[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Council of the Village of
Ridgewood 6-11-2014 by Ord. No. 3417. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Property maintenance — See Ch. 223.
The purpose of this chapter is to notify property owners, lienholders
and other interested parties of property within the Village of Ridgewood
of the intent of the Village to adopt the Abandoned Properties Rehabilitation
Act (N.J.S.A. 55:19-78 et seq.), its provisions, procedures, authority
and lawful remedies, empowering the Village and its officials to act
under the authority of same. This chapter modifies the Abandoned Properties
Rehabilitation Act only for purposes of notification, order and context
and preserves all substantive rights and obligations of the Act.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any person designated or appointed by the Village Manager
or Village Council to exercise the powers and authority prescribed
by this chapter.
A.
Except as provided in Section 6 of P.L. 2003, c. 210 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-83),
any property that has not been legally occupied for a period of six
months and which meets any one of the following additional criteria
may be deemed to be abandoned property upon a determination by the
public officer that:
(1)
The property is in need of rehabilitation in the reasonable judgment
of the public officer, and no rehabilitation has taken place during
that six-month period;
(2)
Construction was initiated on the property and was discontinued prior
to completion, leaving the building unsuitable for occupancy, and
no construction has taken place for at least six months as of the
date of a determination by the public officer pursuant to this section;
(4)
The property has been determined to be a nuisance by the public officer
in accordance with Section 5 of P.L. 2003, c. 210 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-82).
B.
A property which contains both residential and nonresidential space may be considered abandoned pursuant to P.L. 2003, c. 210 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-78 et seq.), so long as two-thirds or more of the total net square footage of the building was previously legally occupied as residential space and none of the residential space has been legally occupied for at least six months at the time of the determination of abandonment by the public officer and the property meets the criteria of either Subsection A(1) or (4) of this section.
A.
A property may be determined to be a nuisance if:
(1)
The property has been found to be unfit for human habitation, occupancy
or use pursuant to Section 1 of P.L. 1942, c. 112 (N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.3);
(2)
The condition and vacancy of the property materially increases the
risk of fire to the property and adjacent properties;
(3)
The property is subject to unauthorized entry leading to potential
health and safety hazards; the owner has failed to take reasonable
and necessary measures to secure the property; or the Village of Ridgewood
has secured the property in order to prevent such hazards after the
owner has failed to do so;
(4)
The presence of vermin or the accumulation of debris, uncut vegetation
or physical deterioration of the structure or grounds has created
potential health and safety hazards and the owner has failed to take
reasonable and necessary measures to remove the hazards; or
(5)
The dilapidated appearance or other condition of the property materially
affects the welfare, including the economic welfare, of the residents
for the area in close proximity to the property, and the owner has
failed to take reasonable and necessary measures to remedy the conditions.
A.
The Village Manager may direct the public officer to identify "abandoned
property" for the purpose of establishing an abandoned property list
throughout the Village, or within those parts of the Village as the
Manager may designate. Each parcel so identified shall include the
tax lot and block number, the name of the owner of record, if known,
and the street address of the lot.
B.
The public officer may add properties to the abandoned property list
at any time and alternatively may delete or remove properties from
the list at any time when the public officer finds that the property
no longer meets the criteria of an abandoned property.
C.
An abandoned property shall not be included on the abandoned property
list if rehabilitation is being performed in a timely manner, as evidenced
by building permits issued and diligent pursuit of rehabilitation
work authorized by the permits. Removal of certain properties from
the abandoned property list may be performed in accordance with any
and all provisions of the Abandoned Properties Rehabilitation Act,
N.J.S.A. 55:1-78 et seq.
D.
The public officer shall establish the abandoned property list by
publication in an official newspaper of the Village, which publication
shall constitute public notice, and, within 10 days after publication,
the public officer shall send a notice, by regular and certified mail,
return receipt requested, to the record owner of each and every property
included on the published list. The publication shall include the
name of the record owner, tax lot and block number and street address.
The public officer, in consultation with the Assessor, shall also
send out notice by regular mail to any known mortgagee, servicing
organization, or property tax processing organization that regularly
receives a duplicate copy of the tax bill for the property. The mailed
notice shall indicate the factual basis for the public officer's
determination that the property is abandoned property, specifying
the rules and regulations promulgated and the information relied upon
in making such finding. The public officer is further required to
satisfy all other prescribed notices and filings pursuant to the Abandoned
Properties Rehabilitation Act and entitled to all other remedies and
available procedures afforded by same.
E.
