No construction permit and no certificate of occupancy shall
be issued by the Zoning Officer except upon application therefor in
conformity with all the provisions of this chapter. No sign erection
permit shall be issued by the Zoning Officer except upon application
therefor in conformity with the terms of this chapter.
In addition to the filing fees and any other fees or payments
required by this chapter, the applicant for any development application,
appeal or other matter pursuant to this chapter shall be responsible
to reimburse the Borough for payments made to professionals for services
rendered to the Borough related to such application, appeal or other
matter. The following provisions shall apply to such payments:
A. Initial deposits for professional services. The following escrow
fees shall be collected by the Zoning Officer at the time of the filing
of the application. These fees are to be applied for the review of
applications by the professional staff/consultants and shall include
all office review, phone correspondence, preparation of reports, conferences,
appearance at meetings or other purposes under the provisions of this
chapter or the Municipal Land Use Law (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.).
For purposes of this section, "professional staff" shall include the
Borough Planner, Borough Engineer and board attorneys, and such other
professionals as may be deemed necessary by the Planning Board or
the Zoning Board of Adjustment to review an application. Deposits
shall be paid by personal check, certified check, cashier's check
or bank money order. In the case of proposals requiring a combination
of approvals, such as subdivision, site plan and/or variance(s), the
applicant shall deposit an amount equal to the sum of the deposits
required for each application. In the event that there is no new schedule
of fees filed by the professionals, the schedule previously filed
by the professional shall prevail.
B. Subsequent deposits for professional services. In the event that
the amount in the individual account for professional services should
become depleted to less than 25% of the initial deposit required by
this chapter, and if the Zoning Officer determines that additional
funds are necessary to cover the cost of processing said application,
the Zoning Officer shall notify the applicant immediately of such
depletion. Upon receiving such notice, the applicant shall deposit
additional funds as necessary to make the amount in the account not
less than 50% of the initial deposit required by this chapter for
professional services.
C. Failure to maintain deposit for professional services. If the required
funds for professional services are not deposited in a timely manner,
the Zoning Officer shall notify the Borough agency having jurisdiction
over the application, the applicant and all Borough experts. No further
action shall be taken on the application unless the deposits have
been made by the applicant as required above. In the event that the
time for action by a Borough agency as required by this chapter shall
expire prior to the payment of the required deposits, the reviewing
agency shall have the option of dismissing the application.
D. Vouchers for payment of professional services. All payments charged
to a deposit required by this section shall be made pursuant to written
monthly vouchers for each application from the professional(s), stating
the hours spent, the hourly rate and the expenses incurred. The office
of the professional(s) shall render a written final accounting to
the applicant on the uses to which the deposit was put.
E. Procedure for payment of vouchers; appeals of charges. The following
procedure shall apply to the payment of vouchers for professional
services pursuant to this section:
(1) The office of the professional(s) shall submit a copy of said voucher
to the applicant.
(2) Within 14 days of the mailing of said vouchers, the applicant may
request, in writing, a hearing on the reasonableness of the charges
contained in said vouchers. Any such hearing shall be held by the
Borough agency with jurisdiction over the application.
(3) In the event that the applicant requests such hearing, no payments
shall be made pursuant to the disputed voucher(s) until the Borough
agency shall have ruled on the appeal. If the Borough agency finds
in favor of the applicant, payment pursuant to said voucher(s) shall
be adjusted accordingly.
(4) All vouchers for payment of professional services pursuant to this
section shall be submitted to the Borough agency for whom the services
were performed. The Borough agency shall at a public hearing approve
or deny payment of the vouchers. No voucher shall be denied payment
without giving the professional submitting the voucher an opportunity
to be heard concerning the reasonableness of said voucher.
(5) If no hearing is requested as outlined above, or if the Borough agency
finds in favor of the professional, payment shall be made pursuant
to the voucher.
(6) If approved by the Borough agency, the voucher shall be directed
to the Borough Finance Director for reimbursement to the professional
for services rendered.