The purpose of this chapter is to protect the public health
and welfare by licensing rooming and boarding houses, pursuant N.J.S.A
40:52-10.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
COOPERATIVE SOBER LIVING RESIDENCE
A cooperative sober living residence licensed pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 55:13B-1 et seq. and as defined in N.J.A.C. 5:27-2.1 and
holding a Class F license from the Bureau of Rooming and Boarding
House Standards in the Division of Codes and Standards of the Department
of Community Affairs (the Bureau).
OPERATOR
Any person, including, for the purposes of this chapter,
any corporation or association of persons or any agency or instrumentality
of state or local government, which operates or proposes to operate
a rooming or boarding house.
OWNER
The holder of title in fee simple to premises and any lessor
or sublessor of whom an operator is or proposes to become a sublessor
in connection with an application for a license, or renewal thereof,
pursuant to this chapter.
POPULATION
The most recent population count reported by the Department
of Labor.
ROOMING OR BOARDING HOUSE
A rooming or boarding house licensed pursuant to N.J.S.A.
55:13B-1 et seq. A rooming house is further defined as a boarding
house wherein no personal nor financial services are provided to the
residents [N.J.S.A. 55:13B-3(h)]. It shall include all classes of
premises applying for a license as defined in N.J.A.C 5:27-6.
Application for a license under this chapter shall be made to
the Council. The application shall be by a form which can be obtained
from the Borough Clerk.
A. The application must be accompanied by an application fee of $200
or such fee as may be prescribed by resolution. The application shall
be filed with the Municipal Clerk, who will be required to place the
application upon the agenda of the next available meeting of the Council.
B. The form of application shall require the submission of information
and supporting documentation, which will provide a basis upon which
the Council may conduct the investigation and reach the conclusions
required under this chapter for the issuance or denial of a license.
C. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant/owner to obtain information
required by this application and to exercise due care and diligence
to insure its completeness and accuracy.
D. All information required from the operator must be duly sworn to
by the operator in order to form a valid part of the application.
E. If the application filed pursuant to this section is denied, 90%
of the application fee shall be refunded to the applicant, and 10%
retained by the Borough in defraying the expenses of the Licensing
Authority in carrying out its functions under this section.
F. All applications by a natural person, partnership or unincorporated
association of natural persons shall be duly sworn to by each of the
applicants. An application by a corporation shall be duly sworn to
by the president or vice president of the corporation. All statements
in the application shall be deemed material, and any person who knowingly
misstates any material fact therein shall be guilty of a crime of
the fourth degree.
G. Each application shall designate an operator/manager of the premises.
That person must meet the requirements for licensure by the NJ Department
of Community Affairs and requirements for licensure of a natural person.
There shall be a $25 fee for a background check on the designated
operator/manager. Said fee will apply each time the operator/manager
changes.
The Borough Administrator shall, upon receipt of application,
cause the following inspections to take place:
A. With respect to the premises for which a license is sought: (1) that
they are in compliance with all applicable building, housing, health
and safety codes and regulations; (2) that the location of the premises
will not, in conjunction with the proximity of other rooming and boarding
houses, lead to an excessive concentration of such facilities in the
municipality or a particular section thereof;
B. With respect to the owner or owners of the premises: (1) if a natural
person or persons, that he or they are 21 years of age or older, citizens
of the United States and residents of the State of New Jersey, and
never convicted, in this state or elsewhere, of a crime involving
moral turpitude, or of any crime under any law of this state licensing
or regulating rooming or boarding houses, and have never had a license
required pursuant to P.L. 1979, c. 496 (N.J.S.A. 55:13B-1 et seq.)
revoked; (2) if a corporation, that all officers and members of the
Board of Directors, and every stockholder holding 10% or more of the
stock of the corporation, directly or indirectly having a beneficial
interest therein, have the same qualifications as set forth in this
subsection for an applicant who is a natural person;
C. With respect to the operator or proposed operator, that he meets
the requirements for licensure by the Department of Community Affairs;
D. That the owner and operator, either individually or jointly, shall
have established sufficient guarantee of financial and other responsibility
to assure appropriate relocation of the residents of the rooming and
boarding house to suitable facilities in the event that the licensure
is subsequently revoked or its renewal denied. The Department of Community
Affairs shall determine in the case of each type of rooming and boarding
house under this jurisdiction what constitutes suitable facilities
for this purpose. Said guarantee of financial responsibility shall
be in the form of a surety bond in favor of the Borough. The amount
for said bond shall be determined by the Borough Administrator at
the time of the hearing on the application, by multiplying the number
of the maximum allowable licensed beds at the rooming and boarding
house in question by the maximum relocation costs allowed by the Department
of Community Affairs (including both the maximum moving expenses and
rental assistance allowed by the Department) and then by adding an
additional 10% of said total for administrative costs and expenses
in the event of relocation. Said bond shall be in form and substance
acceptable to the Borough Attorney and for a period of one year;
E. The applicant has complied with the regulations stated herein and
possesses a valid applicable license from the Bureau. An inspection
performed by a municipal enforcement agent under a contractual agreement
with the Department of Community Affairs pursuant to N.J.S.A. 55:13B-1
et seq. may be deemed by the Licensing Authority to satisfy the investigation
requirements of this section; such inspection shall be performed by
and be under the jurisdiction of the Licensing Authority; and
F. The owner has paid all municipal property taxes due and owing on
the rooming and boarding house, or in the case of an initial application,
the applicant has paid all municipal property taxes due and owing
on any other rooming and boarding house located within the Borough
and owned by the applicant, provided that the owner has received written
notice of any payment delinquency which has remained unpaid for more
than 120 days. The provision of this subsection shall not be construed
as denying or limiting the rights of any displaced residents to relocation
assistance in accordance with N.J.S.A. 20:4-1 et seq.
