[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Franklin as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Unfit buildings — See Ch. 169.
Noise — See Ch. 272.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 295.
Rooming houses and tenement houses — See Ch. 404.
[Adopted 9-23-2014 by Ord. No. O-23-2014]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
OWNER
Any person, group of persons, firm, corporation or officer thereof, partnership, association, company, trust, or other legal entity who owns, operates, exercises control over or is in charge of a rental property or owner-occupied property.
OWNER-OCCUPIED DWELLING
Any structure which the owner thereof occupies, uses, or allows to function or be occupied as a domicile or home other than as a rental property.
RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PROPERTY
A building, group of buildings, or a portion thereof which contains one or more individual apartments, which is kept, used, maintained, advertised or held out to be a place where living accommodations are supplied, whether furnished or unfurnished, for pay or other consideration, to one or more individuals, and is meant to include one or more individual apartments. A property shall be presumed to be a rental property if a lease exists for the property, if there is written proof of rent being paid thereon, or if the property is registered as a rental property.
Any of the notices required by this article shall be deemed to be lawfully served if such notice is personally served upon the individual named, or sent via certified mail with a return receipt, or sent via regular mail to the individual named at the last known address without return, or by posting or affixing a copy of the same upon the door or other conspicuous part of such premises. Such posting shall be deemed to be lawful service.
A residential rental property whose tenants, occupants or guests shall be so disorderly as to disturb the peace and quiet of the landlord or other tenants and occupants living in the dwelling or the neighborhood shall be rebuttably presumed to be a nuisance house if any of the following have occurred within 12 months prior to the filing of any charge regarding a premises being a nuisance house:
A. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted of a second or subsequent offense for violation of the Noise Ordinance of the Township of Franklin[1] on the premises of the residential rental property; or
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 272, Noise.
B. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted of a second or subsequent offense for a disorderly persons offense or criminal offense, as defined by statute, on the premises of the residential rental property; or
C. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted for a controlled dangerous substance(s) related offense on the premises of the residential rental property; or
D. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted for prostitution or solicitation of same on the premises of the residential rental property; or
E. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted of a third or subsequent offense under Chapter 295 on the premises of the residential rental property.
An owner-occupied dwelling, whose owner(s) or occupant(s) shall be so disorderly as to disturb the peace and quiet of the neighborhood by the following, shall be rebuttably presumed to be a nuisance house if any of the following have occurred within 12 months prior to the filing of any charge regarding a premises being a nuisance house:
A. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted of a second or subsequent offense for violation of the Noise Ordinance of the Township of Franklin[1] on the premises of the owner-occupied property; or
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 272, Noise.
B. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted of a second or subsequent offense for a disorderly persons offense or criminal offense, as defined by statute, on the premises of the owner-occupied property; or
C. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted for a controlled dangerous substance(s) related offense on the premises of the owner-occupied property; or
D. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted for prostitution or solicitation for same on the premises of the owner-occupied property; or
E. 
A residential property whose tenants, occupants or guests have been convicted of a third or subsequent offense under Chapter 295 on the premises of the owner-occupied property.
A. 
Any owner of a residential rental property which has been deemed a nuisance house as set forth in this article shall be subject to the following:
(1) 
Upon written notification, the owner of a residential rental property that has been deemed by the Municipal Court to be a nuisance house as set forth in this article shall take those actions required by law to evict the tenants, occupants or guests from that residential rental property. The landlord shall give notice of such act with a copy of the complaint and date of hearing and shall allow the Township's representative to appear and testify therein.
(2) 
A landlord who refuses to take those actions required by law, after 30 days' written notice to evict the tenants, occupants or guests from a residential rental property that has been deemed by the Municipal Court to be a nuisance house as set forth in this article or who fails to otherwise successfully correct said violations, shall be subject to fines of not less than $100 and not more than $1,250 and/or imprisonment in the county jail for up to 90 days. Each day during which a failure to take action continues shall constitute a separate violation.
B. 
Any owner of an owner-occupied dwelling which has been deemed a nuisance house as set forth in this article shall be subject to the following: Upon written notification, the owner-occupant of a residential dwelling who fails to cease and desist from unlawful actions or who fails to cause such unlawful actions to cease or who fails to remediate violations as set forth in § 275-3 of this article shall be subject to fines of not less than $100 and not more than $1,250 and/or imprisonment in the county jail for up to 90 days. Each day during which a failure to take action continues shall constitute a separate violation.
Written notice of conviction of the offenses set forth under §§ 275-3 and 275-4 hereof shall be given to owners of residential rental properties and owner-occupied dwellings by the Township of Franklin Zoning Officer at least 30 days prior to a complaint for violation of this article being issued.