[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Cape May as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Unfit buildings — See Ch. 173.
Dumping — See Ch. 228.
Enforcement of health regulations— See Ch. 284.
Housing — See Ch. 295.
Littering — See Ch. 314.
Public health nuisances — See Ch. 345.
Rental property — See Ch. 401.
Solid waste; recycling — See Ch. 434.
[Adopted by Ord. No. 1221-2000 (Ch. XI of the 1997 Revised General Ordinances)]
[Amended 11-14-2005 by Ord. No. 53-2005]
A certain document, three copies of which are on file in the office of the City Clerk of the City of Cape May, being marked and designated as the "International Property Maintenance Code, 2003," as published by the International Code Council, Inc., and as revised by the City Council of the City of Cape May, be and is hereby adopted as the Property Maintenance Code of the City of Cape May, County of Cape May, State of New Jersey (hereinafter referred to as the "Cape May City Property Maintenance Code"); for the control of buildings and structures as herein provided; and each and all of the regulations, provisions, penalties, conditions and terms of said Cape May City Property Maintenance Code are hereby referred to, adopted, and made a part hereof, as if fully set out in this article.
[Amended 11-14-2005 by Ord. No. 53-2005]
The following sections of the International Property Maintenance Code, 2003, are hereby revised as follows and set forth on the copies which are on file with the City Clerk:
A. 
Section 101.1. "City of Cape May" is inserted as the name of the jurisdiction.
B. 
Section 102.6. Deleted in its entirety and replaced with the following:
102.6 Historic buildings. Recognizing the need for preventive maintenance to insure the continued useful life of historic sites and structure in historic districts, City Council hereby declares that code enforcement for historic sites and structures in historic districts is a high municipal priority. All actions taken by the City or any other person in enforcing or otherwise complying with this code shall, if applicable, be done in strict compliance with the City's Historic Preservation Ordinance, as may be amended from time to time, as well as all applicable design guidelines adopted by the City's Historic Preservation Commission and approved by the City Council by ordinance; provided that nothing contained herein shall prohibit or otherwise limit the Code Official from taking emergency measures pursuant to Section 109 hereof.
C. 
Section 103.2. Revised to read as follows:
103.2 Appointment. The Code Official shall be appointed by the chief appointing authority of the jurisdiction. In accordance with the prescribed procedures of this jurisdiction, the appointing authority shall have the authority to appoint a deputy code official, other related technical officers, inspectors and other employees.
D. 
Section 103.6. Deleted.
E. 
Section 104.2. The words "to adopt and promulgate rules and procedures" are deleted.
F. 
Section 106.5. The following sentence is added to the end of the existing paragraph: "The Code Official may abate any violation if not done so by the property owner or occupant within the time provided by state statute and shall certify the cost thereof to the City Council, which shall then examine the certificate and, if found correct, shall cause the cost thereof to be charged as a lien against such buildings, structures or premises; provided, however, that the interest thereon shall not exceed 9% per annum."
G. 
Section 107.2.4. The words "a reasonable time" are replaced with "10 business days."
H. 
Section 107.2.6 and 107.2.7 (new sections).
[Amended 11-20-2007 by Ord. No. 123-2007]
6.
The notice may provide that the code official will abate the violation if not done so by the property owner or occupant within the time provided by state statute, which will result in a lien against such buildings, structures or premises in accordance with Section 106.5 above.
7.
Continued validity of notice. Include a statement that each notice issued pursuant to this Section 107 shall remain valid for a period of 60 days from the date of service. In the event that any violation for which a notice is served is corrected and the same or substantially similar violation then recurs within said 60 days, no additional notice shall be required for prosecution of said violation.
I. 
Section 107.3.2. The words "or first class" are deleted.
J. 
Section 107.3.3. The following language is added at the end: ". . . and, if required by state statute, filed with the County Clerk and published in a newspaper printed and published in the City as required by N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.7."
K. 
Section 109.5. The second sentence is deleted and replaced with the following: "Thereafter, the City may institute appropriate action against the owner of the premises where the unsafe structure is or was located for the recovery of such costs; and (ii) the Code Official shall certify the cost thereof to the City Council, which shall then examine the certificate and, if found correct, shall cause the cost thereof to be charged as a lien against such buildings, structures or premises; provided, however, that the interest thereon shall not exceed 9% per annum."
L. 
Section 109.7 (new section), Historic Structures.
109.7 Historic structures. This Section 109 shall apply regardless of whether a property is located in an historic district or is otherwise designated as an historic structure, site or improvement. No section in this code shall prohibit or otherwise limit the code official from taking emergency measures pursuant to this Section 109 hereof.
M. 
Section 111.1. The words "board of appeals" in the first sentence are replaced with "City Manager or such other City official required by state statute; provided, however, that if the property is located in an historic district or is otherwise designated as an historic structure, site or improvement, the Board of Appeals shall consist of the City Construction Official, the City Manager and a member of the Historic Preservation Commission selected by the Chairman of the Historic Preservation Commission with the approval of the City Manager." The number "20" in the first sentence is replaced with "10 business."