The Council shall hold a public hearing, at which the applicant,
the operator or proposed operator and all other parties in interest,
including members of the general public, shall be entitled to be heard
upon the merits of the application and the suitability of the premises
proposed for licensing. The time and place of the public hearing shall
be determined within 30 days of receipt of the application, and shall
be communicated to the applicant in sufficient time to enable compliance
with the publication requirement of this chapter.
The Licensing Authority may revoke a license granted under this
chapter for any of the following reasons:
A. A finding that there was any misstatement of material fact in the
application upon which the license was issued.
B. The occurrence of any fact which, had it occurred and been known
to the Licensing Authority before the issuance of the license, would
have resulted in the denial of the application.
C. Repeated violations, or prolonged failure to correct any violation,
of any applicable building, housing, health or safety code or regulations
for at least 30 days.
D. Refusal to allow access to any portion of the licensed premises at
all reasonable time, with or without advance notice in order that
officers or agents of the Licensing Authority, or any official charged
with enforcement within the municipality of any building, housing,
health or safety code or regulations applicable to the premises may
determine compliance with such codes or regulations.
E. Revocation by the Department of Community Affairs of the operator's
license or other authorization to operate a rooming or boarding house
on the premises.
F. Notification by the Department of Community Affairs that the premises
are not or are no longer suitable for operation of a rooming or boarding
house on the premises.
G. Failure or refusal to comply with any lawful regulation or order
of the Licensing Authority.
H. A determination by the Licensing Authority that the issuance or renewal
of a license to such a person would be contrary to the best interests
of the residents of any rooming or boarding house or the public generally
based upon the regulations and conditions set forth in this chapter.
A license shall not be revoked until five days' prior notice
of the grounds therefor has been served upon the licensee, either
personally or by certified mail addressed to the licensee at the licensed
premises, and a reasonable opportunity given to the licensee to be
heard thereon.
Upon determination by the Licensing Authority to refuse the
granting or renewal of a license, or to revoke a license, the licensee
affected shall be entitled to appeal to the Commissioner of Community
Affairs for a review of that determination. Said appeal is to be filed
within 30 days of a final decision of the Licensing Authority. Said
appeal to be filed in writing with the Director of Licensing and Inspections;
the Commissioner shall have the authority to reverse the Licensing
Authority's determination if it concludes that the application was
improperly denied, or the revocation improperly imposed. Such review
shall be in conformity with the provisions of the Administrative Procedures
Act, P.L. 1968, c. 410 (N.J.S.A. 52:14B-1 et seq.). The decision of
the Commissioner in such cases shall be subject to appeal to the Appellate
Division of the Superior Court. If an applicant for a license renewal
has made timely and sufficient application for a renewal in accordance
with the provisions of this chapter, and the rules of the licensing
pursuant thereto, his license shall not expire until any appeals under
this chapter have been finally determined and disposed of.
The Licensing Authority shall be the Borough Council. All decisions
of the Licensing Authority shall be by a majority of the quorum present
for the public hearing as prescribed by subsection.
Any person, firm or corporation who violates or neglects to
comply with any provision of this chapter or any rule, regulation
or directive promulgated pursuant thereto shall be penalized by a
civil penalty of not less than $50 and not to exceed $2,000.
Nothing herein shall be construed to permit or allow as a permitted
or conditional use a rooming or boarding house, including a cooperative
sober living residence in any zone or district in the Borough Land
Use Development or Zoning Ordinances. In fact, such uses remain specifically
prohibited under the Borough ordinances. This chapter is being adopted
as a precaution in the event that any boarding house is or may become
a mandated use by federal or state law or may become permitted by
variance.