of such properties for
improvements to any structure more than 20 years old as not increasing
the value of the property for a period of five years, notwithstanding
that the value of the property to which the improvements are made
is increased thereby. During the exemption period, the assessment
on the property shall not be less than the assessment thereon existing
immediately prior to the improvements unless there is damage to the
structure sufficient to warrant a reduction.
C.
Action of the assessor. The Assessor shall determine,
on October 1 of the year following the date of completion of an improvement,
the true taxable value thereof. The amount of tax to be paid for the
first full tax year following completion shall be based on the assessed
valuation of the property for the previous year, plus any portion
of the assessed valuation of the improvement, conversion or construction
not allowed an exemption pursuant to this act. The property shall
be treated in the appropriate manner for five tax years.
D.
Additional improvements. An additional improvement
completed on a property granted a previous exemption during the period
in which the previous exemption is in effect shall be qualified for
an exemption as if such property had not received a previous exemption.
The additional improvement shall be considered as separate for the
purposes of calculating the exemption, except that the assessed value
of any previous improvement shall be added to the assessed valuation
as it was prior to that improvement for the purpose of determining
the assessed valuation of the property from which any additional abatement
is to be subtracted.
E.
Delinquent taxes. No exemption or abatement shall
be granted with respect to any property for which property taxes or
water and sewer bills are delinquent or remain unpaid or for which
penalties for nonpayment of taxes are due.
F.
Application to be filed. No exemption shall be granted
except upon written application on a form prescribed by the Division
of Taxation in the Department of Treasury and shall be filed with
the Assessor within 30 calendar days following the completion of the
improvement. The granting of an exemption must be approved by the
Assessor and shall be made a permanent part of the official tax records
and shall contain a notice of the termination date thereof.
G.
Taxes to which exemption applies. The exemption of
real property taxes shall apply to property taxes levied for municipal,
school and county government purposes and for the purposes of funding
any other property tax exemptions.
A.
Tax agreements for new construction of commercial
structures or multiple dwellings.
(1)
The Borough Council is granted the discretionary authority
to enter into agreements, on a project basis, for the abatement of
taxes for the new construction of commercial structures or multiple
dwellings.
(2)
Applicants shall provide the governing body with an
application setting forth:
(a)
A general description of a project for which
abatement is sought;
(b)
A legal description of all real estate necessary
for the project;
(c)
Plans, drawings and other documents as may be
required by the governing body to demonstrate the structure and design
of the project;
(d)
A description of the number, classes and type
of employees to be employed at the project site within two years of
completion of the project;
(e)
A statement of the reasons for seeking tax abatement
on the project, and a description of the benefits to be realized by
the applicant and the Borough if a tax agreement is granted;
(f)
Estimates of the cost of completing such project;
(g)
A statement showing the real project site; estimated
tax payments that would be made annually by the applicant on the project
during the period of the agreement; and estimated tax payments that
would be made by the applicant on the project during the first full
year following the termination of the tax agreement;
(h)
A description of any lease agreements between
the applicant and purposed users of the commercial or industrial project,
and a history and description of the user's businesses;
(i)
Such other pertinent information as the governing
body may require.
B.
Tax agreement.
(1)
On approval of the Borough Council, the Borough may
enter into a written agreement with the applicant for the exemption
and abatement of local real property taxes on the newly constructed
improvements. The agreement shall provide for the applicant to pay
to the municipality in lieu of full property tax payments an amount
annually to be computed by one of the methods of computation defined
and permitted by N.J.S.A. 40A:21-10, to be determined in the discretion
of the Borough Council.
(2)
All tax agreements shall be in effect for no more
than five full tax years following the date of completion of the project.
C.
Termination of tax agreement.
(1)
If during any tax year prior to the termination of
the tax agreement, the property owner ceases to operate or disposes
of the property, or fails to meet the conditions for qualifying, then
the tax which would have otherwise been payable for each tax year
shall become due and payable from the property owner as if no exemption
and abatement had been granted. The Borough Council shall notify the
property owner and Tax Collector forthwith and the Tax Collector shall
within 15 days thereof notify the owner of the property of the amount
of taxes due.
(2)
However, with respect to the disposal of the property,
the new owner of the property may request the Borough Council to continue
the exemption and abatement agreement and must demonstrate the continuance
of the conditions which qualified the property. If the Council determines
said conditions continue, no tax shall be due and the exemption and
the abatement shall continue, and the agreement shall remain in effect.
D.
Report of Tax Assessor.
(1)
The Tax Assessor shall report, on or before September
1 of each year, to the Mayor and Council as to the total amount of
real property taxes exempted and the total amount abated within the
Borough in the current tax year under this article.
(2)
This report shall state, for the current tax year,
the total amount of payments made in lieu of taxes according to the
formula utilized by the Borough and the difference between that total
amount and the total amount of real property taxes which would have
been paid on the project had the tax agreement not been in effect.
E.
Effective date. This article and provision for tax abatement agreements
was readopted by Ordinance 03-2011 on February 23, 2011. This article
shall expire as of February 22, 2021, unless readopted and/or extended
by proper ordinance; however, any tax abatement agreement approved
or adopted prior to that expiration date shall remain in effect for
the full approved period of the abatement agreement.
[Amended 9-27-2017 by Ord. No.
08-2017]
