[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the City of
Woodbury 6-9-2015 by Ord. No. 2232-15. Amendments noted where applicable.]
It is the purpose and intent of the municipality to establish
a process to address the deterioration and blight of municipality
neighborhoods caused by an increasing amount of abandoned, foreclosed
or distressed real property located within the municipality, and to
identify, regulate, limit and reduce the number of abandoned properties
located within the municipality. It is the municipality's further
intent to participate in the county-wide registration program established
by Gloucester County and administered by Community Champions Corporation
as a mechanism to protect neighborhoods from becoming blighted due
to the lack of adequate maintenance and security of abandoned and
foreclosed properties.
The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter,
shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where
the context clearly indicates a different meaning.
- ABANDONED REAL PROPERTY
- Any real property located in the municipality, whether vacant or occupied, that is in default on a mortgage, has had a lis pendens filed against it by the lender holding a mortgage on the property, is subject to an ongoing foreclosure action by the lender, is subject to an application for a tax deed or pending tax assessors lien sale, or has been transferred to the lender under a deed in lieu of foreclosure. The designation of a property as "abandoned" shall remain in place until such time as the property is sold or transferred to a new owner, the foreclosure action has been dismissed, and any default on the mortgage has been cured.
- ACCESSIBLE PROPERTY/STRUCTURE
- A property that is accessible through a comprised/breached gate, fence, wall, etc., or a structure that is unsecured and/or breached in such a way as to allow access to the interior space by unauthorized persons.
- APPLICABLE CODES
- To include, but not be limited to, the municipality's Zoning Code,[1] the Municipality's Code of Ordinances ("Municipality Code"), and the New Jersey Building Code.
- A. Properties that have broken or severely damaged windows, doors, walls, or roofs which create hazardous conditions and encourage trespassing; or
- B. Properties whose maintenance is not in conformance with the maintenance of other neighboring properties, causing a decrease in value of the neighboring properties; or
- C. Properties cited for a public nuisance pursuant to the Municipality Code; or
- D. Properties that endanger the public's health, safety, or welfare because the properties or improvements thereon are dilapidated, deteriorated, or violate minimum health and safety standards or lacks maintenance as required by the Municipality and Zoning Codes.
- ENFORCEMENT OFFICER
- Any law enforcement officer, building official, zoning inspector, code enforcement officer, fire inspector or building inspector, or other person authorized by the municipality to enforce the applicable code(s).
- OWNER
- Any person, legal entity or other party having any ownership interest, whether legal or equitable, in real property. This term shall also apply to any person, legal entity or agent responsible for the construction, maintenance or operation of the property involved.
- PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COMPANY
- A local property manager, property maintenance company or similar entity responsible for the maintenance of abandoned real property.
- VACANT
- Any building or structure that is not legally occupied.
These sections shall be considered cumulative and not superseding
or subject to any other law or provision for same, but rather be an
additional remedy available to the municipality above and beyond any
other state, county or local provisions for same.
Pursuant to the provisions of § 145-5, the municipality or designee shall participate in the county-wide registration program established by Gloucester County and administered by Community Champions Corporation cataloging each abandoned property within the municipality, containing the information required by this chapter.
A.
Any mortgagee who holds a mortgage on real property located within
the municipality of the City of Woodbury shall perform an inspection
of the property to determine vacancy or occupancy, upon default by
the mortgagor. The mortgagee shall, within 10 days of the inspection,
register the property with the Division of Code Enforcement, or designee,
on forms or website access provided by the municipality, and indicate
whether the property is vacant or occupied. A separate registration
is required for each property, whether it is found to be vacant or
occupied.
B.
If the property is occupied but remains in default, it shall be inspected
by the mortgagee or his designee monthly until the mortgagor or other
party remedies the default, or it is found to be vacant or shows evidence
of vacancy at which time it is deemed abandoned, and the mortgagee
shall, within 10 days of that inspection, update the property registration
to a vacancy status on forms provided by the municipality.
C.
Registration pursuant to this section shall contain the name of the
mortgagee and the server, the direct mailing address of the mortgagee
and the server, a direct contact name and telephone number for both
parties, facsimile number and e-mail address for both parties, the
folio or tax number, and the name and twenty-four-hour contact telephone
number of the property management company responsible for the security
and maintenance of the property.
D.
A nonrefundable annual registration fee in the amount of $300 per
property shall accompany the registration form or website registration.
E.
All registration fees must be paid directly from the mortgagee, servicer,
trustee, or owner. Third-party registration fees are not allowed without
the consent of the municipality and/or its authorized designee.
F.
This section shall also apply to properties that have been the subject
of a foreclosure sale where the title was transferred to the beneficiary
of a mortgage involved in the foreclosure and any properties transferred
under a deed in lieu of foreclosure/sale.
G.
Properties subject to this section shall remain under the annual
registration requirement, and the inspection, security and maintenance
standards of this section as long as they remain vacant or in default.
H.
Any person or legal entity that has registered a property under this
section must report any change of information contained in the registration
within 10 days of the change.
I.
Failure of the mortgagee and/or owner to properly register or to
modify the registration form from time to time to reflect a change
of circumstances as required by this chapter is a violation of the
chapter and shall be subject to enforcement.
J.
Pursuant to any administrative or judicial finding and determination
that any property is in violation of this chapter, the municipality
may take the necessary action to ensure compliance with and place
a lien on the property for the cost of the work performed to benefit
the property and bring it into compliance.
