[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Oaklyn as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Environmental Commission — See Ch. 14.
Fire control measures — See Ch. 74A.
Fire prevention — See Ch. 75.
Housing standards — See Ch. 83.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 101.
[Adopted 8-11-1999 by Ord. No. 12-99;[1] amended in its entirety 9-10-2002 by Ord. No. 12-02]
[1]
Editor's Note: This article also repealed former Ch. 58, Brush, Weeds and Trees, consisting of the following: Art. I, Weeds, Brush and Noxious Vegetation, adopted 10-8-1925 by Ord. No. 1-25, as amended, and Art. II, Cutting and Removing Dead Trees, adopted 8-13-1974 by Ord. No. 7-74, as amended.
[Amended 3-11-2003 by Ord. No. 2-03; 12-12-2006 by Ord. No. 16-06; 8-12-2014 by Ord. No. 15-14]
A. 
Whenever it shall be deemed for the preservation of the public health, safety and welfare, or to eliminate a fire hazard, the Director of the Department of Public Works or his designee shall require any owner, tenant, occupant, managing agent, executor, administrator or other similar person to remove or destroy brush, weeds (including ragweed), dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growth, filth, garbage, trash and debris from his property or within the entire perimeter of the property that extends to the curbline of the roadway abutting his property, within five days after receipt of notice to remove or destroy the same.
B. 
All such obnoxious growth and debris shall be collected and either removed from the premises or accumulated in trash cans, bags or other similar containers for removal by any appropriate sanitation service; the property shall be cleared within the entire perimeter of the property and extend to the curb- or gutter line of the adjoining roadway, as the case may be.
A. 
Whenever the Borough Council shall deem it necessary and expedient for the preservation of the public health, safety or general welfare or to eliminate a fire hazard from lands lying within the limits of the Borough of Oaklyn to remove brush, weeds, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growths, filth, garbage, trash or debris or to keep all brush, hedges and other plant life growing within the distance between the sidewalk and the curb or a distance of 10 feet, whichever is less, of any roadway or within 25 feet of the intersection of two roadways, cut to a height of not more than 2 1/2 feet, the Borough Council shall cause written notice thereof to be given to the owner, operator and/or occupier of such lands at his or her last known address and such owner, operator and/or occupier shall, within five days after notice thereof, remove or cut same.[1]
[1]
Editor’s Note: Former Subsection B, which immediately followed, was repealed 7-12-2016 by Ord. No. 13-16.
In case the owner, operator and/or occupier of any such land shall refuse or neglect to remove said brush, weeds, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growths, filth, garbage, trash or debris or to cut brush, hedges and other plant life within five days after the first notice of a violation or three days after a second or subsequent violation thereof, the Superintendent of Public Works may remove the same or cause the same to be removed under his direction.
Written notice shall be served upon any such person who owns, operates or occupies a premises by first class mail to the property address or the owner's address as listed with the Oaklyn Tax Collector, describing the condition of the premises and demanding that the condition be abated within five days of the date of said notice, or an appropriate complaint shall be filed in violation of this article.
Where the owner, operator and/or occupier shall refuse and\or neglect to correct the violation(s) within five days after the date of the notice as referenced in § 58-7 of this article, or upon the expiration of five days following posting of notice as provided in § 58-8 of this article, or, in the case of a second or subsequent violation within one year from the date of the last notice, three days after the date of the notice as referenced in § 58-7 of this article, or upon the expiration of three days following posting of notice as provided in § 58-8 of this article, the Borough may correct or cause the violation(s) to be corrected, at the expense of the owner, operator and/or occupier of the property.
Where the owner, operator and/or occupier refuses and\or neglects to correct the violation(s) within five days after receipt of notice as referenced in § 58-4 of this article, or upon the expiration of five days following posting of notice as provided in § 58-5 of this article, or, in the case of a second or subsequent violation within one year from the date of the last notice, three days after the date of the notice as referenced in § 58-7 of this article, or upon the expiration of three days following posting of notice as provided in § 58-8 of this article, and the Borough is required to take corrective measures as referenced in § 58-6 of this article, the notices given to the owner, operator and/or occupier of any such land shall be valid for subsequent remedial action to the property a period of 120 days from the expiration of five days following posting of notice as provided in § 58-5 of this article.
In all cases where such conditions are abated by the Borough of Oaklyn pursuant to § 58-6 of this article, the Superintendent of Public Works, or his designee, shall certify the cost thereof to the Council of the Borough of Oaklyn, which shall examine the certificate, and if found correct, shall cause the cost as shown thereon to be charged against said land. The amount so charged shall forthwith become a lien upon such land and shall be added to and become a part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon such lands, the same to bear interest at the same rate as taxes and shall be collected and enforced by the Borough of Oaklyn Tax Collector.
A. 
Except as otherwise provided, any owner, occupier, and/or contractor performing work on any property within the Borough of Oaklyn who violates, refuses to comply or neglects to comply with any provision of this article or any rule, regulation or directive promulgated pursuant thereto shall be liable for a fine of not less than $200, and/or penalty as provided in Chapter 1, Article I, § 1-14 of the Code of the Borough of Oaklyn.
