Township of Washington, NJ Article XIII Permits, Plans and Certificates

§ 580-86 Building permits; certificates of occupancy; certificates of continued occupancy.

[Amended 6-2-1986 by Ord. No. 86-6; 10-17-1988 by Ord. No. 88-28; 11-1-2011 by Ord. No. 11-15]

A. No land shall be occupied or used and no building shall be erected, constructed, altered, repaired, remodeled, converted, removed or destroyed without issuance of a permit or authorization therefor by the Chief Construction Official, stating that the application complies with the provisions of this chapter and all other ordinances that may be applicable, including site plan review.

B. Certificates of occupancy.

(1) No land shall be occupied or used, and no building shall be occupied or used, in whole or in part, for any purpose whatsoever until a certificate of occupancy shall have been issued by the Chief Construction Official, stating that the land, premises and building complies with all of the provisions of this chapter, the Site Plan Review Ordinance[1] and all other terms and conditions imposed by municipal, state, county and federal agencies having jurisdiction of the subject matter.

[1] Editor's Note: See Ch. 540, Land Development, Art. XV.

(2) Changes in use.

(a) No change or extension of use, and no alteration of any building or part thereof, shall be made without a certificate of occupancy having been first issued by the Chief Construction Official, stating that such change, extension or alteration is in conformity with all of the provisions of this chapter, the Site Plan Review Ordinance[2] and all other terms and conditions imposed by municipal, state, county and federal agencies having jurisdiction of the subject matter.

[2] Editor's Note: See Ch. 540, Land Development, Art. XV.

(b) With the exception of exclusively residential use in one-family homes or in townhouses, any time the tenancy or occupancy of a property changes, including such change in a property on which a home occupation is conducted, it shall require reapplication by the new tenant, occupant or owner of the property for the issuance of a certificate of occupancy by the Chief Construction Official. Such change shall be in conformity with all the provisions of this chapter, the Site Plan Review Ordinance[3] and all other terms and conditions imposed by municipal, state, County and federal agencies having jurisdiction of the subject matter.

[3] Editor's Note: See Ch. 540, Land Development, Art. XV.

(3) Application for such certificate of occupancy shall be made to the Chief Construction Official simultaneously with the application for the building permit and shall be issued within 10 days after the erection or alteration of the building shall have been completed. A record of all such certificates shall be kept on file in the office of the Chief Construction Official.

C. No permit for an excavation shall be issued before application has been made for a certificate of occupancy. An excavation bond shall be submitted in the sum of $100 for each 1,000 square feet of foundation area or fraction thereof, which bond is to be returned upon completion of foundation and backfill.

D. No building permit shall be issued by the Chief Construction Official of the said Township of Washington for the erection and construction of a building to be occupied as a dwelling unless and until the application for said permit shows a plot plan wherein sufficient space is provided for the erection and construction of a garage for at least one automobile, which space shall not be in violation of any of the requirements or provisions of this chapter and the supplements thereof and the amendments thereto, nor in violation of the requirements or provisions of any other ordinance of the said Township of Washington and the supplements thereof and amendments thereto.

E. Certificates of continued occupancy.

(1) A certificate of continued occupancy shall be required upon any transfer of title to an existing premises which is accompanied by a change in the occupancy of such premises, or in the case of premises that are being occupied under a lease or rental arrangement ("rental property"), a change in tenancy. A certificate of continued occupancy is not required when the principal building is not to be occupied. The applicant must submit a certification to the Chief Construction Official when the principal building is not to be occupied. In the event of such transfer or change in tenancy of a rental property, and upon application therefor, the Chief Construction Official shall issue a certificate of continued occupancy after inspection of the premises which shall not reveal any violations of applicable regulations, including, but not limited to, zoning, construction and health regulations. Such certificate of continued occupancy shall evidence only that a general inspection of the visible parts of the principal building has been made and that there are no apparent violations of regulations or open permits. The definition of "principal building" shall be that defined within § 580-2B of this Code.

(2) An application for a certificate of continued occupancy as required by this section shall be made on forms provided by the Chief Construction Official. The Chief Construction Official shall, within 10 days from receipt of fully completed forms and fees as required by this chapter, inspect the premises. In the event that the Chief Construction Official declines to issue a certificate of continued occupancy, his reasons for doing so shall be stated on a copy of the application, and said copy shall be returned to the applicant. The applicant may resubmit the application once all violations have been corrected to the satisfaction of the Chief Construction Official. In the event that the Chief Construction Official declines to issue a certificate of continued occupancy and the applicant certifies on a form approved by the Chief Construction Official that all violations will be cured by a date certain, the Chief Construction Official shall issue a temporary certificate of occupancy to the applicant when the applicant represents that the transfer of title or change in tenancy is scheduled at a time which makes it impossible for the violations to be corrected prior to the transfer of title or change in tenancy. This temporary certificate will be converted into a certificate of continued occupancy once all violations have been corrected.

(3) At the time the application is submitted for a certificate of continued occupancy as required by this section, the applicant shall submit a fee in the amount set forth in Chapter 212, Fees, which shall include the initial inspection and one additional inspection performed hereunder. A fee in the amount set forth in Chapter 212, Fees, will be charged to the applicant for each subsequent inspection by the Chief Construction Official when the applicant resubmits an application for a certificate of continued occupancy as outlined above in Subsection E(2) or for the issuance of a temporary certificate of occupancy. If the violations are not cured which led to the issuance of a temporary certificate of occupancy by the date set forth, the applicant shall be subject to a fine of $100 per day until the violations are cured.

[Amended 9-17-2018 by Ord. No. 18-13]

(4) Failure to properly submit a completed application for a certificate of continued occupancy upon any transfer of title to an existing premises or change in tenancy of a rental property shall result in the levying of a fine in the amount of $1,000 against the owner of record of the premises at the time of discovery. The record owner of that premises shall also be subject to a per diem charge of $100 for each and every day that a completed application is not submitted from the day of discovery.

F. Washington Town Center changes in occupancy. A certificate of continued occupancy shall be required upon any change in the occupancy of an existing store/space within the Washington Town Center. Prior to any new occupancy, the owner of the Washington Town Center or the proposed new occupant of the store/space, with the written consent of said owner, shall apply to the Township Building Department for the issuance of a continued certificate of occupancy. The completed application shall be accompanied by a filing fee of $100 for the application, which fee shall cover review of the application by the Chief Construction Official, Zoning Officer and/or Planning Board Engineer. The Zoning Officer or Chief Construction Official may, in his or her absolute discretion approve the application for a continued certificate of occupancy without an appearance before the Township Planning Board. The determination of the Zoning Officer or Chief Construction Official shall not be reviewable or appealable. If the Zoning Officer or Chief Construction Official declines to issue a certificate of continued occupancy, the owner or proposed new occupant shall be required to apply to the Planning Board for site plan review under the Code (see § 540-76). Such application to the Planning Board shall require the posting of an escrow in the amount of $500.

[Added 8-15-2022 by Ord. No. 22-12]