[Adopted 12-20-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-24]
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-1 et. seq., and N.J.S.A. 40:14B-1
et seq. and N.J.S.A. 40:14A-1 et. seq., the Township Committee of
the Township of Woolwich, County of Gloucester, New Jersey ("Township"),
does hereby declare and establish that a municipal sewer utility of
the Township shall hereafter be operated and maintained as a self-liquidating
public utility for purposes of the Local Bond Law, N.J.S.A. 40A:2-1
et seq., and Local Budget Law, N.J.S.A. 40A:4-1 et seq., with respect
to, among other things, the construction of a regional sanitary sewer
collection system to transmit waste to the Gloucester County Utilities
Authority ("GCUA") treatment plant and one or more wastewater pumping
stations to serve the Township, all as more particularly described
in the drawings prepared and on file and available for inspection
in the office of the Township Clerk, as such drawing, plans and specifications
may hereafter be amended, supplemented and revised (collectively,
the "municipal utility"). Said utility shall be known as the "Woolwich
Township Sewer Division in the Department of Public Works."
The municipal utility is hereby authorized to receive such fees,
rents, rates or other charges for or in connection with the use or
services of such municipal utility, which sums shall be held, used
and applied in accordance with the Local Bond Law, N.J.S.A. 40A:2-1
et seq., and the Local Budget Law, N.J.S.A. 40A:4-1 et seq., as well
as other applicable statutes.
The Township Chief Financial Officer or his or her designee
is responsible for establishing a financial management system to accurately
account for revenues generated by the system. All future revenue and
accounting from said sewer utility shall be on a dedicated utility
basis in conformity with N.J.S.A. 40A:4-35, and all money derived
from the connection and impact fees of said sewer utility shall be
kept segregated in a separate fund, which shall be known as the "sewer
utility fund," and all disbursements for any installation costs of
the sewer utility shall be taken from said sewer utility fund.
The dedicated budget of this sewer utility shall include appropriations
for capital improvements, debt service and for the payment of all
bonds, principal and interest and all other deferred charges and statutory
expenses as may be required.
Management of the municipal utility hereinabove established
shall be vested in the Township Committee of the Township of Woolwich.
Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following
words, terms and phrases shall have the following meanings when used
in this article:
Any person, corporation or organization contracting for water
or sewer connections or use, products or services or who use said
services, or who is the owner or occupant, or both, of any real property
which directly or indirectly has been connected to the sewer system
or to which directly or indirectly has been furnished or supplied
the use, products or services of the sewer system or sewer services,
facilities or products.
The Woolwich Township Sewer Division of the Department of
Public Works.
Waste and wastewater comprising the discharge of household,
commercial or otherwise wastes from bathroom toilet facilities, home
laundries and kitchens which are predominantly the result of natural
human waste elimination associated with bodily function and food preparation.
The Township Committee or its designee in the Department
of Public Works.
The Township and/or Aqua-owned, leased, operated or shared
piping and appurtenances in or along public highways and streets or
along privately owned rights-of-way, used for the collection of domestic
sewage or industrial wastes from its customers.
All users and connections other than those defined as residential
use, including but not limited to business, commercial, industry,
restaurants, taverns, theaters, camps, churches, schools, hospitals,
boarding homes, nursing homes, etc.
An individual, corporation, partnership or other entity or
organization, and includes the plural thereof as well as the singular.
A single-family or multifamily dwelling, apartment, trailer,
mobile home, hotel or motel unit which is designed and used exclusively
for providing living accommodations.
Aqua and the licensed professional responsible for the overall
operation of the sewer utility.
The Township of Woolwich.
In the case of a residential use, each dwelling unit, e.g.,
a single-family residential dwelling, a townhouse unit, etc., and,
in the case of a nonresidential use, a single nonresidential use drawing
a maximum of 300 gallons of water per day, and for any usage in excess
of 300 gallons per day, an additional unit shall be calculated in
accordance with the flow criteria contained at N.J.A.C. 7:14A-23.3.
A.
Connection required.
