No building shall hereafter be erected, nor shall any existing building be moved, structurally altered, rebuilt, added to or enlarged, nor shall any land be designed or used for any purpose other than those included among the uses listed as permitted uses in each zone by this chapter and meeting the requirements set forth in the schedule made a part of this chapter and consisting of a part of Article
XIV of this chapter, nor shall any open space contiguous to any building be encroached upon or reduced in any manner, except in conformity with the yard, lot area, building location, percentage of lot coverage, off-street parking requirements, and such other regulations designated in said schedule and in this chapter for the zone district in which such building or space is located. In the event of any such unlawful encroachment or reduction, such building shall be deemed to be in violation of this chapter, and the certificate of occupancy shall become void.
Each of the sections and subsections of this Part
6 shall apply to all zone districts unless otherwise stated.
Any lot or plot as recorded at the time of passage of this chapter that fails to comply with the minimum requirements of this Part
6 may be used for any use not otherwise prohibited in such district in which it lies, provided that the yard requirements are complied with. Where the average lot width is less than its zone district requirement, the side yards may be reduced by the percentage that the lot width bears to the zone district requirements, provided that no side yard shall be less than 1/2 of the required side yard.
Unless otherwise provided herein, all yards, open spaces and
off-street parking shall be contained on the lot and within the zone
district in which the lot is located.
No lot, yard, parking area or other space shall be so reduced
in area or dimension as to make said area or dimension less than the
minimum required under this Part 6. If already less than the minimum
required under this Part 6, said area or dimension shall not be further
reduced.
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, all dwellings
or principal structures shall be constructed or located upon a lot
abutting and having frontage upon an existing state, county or Borough
street or highway, a street shown upon a plat approved by the Planning
Board pursuant to the provisions of this chapter and for which a performance
guaranty has been posted, or a street shown upon a plat duly filed
in the Somerset County Clerk's office prior to the adoption of this
chapter and which shall have been suitably improved to the satisfaction
of the Borough Council.
At an intersection, there shall be no obstruction of vision
between a height of two feet and 10 feet above the center-line grade
of the street within the triangle defined by the first 75 feet of
each of the intersection street lines for local streets. Said distance
shall be increased to 100 feet if either of the streets is a collector
street or increased to 150 feet if either of the streets is an arterial
street. Such triangles shall be graded as necessary and kept clear
of any building, planting or other obstruction.
When a new lot is formed so as to include within its boundaries
any part of a former lot on which there is an existing building or
use, the subdivision must be carried out in such a manner as will
not infringe upon any provisions of this chapter either with respect
to any existing structures or use or any proposed structures or use.
In the case of irregularly shaped lots, the minimum lot width
specified in the Schedule of Bulk Requirements may be measured at the rear line of the required front
yard, provided that in no case shall the lot frontage measured at
the street right-of-way line be less than 70% of the minimum lot frontage
as specified in the Schedule of Bulk Requirements.
[Amended 11-22-2016 by Ord. No. 2016-15]
The height provisions of this chapter shall not apply to the
erection of spires, belfries or towers associated with the places
of worship, chimneys, flues or other similar appurtenances, which
shall be limited to a maximum of 45 feet or 115% of the building height,
whichever is higher, or to parapet walls and cornices extending no
more than three feet above the height limit for the zone. Nor shall
they apply to bulkheads, elevator enclosures, water tanks or similar
accessory uses, provided that they occupy no more than 15% of the
area of the roof on which they are located, do not exceed the height
limit for the zone by more than five feet, and are fully screened.
Not more than one commercial vehicle shall be parked out-of-doors
overnight or on Sunday in conjunction with a residential property
in a residential zone. No display vehicles for commercial purposes
shall be parked in any district.
[Added 10-28-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-06]
A. No persons shall store firewood in the front yard on residentially
zoned property, except that firewood may be temporarily stored in
a front yard for a period of 10 days from the date of its delivery.
B. Outside storage of firewood, generally.
(1)
The firewood shall be cut, split, prepared for use and stored
in neat, secure stacks. The firewood shall be neatly stacked and may
not be stacked closer than three feet to any lot line and not higher
than four feet from grade, except adjacent to a fence, where firewood
can be stacked as high as the fence. Fences as used in this section
shall not include hedges and other vegetation. The firewood shall
be stored a minimum of eight inches off the ground and on a well-supported,
nonrotting base.
