[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Council of the Township of Franklin 7-10-1990 by Ord. No. 1586 (Ch. 88 of the 1990 Code); amended in its entirety 10-13-2009 by Ord. No. 3847. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 4-10-2012 by Ord. No. 3972]
The owner, tenant or occupant of lands lying within the Township, where it shall be determined by the Somerset County Department of Health to be necessary and expedient for the preservation of public health, safety and general welfare or to eliminate a fire hazard, shall remove from such lands brush, weeds, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growths, filth, garbage, trash and debris within 10 days after notice to remove the same, which shall be conspicuously posted on said property and sent by regular mail to the last known address of the tenant, owner or occupant.
Whenever the owner, tenant or occupant of any lands shall refuse or neglect to remove from said lands all brush, weeds, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growths, filth, garbage, trash and debris as required by § 88-1 and after notice given as provided therein, then the same may be removed under the direction of the Township Manager or their designee. The cost paid or incurred for investigating, administering and removing same shall be charged against such lands, and the amount so charged shall forthwith become a lien upon the lands and shall be added to and become and form part of the taxes then next to be assessed and levied upon the lands and shall be collected and enforced according to law. The Township may elect to foreclose on the properties of repeat violators and the proceeds used to maintain said property.
A. 
The owner, tenant or occupant of lands may make an application to the Somerset County Department of Health to allow land to revert back to its natural condition. Application forms may be obtained from the Somerset County Department of Health.
B. 
The application will require submission of a survey of the subject land. Additionally, property owners within 200 feet of the subject property must be notified of the application via certified mail, return receipt requested, within seven days of the date the application was filed. The notification shall include the name and address of the applicant, a description/designation of the lands affected, and a method and deadline by which to raise objection to the application. An application will not be deemed complete until proof of service upon contiguous property owners is submitted to the Somerset County Department of Health.
C. 
Once a completed application has been received by the Somerset County Department of Health, it will be forwarded to the Environmental Commission. The Environmental Commission will make a determination within 30 days after receipt of the completed application as to whether permission should be granted to allow the land to return to its natural condition. The Environmental Commission must consider impact upon public health and safety in making its determination.
D. 
The Environmental Commission shall notify the Somerset County Department of Health of its determination. The Somerset County Department of Health shall then issue written notification of the determination on the application to the applicant.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to the penalties as provided in Chapter 1, Article II, General Penalty, at the discretion of the court. Every day that a violation continues after due notice has been served, in accordance with the terms and provisions hereof, shall be deemed a separate offense.
No provision of this chapter shall be construed as restricting or otherwise abrogating the enforcement and other powers of the Township's Construction Code Official under the New Jersey Uniform Construction Code, including without limitation N.J.S.A. 52:27D-123 et seq., and N.J.A.C. 5:23-1.1 et seq. (collectively, the "Code"). The provisions of this chapter shall be construed as consistent with the enforcement and other powers of the Township's Construction Code Official under the Code.