B. 
The continuation of such violation for each successive day shall constitute a separate offense, and the owner, occupier, and/or contractor performing work on any property within the Borough of Oaklyn allowing or permitting the continuation of the violation may be punished as provided above for each separate offense.
[Adopted 12-1-2014 by Ord. No. 19-14]
A. 
Purpose. The article is adopted to control the planting, cultivating, and/or growing of bamboo and other invasive plant species in the Borough of Oaklyn. It is further intended to require barriers that will prevent the spread of invasive plant species, such as bamboo, into other areas in the Borough of Oaklyn.
B. 
Definitions. All native and nonnative vines and vegetation that grow out of place and are competitive, persistent and pernicious; those plants may damage trees, vegetation, sidewalks or structures. Examples include, but are not limited to, bamboo as well as invasive plant species developed by the New Jersey Species Strike Team and the New Jersey Forestry Association. The terms "bamboo" and "invasive plant species" shall include, but not be limited to, the following plant genera (commonly known as spreading or running type): Arundinaria, Bambusa, Chimonobambusa, Dendrocalamus, Fargesia, Phyllostachys, Pleioblastus, Sasa, Sasaella, Semiarundinaria, Ragweed, multi-flora rose, kudzu-vine and poison oak or ivy.
C. 
Prohibition. No owner, tenant or occupant of a property, or person, corporation or other entity, shall plant, install, or cause or permit the planting or installation of invasive plant species such as bamboo within any lot and/or parcel of ground anywhere within geographic boundaries of the Borough of Oaklyn.
D. 
Duty to confine; inspection and approval of Code Enforcement Officer.
(1) 
If there exists any species commonly known as "bamboo-running or clumping," or any other invasive plant species located upon any property within the Borough of Oaklyn prior to the effective date of this article, there shall be a duty to confine imposed upon the owner or occupant of the property. The duty to confine shall require owners and occupants to prevent the encroachment, spread, invasion or intrusion of bamboo and other invasive plant species onto any other private property, public property, or public right-of-way.
(2) 
All places and premises in the Borough of Oaklyn shall be subject to inspection by the Code Enforcement Officer when there is reason to believe that any section of this article is being violated.
(3) 
Property owners who seek to confine bamboo or other invasive plant species must do so in accordance with methods approved by the Borough of Oaklyn Code Enforcement Officer. The Code Enforcement Officer may permit, inspect and approve methods of confinement and amend the requirements of said confinement from time to time. The Code Enforcement Officer may also permit, inspect and approve proper methods for full removal of bamboo or other invasive plant species.
(4) 
Failure to confine bamboo or other invasive plant species in accordance with the requirements set forth by the Code Enforcement Officer shall require immediate removal by the property owner or occupant.
(5) 
An owner or occupant with property containing bamboo or other invasive plant species prior to the adoption of this article may fully remove the bamboo or other invasive plant species in lieu of the duty to confine. Such removal must conform with the requirements set forth by the Code Enforcement Officer.
A. 
Bamboo and other invasive plant species shall be considered properly confined when its root system is entirely contained within an aboveground level planter, barrel, or other vessel of such design, material and location as to completely prevent the root system's growth beyond the container in which it is planted.
B. 
When properly confined as described herein, all bamboo and invasive plant species shall be located, trimmed, and maintained so that no part of the plant shall be closer than 10 feet from any property line.
A. 
Encroachment on public property; rights of Borough. When an encroachment of bamboo or other invasive plant species occurs upon public property or public right-of-way, the Borough of Oaklyn may remove or contract for the removal of such bamboo or other invasive plant species from the public property or right-of-way. The cost of removal shall be the responsibility of the property owner and shall be assessed as a lien against the property on which the growth originated. The cost of removal of the bamboo and other invasive plant species shall also include the installation of an appropriate barrier to prevent future invasion onto the public property or right-of-way.
B. 
Encroachment on private property; rights of property owner. Nothing herein shall be interpreted as limiting the rights of a private property owner to seek civil relief through a court of proper jurisdiction, nor the institution of civil proceedings against the proper parties.
A. 
The cost of corrective action, together with any civil penalties, legal fees and other costs shall be recoverable from the responsible party.
B. 
Whenever it shall be deemed for the preservation of the public health, safety and welfare, or to eliminate a fire hazard, the Director of the Department of Public Works or his designee shall require any owner, tenant, occupant, managing agent, executor, administrator or other similar person to remove or destroy brush, weeds (including ragweed), dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growth, filth, garbage, trash and debris from his property or within the entire perimeter of the property that extends to the curbline of the roadway abutting his property, within five days after receipt of notice to remove or destroy the same.
C. 
All such obnoxious growth and debris shall be collected and either removed from the premises or accumulated in trash cans, bags or other similar containers for removal by any appropriate sanitation service; the property shall be cleared within the entire perimeter of the property and extend to the curbline or gutter line of the adjoining roadway, as the case may be.