An owner or lienholder may challenge the inclusion of his/her property
on the abandoned property list as authorized above by appealing that
determination to the public officer within 30 days of the owner's
receipt of the certified or regular mailed notice or 40 days from
the date upon which the notice was sent. An owner whose identity was
not known to the public officer shall have 40 days from the date upon
which notice was published or posted, whichever is the later, to challenge
the inclusion of the property on the abandoned property list. For
good cause shown to the public officer, a late challenge shall be
accepted by the public officer. Within 30 days of receipt of a challenge,
the public officer shall schedule a hearing for a redetermination
of the inclusion. Any property included on the list is presumed to
have satisfied the criteria for inclusion, and the burden is on the
property owner to submit the proper paperwork and/or testimony that
can demonstrate that the property was erroneously included on the
list. The affidavit or certification shall be accompanied by supporting
documentation, which may include but not be limited to photographs
and repair invoices, bills and construction contracts. The sole ground
for appeal shall be the property in question is not abandoned property.
The public officer shall promptly, by certified mail, return receipt
requested, and by regular mail notify the property owner of the decision
and the reasons therefor.
F.
The owner or lienholder may challenge an adverse determination of an appeal with the public officer pursuant to Subsection E of this section by instituting, in accordance with the New Jersey Court Rules, a summary proceeding in the Superior Court, Law Division, sitting in the county in which the property is located, which action shall be tried de novo. Such action shall be instituted within 20 days of the date of the notice of decision mailed by the public officer pursuant to Subsection E of this section. The sole ground for appeal shall be that the property in question is not abandoned property as that term is defined in Section 35 of P.L. 1996, c. 62 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-54). The failure to institute an action of appeal on a timely basis shall constitute a jurisdictional bar to challenging the adverse determination, except that, for good cause shown, the court may extend.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original.
A.
If an entity other than the Village of Ridgewood has purchased or
taken assignment for the Village of a tax sale certificate on a property
that has not been legally occupied for a period of six months, that
property shall not be placed on the abandoned property list pursuant
to Section 36 of P.L. 1996, c. 62 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-55) if 1) the owner
of the certificate has continued to pay all Village of Ridgewood taxes
and liens on the property in the tax year when due; and 2) the owner
of the certificate takes action to initiate foreclosure proceedings
within six months after the property is eligible for foreclosure pursuant
to either Subdivision a or b of N.J.S.A. 54:5-86, as appropriate,
and diligently pursues foreclosure proceedings in a timely fashion
thereafter.
B.
A property which is used on a seasonal basis shall be deemed to be
abandoned only if the property meets any two of the additional criteria
set forth in Section 4 of P.L. 2003, c. 210 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-81).
C.
A determination that a property is abandoned property under the provisions
of P.L. 2003, c. 210 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-78 et seq.), shall not constitute
a finding that the use of the property has been abandoned for purposed
of municipal zoning or land use regulation.
D.
Upon request of a purchaser or assignee of a tax sale certificate
seeking to bar the right of redemption on an abandoned property pursuant
to Subdivision b of N.J.S.A. 54:5-86, the public officer or the tax
collector shall, in a timely fashion, provide the requester with a
certification that the property fulfills the definition of abandoned
according to the criteria set forth in Sections 4 and 5 of P.L. 2003,
c. 210 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-81 and 55:19-82).
A.
An owner may remove a property from the list of abandoned properties
prior to sale of the tax sale certificate by paying all taxes and
Village liens due, including interest and penalties, and:
(1)
By posting cash or a bond equal to the cost of remediating all conditions
because of which the property has been determined to be abandoned
pursuant to Section 36 of P.L. 1996, c. 62 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-55) and
depositing cash or a bond to cover the cost of any environmental cleanup
required on the property, evidenced by a certification by a licensed
engineer retained by the owner and reviewed and approved by the public
officer stating that the cash or bond adequately covers the cost of
the cleanup; or
(2)
By demonstrating to the satisfaction of the public officer that the
conditions rendering the property abandoned have been remediated in
full; provided, however, that where the public officer finds that
the owner is actively engaged in remediating the conditions because
of which that property was determined to be abandoned pursuant to
Section 36 of P.L. 1996, c. 62 (N.J.S.A. 55:19-55), as evidenced by
significant rehabilitation activity on the property, the public officer
may grant an extension of time of not more than 120 days for the owner
to complete all work, during which time no further proceeding will
be taken against the owner or the property.
B.
If the owner has posted cash or a bond in order to have a property
removed from the abandoned property list and the conditions because
of which the property was determined to be abandoned have not been
fully remediated within one year of the date of posting the cash or
bond, or, in the case of a property which requires a remediation of
any known, suspected or threatened release of contaminants, if the
owner has failed to enter into a memorandum of agreement with the
Department of Environmental Protection or an administrative consent
order, remediation in conformance with the agreement or order, then
the cash or bond shall be forfeited to the Village, which shall use
the cash or bond and any interest which has accrued thereon for the
purpose of demolishing or rehabilitating the property or performing
the environmental remediation.[1] Any funds remaining after the property has been demolished,
rehabilitated or cleaned up shall be returned to the owner.
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original.
