[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Orange 9-4-79 by Ord. No. 38-79. Amendments noted where applicable.]
For the purposes of this chapter, the following words shall have the meanings indicated:
BUILDING OFFICIAL
The Director of the Department of Building Inspections and Code Enforcement of the City of Orange and his designees.
PARTIES IN INTEREST
All persons or entities other than the record owner which hold recorded instruments affecting the property in question.
The powers prescribed herein are exercisable by the Building Official, except as may be modified hereunder.
Whenever a petition is filed with the Building Official by at least five (5) residents of the City of Orange or by any officer or official of the City of Orange charging that any building is unfit for human habitation, occupancy or use or whenever it appears to the Building Official (on his own motion) that any building is unfit for human habitation or occupancy or use, the Building Official shall, if his preliminary investigation discloses a basis for such charges, issue and cause to be served upon the owner of and parties in interest in such building a complaint stating the charges in that respect and containing a notice that a hearing will be held before the Building Official or his designated agent at a place therein fixed not less than seven (7) nor more than thirty (30) days after the serving of said complaint. The owners and/or parties in interest shall be given the right to file an answer to the complaint and to appear in person or otherwise and give testimony at the place and time fixed in the complaint, and the rules of evidence prevailing in the courts of this state shall not be controlling in such hearings before the Building Official.
If after such notice and hearing the Building Official determines that the building under consideration is unfit for human habitation or occupancy or use in accordance with § 156-80, of Chapter 156, Property Maintenance, he shall set forth written findings of fact in support of such determination and shall issue and cause to be served upon the owners thereof and/or parties in interest an order:
A. 
Requiring the repair, alteration or improvement of said building to be made by the owner within a reasonable time, which time shall be set forth in the order, or, at the option of the owner, to vacate or have said building vacated and closed within the time set forth in the order; and
B. 
If the building is in such a condition as to make it dangerous to the health and safety in or near the premises and the owner fails to alter, repair or improve said building with the time specified in the order, then the owner shall be required to remove or demolish said building within a reasonable time as specified in the order of removal.
If the owner fails to comply with an order to repair, alter or improve or, at the option of the owner, to vacate and close the building, the Building Official may cause such building to be repaired, altered or improved or to be vacated and closed, and the Building Official may cause to be posted on the main entrance of any building so closed a placard with the following words: "This building is unfit for human habitation or occupancy or use; the use or occupation of this building is prohibited and unlawful."
If the owner fails to comply with an order to remove or demolish the building, the Building Official may cause such building to be removed or demolished or may contract for the removal or demolition thereof after advertisement for and receipt of bids therefor.
The amount of the cost of the filing of legal papers, expert witness fees, search fees and advertising charges incurred in the course of any proceeding taken under this chapter determined in favor of the city and the cost of such repairs, alterations or improvements or vacating and closing, or removal or demolition, if any, or the amount of the balance thereof remaining after deduction of the sum, if any, realized from the sale of materials derived from such building or from any contract for removal or demolition thereof shall be a municipal lien against the real property upon which such cost was incurred. If the building is removed or demolished by the Building Official, he shall sell the materials from said building. The proceeds of any sale of such materials or any sum derived from any contract for the removal or demolition shall be reduced by the cost of removal or demolition, including the clearance, and, if necessary, the leveling of the site. If the sum total of such costs exceeds the sum total of such credits, a statement in detail of the amount of such costs and the amount due shall be filed with the Municipal Tax Assessor, and a copy shall forthwith be forwarded to the owner by registered mail. If the total of credits exceeds the total of costs, the balance remaining shall be deposited in the Superior Court by the Building Official, shall be secured in such manner as directed by the Court and shall be disbursed as ordered by the Court. Any owner or party in interest may, within thirty (30) days from the filing of the lien certificate, proceed in a summary manner in the Superior Court to contest the reasonableness of the amount or the accuracy of the costs set forth in the lien certificate.
If an actual and immediate danger to life is posed by the threatened collapse of any fire-damaged or other structurally unsafe building, the Building Official may, after taking such measures as may be necessary to make such building temporarily safe, seek a judgment in summary proceedings for the demolition thereof.
Complaints or orders issued by the Building Official under this chapter shall be served either personally or by registered mail, but if the whereabouts of such persons is unknown, despite reasonable diligence, and the Building Official makes an affidavit to that effect and files same with the City Clerk, then the serving of such complaint or order upon such persons may be made by publishing the same once in a newspaper printed and published in the City of Orange. A copy of such complaint or order shall be duly recorded or lodged for record with the Essex County Clerk or Register, whoever may be entrusted with the recording of same.
Any person aggrieved by an order issued by the Building Official under this chapter may, within thirty (30) days after the posting and service of such order, bring an action for injunctive relief to restrain the Building Official from carrying out the provisions of the order and for other appropriate relief. The Court may proceed in summary fashion or otherwise.
The Building Official may from time to time grant reasonable adjournments of hearings and extensions of time limitations set forth in his orders.
This chapter, being necessary for the welfare of the city and its inhabitants, shall be liberally construed to effectuate the purpose thereof.
[Added 5-6-2003 by Ord. No. 13-2003]
A. 
Inspections. The Director of Planning and Development or his/her authorized agent, upon reasonable belief that violations exist, is hereby authorized and directed to make inspections to determine the condition of dwelling units, rooming units and premises located within the city in order that he may perform his duty of safeguarding the health and safety of the occupants of dwelling and of the general public. Such inspections shall be made at all reasonable times and the owner or occupant of such dwelling unit shall give such inspector full access to the premises in order that he may conduct such inspection.