(1)
The owners of all houses, buildings or properties used for human
occupancy, employment, recreation, commercial, industrial, nonresidential
or other purposes, situated within the Township and abutting on any
street, alley or right-of-way in which there is now located or may
in the future be located a sanitary sewer, are hereby required, at
the owner's expense, to connect the drainage of all sources of
sewage to the sewer in accordance with the provisions of this article,
and except as otherwise provided herein, within 120 days after date
of official notice to do so or upon request for plumbing permit, provided
that the sewer is within 200 feet of the property line.
(2)
New sewers and connections to the system shall be properly designed
and constructed.
(3)
All costs and expenses incidental to the installation and connection
of the building sewer shall be borne by the owner. The owner shall
indemnify the Township from any loss or damage that may directly or
indirectly be occasioned by the installation of the building sewer.
B.
Connection fee; permit.
(1)
The Township Committee hereby establishes a fee to be paid by each
user to assist the municipality in financing the capital cost of construction
of both its infrastructure and from the costs associated with the
upgrades required for the plant to which the Township's sewage
flow is to be directed. The fee schedule established herein will allow
the Township to meet its obligations with regard to the repayment
of those capital costs.
(a)
Each applicant for a connection from a single-family residential dwelling to the sewer system shall pay to the Township a fee to make the connection as set forth in § 148-22 herein. The connection fee shall be a first lien or charge against the property benefitted therefrom, which may be levied and shall be enforceable in the manner provided for real property tax liens.
[1]
The fee shall be due and payable as follows: for existing houses,
the fee shall be paid at the time of the issuance of the plumbing
permit. For new development whether residential or nonresidential,
the fee shall be paid 1/2 at the time of the issuance of preliminary
approval of the lot and 1/2 upon the issuance of a building permit.
[2]
Interest. Interest upon a connection fee which remains unpaid
for 30 days after the amount is due shall accrue at a rate of 6% per
annum.
[3]
Installment payments for amounts that remain unpaid. Any residential user in an existing residence that fails to pay the connection fee within 30 days of the date due, but instead submits a first payment of $1,000, along with a written notice indicating his or her intent to pay in a total of five installments, who also satisfies the conditions stated herein, in accordance with N.J.S.A. 54:5-19, may pay the connection fee by way of an installment plan consisting of a total of five payments. If a user who has failed to pay the total amount due within 30 days of the date it is due and payable elects to pay the connection fee in five installments and makes such payments in a timely fashion, the Township and its Tax Collector will not exercise its right to enforce its lien during this time. Interest will, however, continue to accrue as set forth in Subsection B(1)(a)[2] above until the final payment is made. The first payment which shall be due at the time specified in Subsection B(1)(a)[1] above must be $1,000 (which will be credited towards principal), with the remainder to be paid in four installments of $865.77 due on September 1 of each year. Assuming an interest rate of 6%, each of the four remaining payments, including interest, will be in the amount of $4,463.08. An individual is only eligible to pay in installments as set forth herein, provided that the connection fee does not apply to any parcel of property which has been included in any plan adopted by any municipality of the state or under any statute of the state whereunder prior extensions for the payment of delinquent taxes were authorized; provided, further, that the right of any person interested in paying in installments shall be conditioned upon prompt payment of installments of taxes for the current year and all subsequent taxes and assessments and other municipal liens imposed or becoming a lien thereafter, including all installments thereafter payable on assessments theretofore levied, and also prompt and full payment of all installments of arrears as herein authorized; and provided, further, that in case any such installment of arrears under this plan or of any new taxes, assessments or other liens are not promptly paid, that is to say, within 30 days after the date when the same is due and payable, then such installment plan shall be void, and the Township shall enforce its lien in the manner set forth for tax sales.
(2)
Time for connection for residential users and discontinuance of septic
systems.
(a)
For residential users currently served by a septic system which
is deemed to be failing or otherwise presents any health dangers to
the community, then connection shall be made within 60 days upon the
availability of same.
(b)
For residential users currently serviced by septic systems which
do not present immediate health concerns, all such septic systems
shall be discontinued and terminated and connection shall be made
within 120 days after date of official notice to do so.