A.
Properties subject to this chapter shall be kept free of weeds, overgrown
brush, dead vegetation, trash, junk, debris, building materials, any
accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers, notices, except those
required by federal, state or local law, discarded personal items
including, but not limited to, furniture, clothing, large and small
appliances, printed material or any other items that give the appearance
that the property is abandoned.
B.
The property shall be maintained free of graffiti or similar markings
by removal or painting over with an exterior grade paint that matches
the color of the exterior structure.
C.
Front, side, and rear yards, including landscaping, shall be maintained
in accordance with the applicable code(s) at the time registration
was required.
D.
Yard maintenance shall include, but not be limited to, grass, ground
covers, bushes, shrubs, hedges or similar plantings, decorative rock
or bark or artificial turf/sod designed specifically for residential
installation. Acceptable maintenance of yards and/or landscape shall
not include weeds, gravel, broken concrete, asphalt or similar material.
E.
Maintenance shall include, but not be limited to, watering, irrigation,
cutting and mowing of required ground cover or landscape and removal
of all trimmings.
F.
Pools and spas shall be maintained so the water remains free and
clear of pollutants and debris and shall comply with the regulations
set forth in the applicable code(s).
G.
Failure of the mortgagee and/or owner to properly maintain the property
may result in a violation of the applicable code(s) and issuance of
a citation or notice of violation. Pursuant to a finding and determination
by the municipality's Code Enforcement Officer or a court of
competent jurisdiction, the municipality may take the necessary action
to ensure compliance with this section.
H.
In addition to the above, the property is required to be maintained
in accordance with the applicable code(s).
A.
Properties subject to this chapter shall be maintained in a secure
manner so as not to be accessible to unauthorized persons.
B.
A "secure manner" shall include, but not be limited to, the closure
and locking of windows, doors, gates and other openings of such size
that may allow a child to access the interior of the property or structure.
Broken windows, doors, gates and other openings of such size that
may allow a child to access the interior of the property or structure
must be repaired. Broken windows shall be secured by re-glazing of
the window.
C.
If a mortgage on a property is in default, and the property has become
vacant or abandoned, a property manager shall be designated by the
mortgagee to perform the work necessary to bring the property into
compliance with the applicable code(s), and the property manager must
perform regular inspections to verify compliance with the requirements
of this chapter, and any other applicable laws.
All abandoned real property is hereby declared to be a public
nuisance, the abatement of which pursuant to the police power is hereby
declared to be necessary for the health, welfare and safety of the
residents of the municipality.
Any person who shall violate the provisions of this chapter
may be cited and fined. The following table shows violations of this
chapter, as may be amended from time to time, which may be enforced
pursuant to the provisions of this regulation; and the dollar amount
of civil penalty for the violation of this chapter as it may be amended.
The descriptions of violations below are for informational purposes
only and are not meant to limit or define the nature of the violations
or the subject matter of the Municipality Code sections, except to
the extent that different types of violations of the Code section
may carry different civil penalties. For each Code section listed
in the schedule of civil penalties, the entirety of the section may
be enforced by the mechanism provided in this section, regardless
of whether all activities prescribed or required are described in
the "Description of Violation" column. To determine whether a particular
activity is prescribed or required by this Code, the relevant Municipality
Code section(s) shall be examined.
|
Description of Violation
|
Civil Penalty
|
|---|---|
|
Failure to register abandoned real property on annual basis
and/or any violation of the sections stated within
|
$500
|
Adherence to this chapter does not relieve any person, legal
entity or agent from any other obligations set forth in any applicable
code(s), which may apply to the property. Upon sale or transfer of
title to the property, the owner shall be responsible for all violations
of the applicable code(s) and the owner shall be responsible for meeting
with the Municipality's Code Enforcement Division within 45 days
for a final courtesy inspection report.
A.
If the Enforcement Officer has reason to believe that a property
subject to the provisions of this chapter is posing a serious threat
to the public health, safety and welfare, the Code Enforcement Officer
may temporarily secure the property at the expense of the mortgagee
and/or owner, and may bring the violations before the Municipal Court.
B.
The Code Enforcement Officer or Municipal Court shall have the authority
to require the mortgagee and/or owner of record of any property affected
by this section, to implement additional maintenance and/or security
measure including, but not limited to, securing any and all doors,
windows or other openings, employment of an on-site security guard
or other measures as may be reasonably required to help prevent further
decline of the property.
C.
If there is a finding that the condition of the property is posing
a serious threat to the public health, safety and welfare, then the
Code Enforcement Officer may direct the municipality to abate the
violations and charge the mortgagee with the cost of the abatement.
D.
If the mortgagee does not reimburse the municipality for the cost
of temporarily securing the property, or of any abatement directed
by the Code Enforcement Officer, within 30 days of the municipality
sending the mortgagee the invoice, then the municipality may lien
the property with such cost, along with an administrative fee of $500
to recover the administrative personnel services.
Whoever opposes, obstructs or resists any enforcement officer
or any person authorized by the enforcement office in the discharge
of duties as provided in this chapter shall be punishable as provided
in the applicable code(s) or a court of competent jurisdiction.
Any enforcement officer or any person authorized by the municipality
to enforce this chapter shall be immune from prosecution, civil or
criminal, for reasonable, good faith entry upon real property while
in the discharge of duties imposed by this article.
Registration and penalty fees outlined in this article may be
modified by a resolution, passed and adopted of the City Council of
the City of Woodbury.