B. 
Conversions to rooming houses prohibited. No dwelling unit or house may be altered, converted or enlarged, wholly or in part for the purpose of creating a rooming house or other multi-family non-permitted use. Rooming houses shall be defined as those houses or homes where individual rooms or parts of a dwelling are rented out to individuals or families without the requisite permission being granted by the appropriate agency.
C. 
Any owner who illegally converts a property to create the above type premises shall be ordered to convert the premises back to its intended use within fourteen (14) days of receiving notice of such a violation. Only a one (1) time emergency extension for no longer than seven (7) days may be granted by the Director.
The notice must be given to the owner or person responsible for the building's maintenance and must be in writing. The notice must specify the violation. The owner shall be responsible for the immediate emergent relocation of all persons affected by the violation. If the violation is not corrected, a summons shall be issued.
D. 
Violation and penalty. Any violation adjudicated in violation of the above sections shall subject the owner to a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000.) per day for every day the violation continues to exist.
[Added 5-4-2004 by Ord. No. 13-2004]
A. 
An abandoned property is hereby defined as one that has not been legally occupied for a period of six (6) months and meets one (1) of the following criteria:
(1) 
The property is in need of rehabilitation and has not been rehabilitated during the unoccupied period,
(2) 
Construction has been initiated on the property in the past, but not for the six (6) month period,
(3) 
The property has been in tax arrearage for at least one (1) installment period, or
(4) 
The property has been determined to be a nuisance by the public officer (nuisance includes a finding that the property is unfit for human habitation and/or is determined to be a fire hazard or potential health and safety hazard).
B. 
The procedures for municipal acquisition of the abandoned property shall be that which is set forth in Assembly Bill substitute for 2543. This shall include the filing of a complaint in the Superior Court of New Jersey with a certification by the public officer that the property is abandoned. Thirty (30) days notice must be provided to the owner prior to the filing of a complaint.
C. 
The owner may defend against the complaint by submitting a plan for the rehabilitation and reuse of the property and by posting a bond equal to one hundred twenty-five percent (125%) of the amount determined by the public officer (Director of Planning and Development or his designee) to represent the project cost of rehabilitation. The plan requires a financial feasibility analysis, a budget and timetable for rehabilitation of the property and documentation of qualifications of those who will perform the rehabilitation.
D. 
The Court shall approve the plan if the plan is realistic and likely to result in the expeditious rehabilitation and reuse of the property and, correspondingly, the Court shall disapprove of the plan if unrealistic. If the Court approves the owner's plan, it may appoint the public officer to act as monitor of the owner's compliance. If the owner fails to carry out any step in the approved plan, the public officer shall notify the Court, which may order to bond forfeit, grant the municipality possession of the property, and authorize the municipality to use the proceeds of the bond for rehabilitation of the property.
E. 
The owner shall provide quarterly reports to the municipality and the Court on the owner's progress toward rehabilitation and reuse of the property.
F. 
If an owner fails to successfully defend against a complaint, a mortgage holder or lien holder may seek to be designated in possession for the property by submitting a plan and posting a bond meeting the same conditions described above. If no mortgage holder or lien holder meets these conditions, the municipality shall submit a plan which shall designate an entity that shall implement the plan. This entity may be the municipality or a qualified rehabilitation entity, organized or authorized to do business under New Jersey law, which shall have as one of its purposes the construction or rehabilitation or residential or nonresidential buildings, the provision of affordable housing and the restoration of abandoned property, among others.
G. 
If the municipality is granted possession of a property under this section, the municipality shall be deemed to have an ownership interest in the property for the purpose of filing plans with public agencies and any state program of grants or loans. Where the municipality borrows funds for the express purpose of rehabilitating the property, the court may authorize the municipality to grant a lien or security interest with priority over all other liens or mortgages other than municipal liens.
H. 
With the granting of possession by the Court to a municipality of a property determined to be abandoned, the owner shall continue to be responsible for all taxes or other municipal liens and charges, or mortgages or liens to any party, incurred on the property, whether those taxes, charges or liens are incurred before or after the granting of possession; nor shall the owner be relieved of any operating or maintenance expense associated with the property. Similarly, although the municipality is required to maintain, safeguard, and maintain insurance on the property, the owner shall not be relieved of any civil or criminal liability or any duty imposed by reason of acts or omissions of the owner relating to the property.
I. 
The municipality is authorized to seek Court approval to assign its rights to another entity, which may be granted under the circumstances enumerated in this section.
J. 
An owner may petition for reinstatement of the owner's control and possession of the property. The petition's requirements and conditions shall be determined by the Court for reinstating the owner's rights.
K. 
If the municipality sells the property, this section sets forth the order of distribution of the proceeds of such a sale. This section authorizes the public officer, with the approval of the Court, to place a lien on the property to cover any costs of the municipality incurred prior to the granting by the Court of an order of possession which may include costs incurred to stabilize or secure the property.
L. 
This section authorizes municipalities to hold special tax sales with respect to those properties eligible for tax sale under R.S. 54:5-19 which are also on an abandoned property list and sets forth procedures governing those special tax sales. In the case of any eminent domain proceeding carried out under section 37 of P.L. 1966, c. 62 (C. 55:19-56), this section establishes the parameters for establishing fair market value.