(3)
Each applicant for a connection from a nonresidential source to the sewer system shall pay the Township a fee as set forth in § 148-22 herein. The connection fee shall be a first lien or charge against the property benefitted therefrom, which may be levied and shall be enforceable in the manner provided for real property tax liens.
(a)
The fee shall be payable as follows: for existing nonresidential
uses, at the time of issuance of the plumbing permit, and for new
nonresidential uses, 1/2 at the time of preliminary approval and 1/2
at the time of issuance of the building permit.
C.
Individual pumps.
(1)
Any pump required to pump sewage from the user to the system will
be purchased, installed, and maintained by the user. The homeowner
or commercial property owner is responsible for all on-site sewer
laterals, individual unit pump stations, and force main up to the
public sewer connection point. For individual pump station, the property
owner is responsible for all electric required to operate the pump
as well as any alarm or other electrical system associated with same.
If a new pump station is being constructed to serve multiple residential
homes, a developer's agreement will be entered into to determine
ownership and maintenance responsibility of the pump station. If the
Township assumes ownership, easements will need to be recorded to
provide access for maintenance activities.
(2)
The user is responsible for proper use of the waste system from their
house to the pump, and any damage to the pump caused by the misuse
of the system will be the responsibility of the user.
D.
Prohibited connections.
(1)
The construction or maintenance of any privy, cesspool, septic or
other individual sewage disposal system within areas of the Township
adequately serviced by the Township sewer system is declared to be
a nuisance and is hereby prohibited.
(2)
No person shall discharge, deposit, cause or allow to be deposited
or discharged in the Township sewer system any substance, wastewater
or pollutant specifically prohibited by the GCUA Sewer Use and Pretreatment
Rules and Regulations as currently in effect and amended.
E.
Nonliability of Township. The Township shall not be held liable or
accountable for any damage which may result from leaks, burst pipes,
sewer backups or from any other causes connected with discharge or
sewage in occupied or unoccupied buildings.
The connection fee schedule shall be as follows:
|
$4,500 Per Domestic Consumer Unit (DCU) or Equivalent Domestic
Consumer Unit (EDCU)
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Type of Structure
|
Units
|
Fee
| |
|
01
|
Single-family, twin, townhouse residential
|
1.00
|
$4,500
|
|
02
|
Rental or condominium apartment unit
|
0.70
|
$3,150
|
|
03
|
Senior citizen apartment unit
|
0.70
|
$3,150
|
|
04
|
Hotel or motel per living unit
|
0.50
|
$2,250
|
|
05
|
Service station
| ||
|
Per filling position
|
0.40
|
$1,800
| |
|
Per service bay
|
0.20
|
$900
| |
|
Mini-market per each 3,000 square feet of gross
floor area or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
06
|
Supermarket
| ||
|
Per first 3,000 square feet of gross floor area
or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
Per each additional 5,000 square feet of gross floor
area or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
07
|
Clubs
| ||
|
Residential per member
|
0.25
|
$1,125
| |
|
Nonresidential per every 10 members
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
08
|
Catering/banquet halls
| ||
|
1 to 45 persons
|
3.00
|
$13,500
| |
|
Each additional 15 persons or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
09
|
Church
| ||
|
Worship area only per each 100 seats or segment
thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
10
|
Commercial garage with water fixtures
|
1.00
|
$4,500
|
|
11
|
Eating establishments
| ||
|
Take-out restaurant without seating facilities
|
2.00
|
$9,000
| |
|
Fast food restaurant each 20 seats or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
Average restaurant
| |||
|
1 to 25 seating capacity
|
3.00
|
$13,500
| |
|
Each additional 10 seats or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
24-hour service restaurant each 6 seats or segment
thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
Bar/cocktail lounge each 15 seats or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
12
|
Institutions
| ||
|
Hospitals (includes staff) per each 10 beds or segment
thereof
|
6.00
|
$27,000
| |
|
Other institutions, including but not limited to
nursing homes, convalescent homes, long-term patient facilities, and
assisted living facilities where no more than 2 residents share a
room; per each 10 beds or segment thereof
|
4.00
|
$18,000
| |
|
13
|
Office building per each 3,000 square feet of gross floor area
or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
|
|
14
|
Laundromat or self-service laundromat per each machine
|
0.50
|
$2,250
|
|
15
|
Swim clubs (wastewater fixtures only)
[Note: Swimming pool drains may not be connected to the sanitary
sewer system.]