N. 
Section 111.2. Deleted.
O. 
Section 111.3. Revised to read as follows:
111.3 Notice of meeting. The Construction Official or such other City official as required by state statute shall set the date and time of the hearing, which shall be not sooner than 10 days and not later than 30 days from the filing of the appeal.
P. 
Section 111.4. The word "board" in the first sentence is replaced with "City Manager or such other City official required by state statute." The last sentence and all of Subsection 111.4.1 are deleted.
Q. 
Section 111.5. Deleted.
R. 
Section 111.6. Replaced with the following:
111.6 Decision. After hearing all of the evidence, the City Manager or such other City official required by state statute shall decide whether to uphold or reverse the code official.
S. 
Section 111.7. The words "If required by state statute" are added at the beginning of the first sentence.
T. 
Section 202.0. General definitions.
1.
Code Official. The following language shall be added to the definition of code official: "The code official for the purposes of this code shall be the City's Construction Official; provided that, where necessary, the City's Construction Official shall also serve as the Code Official."
U. 
Section 303.3. Deleted.
V. 
Section 303.7. The words "and free from obstructions" are deleted from the third sentence.
W. 
Section 303.14. April 1 is inserted as the first date and October 1 is inserted as the second date.
X. 
Section 303.18 (new section), Historic structures.
303.18 Historic structures. The exterior of structures in historic districts shall be maintained so that the appearance reflects a level of maintenance in keeping with the historic character of the area. The exterior of all structures shall be painted and kept in good repair. All historic sites and all buildings and structures in an historic district shall be maintained so that exterior walls, roofs, stairs, porches, windows and door frames are in a watertight condition. Cornices, entablatures, wall facings, trim and similar decorative features shall be maintained so as to prevent deterioration, and any deterioration which adversely affects the overall character of the building or the district in which the building is located is prohibited.
Y. 
Section 602.3. October 1 is inserted as the first date and April the second date.
Z. 
Section 602.4. October 1 is inserted as the first date and April the second date.
The penalty for any violation of this article, upon conviction thereof, shall be as set forth in Chapter 1, Article III, Penalty.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
Nothing in this article or in the Cape May City Property Maintenance Code hereby adopted shall be construed to affect any suit or proceeding in any court, or any rights acquired, or liability incurred, or any cause or causes of action acquired or existing, under any act or ordinance hereby repealed; nor shall any just or legal right or remedy of any character be lost, impaired or affected by this article.
[Adopted 11-1-2022 by Ord. No. 482-2022]
A. 
All native and nonnative vines and vegetation that grow out of place and are competitive, persistent, and pernicious. These plants may damage trees, vegetation, or structures. The following is the City's list of invasive and nuisance species:
(1) 
Microstegium vimineum (Japanese stiltgrass).
(2) 
Fatoua villosa (mulberry weed).
(3) 
Ailanthus altissima (tree-of-heaven).
(4) 
Ampelopsis glandulosa var. brevipedunculata (porcelain berry).
(5) 
Celastrus orbiculatus (oriental bittersweet).
(6) 
Elaeagnus umbellata, angustifolia and pungens (autumn olive, Russian olive and thorny olive).
(7) 
Ligustrum sinense (Chinese privet).
(8) 
Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle).
(9) 
Hedera helix (English ivy).
(10) 
Nandina domestica (Nandina/heavenly bamboo).
(11) 
Imperata cylindrica (Cogon grass/Japanese blood grass).
(12) 
Imperata cylindrica (Cogon grass/Japanese blood grass).
(13) 
Any species of what is commonly known as "running bamboo" (including but not limited to Arundinaria, Bambusa, Chimonobambusa, Dendrocalamus, Fargesia, Phyllostachys, Pleioblastus, Sasa, Sasaella, Semiarundinaria).
[Added 10-17-2023 by Ord. No. 520-2023]
B. 
The above list may be amended only by adoption of a further ordinance.
No person, contractor, or property owner shall plant any species of tree or plant that appears on the City's list of invasive and nuisance species as set forth above in § 390-5.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall be designated with enforcement of this article. All places and premises in the City of Cape May may be subject to inspection by the Code Enforcement Officer, however, an inspection may only be made of an alleged property if a neighboring property owner files a complaint alleging that any section of this article has been violated.
A. 
Whenever an invasive plant, as defined by this article, is found on any plot of land, lot or any other premises or place, prior to the issuance of a summons, a violation notice shall be given to the owner, in writing, directing removal or abatement within such time as shall be specified therein, taking into account the nature of the specific invasive species. The cost of abatement shall be borne by the property owner.
B. 
If the owner fails to comply with such notice under Subsection A above and within the time specified therein for removal or abatement, the City may direct issuance of a summons based on a violation of this article. Violations of this article shall be further subject to the general penalty provisions of Chapter 1, Article III, of the City Code, which includes the provisions under § 1-21 that each and every day in which a violation continues to exist will constitute a separate violation.