[Adopted 10-12-1999 by Ord. No. 14-1999 (Ch. 259, Art. I, of the 1993 Code)]
The Township may grant tax exemption on improvements and may enter into agreements for tax abatement on commercial and industrial projects, pursuant to the provisions of P.L. 1991, c. 441, as amended.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 40A:21-1 et seq.
The following procedures shall govern tax abatement and exemptions.
A. 
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:21-7, all improvements, as defined in N.J.S.A. 40A:21-3n, to commercial or industrial structures of 5,000 square feet or more, being used as provided in § 259-4B, shall be exempt from local real property taxes, on the improved portion only, for a period of five years, if, after proper, timely application has been made, the governing body determines that the improvement meets the intent and criteria established by this article without compromising the equity of the tax structure.
[Amended 1-28-2008 by Ord. No. 3-2008]
B. 
Applicants must apply for tax exemption on improvements within three days of completion of construction of the improvement.
C. 
All applications for tax exemption for improvements shall be filed with the Tax Assessor, who shall deem the application complete prior to forwarding it to the governing body for approval.
D. 
No applications will be approved for fit-outs to structures which were not previously fully completed and occupied.
E. 
No applications will be approved for changing a structure from one construction code use group to another.
A. 
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:21-9, to be considered for tax abatement, a project must contain a minimum of 5,000 square feet of floor space per use. Applicants shall provide the governing body with an application setting forth:
(1) 
A general description of the project for which abatement is sought.
(2) 
A legal description of all real estate necessary for the project.
(3) 
Plans and drawings and other documents, as may be required by the governing body, to demonstrate the structure and design of the project.
(4) 
A description of the number, classes and types of employees to be employed at the project site within two years of the completion of the project.
(5) 
A statement of the reasons for seeking tax abatement on the project and a description of the benefits to be realized by the applicant if tax abatement is granted.
(6) 
Estimates of the cost of completing such project.
(7) 
A statement showing:
(a) 
The real property taxes currently being assessed at the project site.
(b) 
Estimated tax payments that would be made annually by the applicant on the project during the period of tax abatement.
(c) 
Estimated tax payments that would be made by the applicant on the project during the first full year following the termination of the tax abatement agreement.
(8) 
A description of any lease agreement between the applicant and proposed users of the project, and a history and description of the users' business.
(9) 
Proof of payment of taxes through the current quarter.
(10) 
Such other pertinent information as the governing body may require.
B. 
Tax abatement applications will be considered for approval for uses such as:
(1) 
Electronics and small parts assembly and/or manufacture.
(2) 
Scientific or industrial research engineering laboratories, testing or experimental laboratories or similar establishments for research or product development.
(3) 
Warehouse facilities.
(4) 
Administrative activities and offices.
(5) 
Light manufacturing of beverages, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, printing and publishing, confections, food projects (exclusive of meat and fish packing, sauerkraut, vinegar, yeast and the rendering or refining of fats and oils), ceramics, clothing, plastics, electrical goods, furniture and wood products, hardware, tools, dies, patterns, professional and scientific instruments, handcraft products, electronics and small parts assembly and/or manufacture.
(6) 
Wholesale business establishments.
(7) 
Indoor storage buildings or warehouses.
(8) 
Contractor equipment storage yards or buildings for rental of equipment commonly used by contractors.
(9) 
Warehousing and wholesale establishments, storage yards, lumberyards for retail and wholesale and similar establishments.
(10) 
Transportation and trucking terminals, terminal facilities for passengers and/or freight for trucks, railroads and taxi and bus lines, including maintenance and service facilities.
(11) 
Warehouses, frozen-food lockers and indoor storage.
(12) 
Milk or soft-drink distribution stations or storage houses.
(13) 
The manufacture, compounding, processing, packaging or treatment of the following previously prepared materials: cork, feathers, cellophane, ceramics, felt, fur, glass, hair, horn, paper, pharmaceuticals, plastics, shells, iron and steel, aluminum, leather, plaster, metals, precious and/or semiprecious stones, wood, yarns, containers or novelties from paper or cardboard, natural or synthetic rubber, tobacco, textiles, or textile products and perfumes.
(14) 
The manufacture of musical instruments, toys, novelties and electrical or electronic devices; home, commercial and industrial appliances and instruments, including the manufacture of accessory parts or assemblies; dental and medical equipment; watches and clocks; optical goods, drafting equipment and canvas products.
(15) 
Experimental, research or testing laboratories.
(16) 
Carpet or rug cleaning; laundry, dry-cleaning and dyeing plants.
(17) 
Wholesaling and distributing activities.
(18) 
Light metal processing as follows: cleaning, finishing, grinding, heat treatment, plating, polishing, rustproofing and sharpening; metal stamping and extrusion of small products; similar metalworking processes.
(19) 
Job printing and newspaper or book publishing.
(20) 
Baking and food and dairy processing.
(21) 
Accessory uses on the same lot with, and customarily incidental to, any of the above-permitted uses.
(22) 
Corporate and professional offices.
(23) 
Recreational facilities, including, but not limited to, theaters and bowling alleys.
(24) 
Artists' and photographers' studios.
(25) 
Motel-hotels and related facilities such as restaurants, meeting rooms and auditorium spaces and swimming pools.
(26) 
Newspaper publishing and job printing.
(27) 
General service and repair shops, including carpenter, cabinetmaking, furniture repair, plumbing or similar shops.
(28) 
Offices of a builder, carpenter, caterer, cleaner, contractor, decorator, electrician, furrier, mason, painter, plumber, roofer, upholsterer and similar non-nuisance businesses, excluding open storage of materials and excluding open storage of motor vehicles.
(29) 
Veterinary hospitals, provided that all animals are kept in permanent enclosed structures and are not within 150 feet of any existing residential use or zone.
(30) 
Laboratories, dental and medical.
(31) 
Catering establishments.
(32) 
Business and instructional schools, including trade schools.
(33) 
Nursing homes, rest homes or homes for the aged.
(34) 
At the discretion of the governing body, mixed-use projects combining a use listed above with a retail use or uses. The retail use must comprise 40% or less of the total project and will receive no abatement until completion of the nonretail uses.
(35) 
Retail uses in excess of 50,000 square feet, at the discretion of the governing body.
C. 
The following procedures, conditions and interpretations will apply to all applicants for tax abatement:
(1) 
All applications shall be filed with the office of the Tax Assessor. When the Tax Assessor deems the application complete it shall be forwarded to the Economic Development Advisory Board which, in turn, shall forward its recommendations to the governing body.
(2) 
All applications for abatement shall be filed prior to, or contemporaneously with, application to the Planning Board for preliminary site plan or subdivision approval.
(3) 
For multiuser projects such as rental or condominium ownership, the entire concept should be approved at the beginning and not on a per-unit basis.
(4) 
The agreement to abate may permit multiuser projects to be developed in phases. The five-year time period commences with the occupancy of the first tenant or condominium owner in each phase.
D. 
Upon approval of an ordinance authorizing an agreement for tax abatement for a particular project or projects, the governing body may enter into written agreements with the applicants for abatement of local property taxes. The agreement shall provide for the applicant to pay to the municipality, in lieu of full property tax payments, an amount to be computed pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:21-10.
E. 
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:21-21, the Township shall provide timely reports, as required therein, to the Department of Community Affairs and the Department of the Treasury.