|
2.00
|
$9,000
|
|
16
|
Retail and general commercial business
| ||
|
Per first 3,000 square feet of gross floor area
or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
Per each additional 5,000 square feet of gross floor
area or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
17
|
Warehouse per each 12,000 square feet of gross floor area or
segment thereof
[Note: Rate based on one operational shift per day; for multiple
shifts, the units shall be multiplied by the number of daily shifts.]
|
1.00
|
$4,500
|
|
18
|
Theater (indoors) per each 100 seats or segment thereof
|
1.00
|
$4,500
|
|
19
|
Industrial or manufacturing plant without industrial waste per
each 12,000 square feet of gross floor area or segment thereof
[Note: Woolwich Township reserves the right to use a different
parameter should the industrial user incorporate a large quantity
of water either in their product manufactured or clean-up requirement.]
|
1.00
|
$4,500
|
|
20
|
Mobile home units
| ||
|
Single-wide pad, one or two bedrooms
|
0.75
|
$3,375
| |
|
Single-wide pad, three or more bedrooms
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
Double-wide pad
|
1.00
|
$4,500
| |
|
NOTE: In the event a business or structure is not described
in this schedule, Woolwich Township shall determine the minimum equivalent
domestic consumer units. In addition to the Township fees, any new
connection must comply with any and all Gloucester County Utilities
Authority (GCUA) regulations and fees.
| |||
A.
Any person who violates or neglects to comply with any provision
of this article or code established herein, or notice issued pursuant
thereto, shall, upon conviction thereof, be liable to a penalty of
not less than $50 nor more than $1,000 for each violation. A separate
violation shall occur on each day of noncompliance.
B.
Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to modify or substitute
for the penalties set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:9A-1.7, but instead all
penalties are designed and intended to be supplemental and separate.
C.
Moreover, in the event that the owner of such building fails to connect
in accordance with the terms of this article, the Woolwich Township
Committee is hereby authorized to order such connection by written
notice signed by the designee of the Township Committee and served
by the designee of the Township either upon the owner(s) personally
or by leaving such notice at the owner's(s') usual place
of abode with a family member above the age of 18 years. If, following
service of such an order in the manner described above, the owner(s)
fails to connect within 30 days of receipt of the aforesaid order,
the owner shall be subject to a fine of $25 plus $10 for each day
of delay following the expiration of the thirty-day period which succeeds
the day of receipt by the owner(s) of the aforesaid order.
D.
In the event that the Township is required to institute action, to
compel connection to the municipal sewer system, and/or determines
to institute suit to recover any costs or fees incurred by the Township
in the course of undertaking any emergency repairs authorized under
this article, and in the further event that the Township is successful
in the course of that action, the property owner against whom said
action is brought shall be responsible for all reasonable attorney's
fees and costs of suit incurred by the Township in the course of such
proceeding, even if, at the conclusion of the matter, it is determined
by a court of competent jurisdiction that the property owner's
contractors were responsible for the damages, it being the determination
of the Township Committee that said contractors serve as the agents,
servants and employees of the property owner, who is ultimately responsible.
A.
Repealer. Any and all ordinances inconsistent with the terms of this
article are hereby repealed to the extent of any such inconsistencies.
B.
Severability. In the event that any clause, section, paragraph or
sentence of this article is deemed to be invalid or unenforceable
for any reason, then the Township Committee hereby declares its intent
that the balance of the article not affected by said invalidity shall
remain in full force and effect to the extent that it allows the Township
to meet the goals of the article.
C.
This article shall take effect upon passage and publication according
to law.