(2)
There shall be no more than two cords of wood stored at any
time, and no more than 1/4 of a fireplace cord shall be stored on
the porch of a residential structure.
C. All brush, debris and refuse from the processing of firewood shall
be promptly and properly disposed of within 10 days and shall not
be allowed to remain on the premises.
D. Wood piles that contain diseased wood that is capable of transmitting
disease to healthy trees and wood piles that harbor or are infested
or inhabited by rats or other vermin are public nuisances and may
be abated pursuant to the provisions of this Code.
E. Firewood may be stored on a residential property solely for use on
the premises and not for resale.
[Added 11-25-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-11]
The provisions of this §
207-90.2 do not apply to police, fire and other emergency response agencies. Emergency generators may be located outside the building envelope on lots in residential zoning districts subject to the following:
A. These provisions only apply to emergency generators having a rated
generating capacity not exceeding 20 kilowatts; a footprint, including
the pad, not exceeding 20 square feet; and a height not exceeding
four feet measured from the top of the pad to the top of the generator.
B. The emergency generator shall not be located in front of the principal
building on the lot.
C. No portion of the emergency generator and pad may be located within
the principal structure bulk setback of the prevailing zone in which
the generator is to be sited and no more than 20 feet from the principal
structure on the lot. The generator may be placed in the side yard
in accordance with the accessory structure setback, provided that
six-foot board-on-board fencing is installed along the side yard where
the generator is located. The fence must conform to the Raritan Borough
fence code. The fence is required to be installed within 60 days of
the installation of the generator. All other state and local codes
must be met as well as the manufacturer's specifications for the installation
and placement of the generator.
D. The emergency generator shall be appropriately screened/buffered
by nondeciduous plantings (subject to seasonal planting timing limitations)
and/or a fence so as to minimize visibility from all lot lines from
which the setback is less than the minimum applicable to buildings
and structures.
E. The emergency generator shall be located in the back yard where practical
and with due consideration for adjoining buildings in order to be
as minimally intrusive as possible when the emergency generator is
in operation.
[Added 5-28-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-08; amended 4-5-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-06]
A. All residential development, including the residential portion of
a mixed-use project, which consists of five or more new residential
units to be offered for sale or seven or more new residential units
to be offered for rental, shall be required to provide an appropriate
percentage of the residential units be set aside for very-low-, low-,
and moderate-income households, as set forth below.
B. This requirement shall not apply to residential expansions, additions,
renovations, replacement, or any other type of residential development
that does not result in a net increase in the number of dwellings
of five or more.
C. For residential or mixed-use projects in which the affordable units
are to be offered for sale, the set-aside percentage shall be 20%;
for projects in which the affordable units are to be offered for rent,
the set-aside percentage shall be 15%.
D. The developer shall provide that half of the affordable units constructed
be reserved for low-income households and that the remaining half
be reserved for moderate-income households. At least 13% of all restricted
units shall be very-low-income units (affordable to a household earning
30% or less of median income). The very-low-income units shall be
counted as part of the required number of low-income units within
the development.
E. Subdivision and/or site plan approval shall not be approved by the
reviewing board unless the developer complies with the requirements
to provide very-low-, low-, and moderate-income housing pursuant to
the provisions of this section. A property shall not be permitted
to be subdivided so as to avoid meeting this requirement. The board
may impose any reasonable conditions to ensure such compliance.
F. This requirement does not create any entitlement for a property owner
or applicant for a zoning amendment, variance, or adoption of a redevelopment
plan or amended redevelopment plan in areas in need of redevelopment
or rehabilitation, or for approval of any particular proposed project.
G. This requirement shall not apply to sites or zoning districts identified
in the Fair Share Plan where standards for the set-aside of affordable
housing units have already been established.
H. In the event application of the required set-aside percentage (15%
or 20%) to the total number of residential units proposed does not
result in a full integer, the developer shall round the required set-aside
upward and construct a whole affordable unit.