[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Township
of Mount Olive 3-22-1972 by Ord. No. 3-72 (Ch. 155 of the 1990
Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
Any unsafe, open and abandoned mine hole and any unsafe, open
and abandoned mine shaft excavation situate within the limits of the
Township of Mount Olive, County of Morris and State of New Jersey,
is hereby declared a public nuisance.
For the purposes of this chapter, any open and abandoned mine
hole, open and abandoned mine shaft or open and abandoned mine excavation
shall be deemed unsafe if it is:
A.
Unguarded or inadequately guarded against injury, harm or loss of
life to a person or persons, whether children or adults;
B.
Though adequately guarded against injury, harm or loss of life to
a person or persons, whether children or adults, if it is located
on real estate abutting on any street, road or highway and if it has
caused or is likely to cause damage to said street, road or highway
or to constitute a hazard to a person or persons using said street,
road or highway; or
C.
Though adequately guarded against injury, harm or loss of life to
a person or persons, whether children or adults, if it is located
sufficiently near a dwelling, building or structure and it has caused
or is likely to cause damage to said dwelling, building or structure
or to constitute a hazard to a person or persons using said dwelling,
building or structure.
Any such public nuisance shall be abated by the owner or owners
of the lands upon which such public nuisance is located after notice,
in writing, shall have been given to said owner or owners as hereinafter
set forth.
The notice referred to herein shall be issued by either the
Mayor, the Building Inspector or the Township Engineer and shall require
the owner or owners of the lands upon which such public nuisance is
located to abate such public nuisance and shall set forth the manner
in which such public nuisance and shall set forth the manner in which
such public nuisance shall be abated. Said notice shall further provide
that the owner or owners have 30 days after service of the notice
to abate such public nuisance, and should they fail to do so, the
Township of Mount Olive may cause such public nuisance to be abated
and the reasonable cost thereof charged against said owner or owners,
and that the cost thereof will be a lien on such lands and will be
assessed thereon and collected in the same manner as local taxes are
collected.
The notice referred to in § 259-4 herein shall be served upon the owner or owners of the lands upon which such public nuisance is located, if residents of the Township of Mount Olive, in person or by leaving it at their residence with a member of the family over the age of 14 years. If such owner or owners shall not reside in the Township of Mount Olive, notice may be served in person or be mailed to their last known post office address or be served upon the occupant of the property or upon the agent of the owner in charge thereof. If said owner or owners are unknown or service cannot be made as above directed, the notice shall be published at least once in a newspaper circulating in the county, not less than 40 days before the Township of Mount Olive shall take action to abate such nuisance.
In the event of the failure of the owner or owners of the lands
upon which such public nuisance is located to abate the nuisance,
such nuisance shall be abated by the Township of Mount Olive, and
the cost of said abatement shall be a lien on such lands and shall
be assessed thereon and collected in the same manner as local municipal
taxes are collected.
[Amended 9-25-1990 by Ord. No. 40-90]
Any person, firm or corporation who violates any provision of
this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be punishable by one
or more of the following: by imprisonment for a term not exceeding
90 days or by a fine not exceeding $1,000 or by a period of community
service not exceeding 90 days.
