[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Cape May as Sec. 4-8 of the 1997 Revised General Ordinances. Amended by Ord. Nos. 637, 708, 875-91, 1105-97, 1295-2003, 67-2006 and 98-2007. Amended in its entirety 8-17-2010 by Ord. No. 210-2010. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
COMMERCIAL CONTRACTOR
A person engaged in the business of making real estate improvements to any property that is not residential or noncommercial property and includes a corporation, partnership, association and any other form of business organization or entity, and its officers, representatives, agents and employees.
REAL ESTATE IMPROVEMENT
The remodeling, altering, renovating, repairing, restoring, modernizing, moving, demolishing, or otherwise improving or modifying of the whole or any part of any residential or noncommercial property. Real estate improvement shall also include insulation installation, and the conversion of existing commercial structures into residential or noncommercial property.
REAL ESTATE IMPROVEMENT CONTRACT
An oral or written agreement for the performance of a real estate improvement between a contractor and an owner, tenant or lessee, of a residential or noncommercial property, and includes all agreements under which the contractor is to perform labor or render services for real estate improvements or furnish materials in connection therewith.
RESIDENTIAL CONTRACTOR
A person engaged in the business of making or selling real estate improvements and includes a corporation, partnership, association and any other form of business organization or entity, and its officers, representatives, agents and employees.
RESIDENTIAL OR NONCOMMERCIAL PROPERTY
Any single- or multi-unit structure used in whole or in part as a place of residence, and all structures appurtenant thereto, and any portion of the lot or site on which the structure is situated which is devoted to the residential use of the structure.
All persons desiring to become registered commercial contractors in the City shall make application to the City Clerk, fill out the form provided by the City Clerk and return it with the license registration fee to the City Clerk. The City Clerk may from time to time establish dates and notify all applicants of the time and place when and where they may appear to take the examination. It shall be sufficient for any one member of a firm or corporation to make application, take the examination, be certified and be licensed. Only one registration fee and one annual renewal fee shall be required of any firm or corporation.
A. 
The City Clerk may adopt rules and regulations for the examination of applicants for licenses under this chapter and shall formulate the necessary questions for the application. The City Clerk and Construction Official shall examine all applications to determine if such applicants qualify for a license under this chapter. The City Clerk and Construction Official shall waive formal examination if the commercial contractor is duly licensed and in good standing as a residential contractor under the New Jersey Contractors' Registration Act (N.J.S.A. 56:8-136), provided that a copy of the license is provided to the City Clerk with the application. Successful applicants shall be certified by written authority directed to the City Clerk.
B. 
Each commercial contractor shall submit the following on forms provided by the City Clerk:
(1) 
The name and street address of each place of business of the commercial contractor and any fictitious or trade name to be used by the commercial contractor;
(2) 
The type of business organization;
(3) 
The name, residence and business street address of each officer, director, principal and person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business, including the percentage of ownership held;
(4) 
The name and number of any professional or occupational license, certificate or registration issued by this state or any other governmental entity to any officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business;
(5) 
Whether the entity, any officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business has been adjudged liable in an administrative or civil action involving any of the situations in (i) through (v) below. For the purposes of this paragraph, a judgment of liability in an administrative or civil action shall include, but not be limited to, any finding or admission that the entity, officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business engaged in an unlawful practice or practices related to any of the named situations in (i) through (v) below regardless of whether that finding was made in the context of an injunction, a proceeding resulting in the denial, suspension or revocation of a license, certification or registration, consented to in an assurance of voluntary compliance or any similar order or legal agreement with any state or federal agency. As described above, this paragraph covers the following situations: (i) obtained any registration, certification or license by fraud, deception or misrepresentation; (ii) engaged in the use or employment of dishonesty, fraud, deception, misrepresentation, false promise or false pretense; (iii) engaged in gross negligence, gross malpractice or gross incompetence; (iv) engaged in acts of negligence, malpractice or incompetence involving selling or making a commercial; and (v) engaged in professional or occupational misconduct;
(6) 
Whether the entity, any officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business has been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude or any crime relating adversely to selling or making improvements as a commercial or residential contractor. For the purpose of this paragraph, a plea of guilty, non vult, nolo contendere or any other such disposition of alleged criminal activity shall be deemed a conviction;
(7) 
Whether the entity, any officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business has had their authority to engage in the activity regulated by the New Jersey Director of Consumer Affairs revoked or suspended by any other state, agency or authority;
(8) 
Whether the entity, any officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business has violated or failed to comply with the provisions of any act, regulation or order administered or issued by the New Jersey Director of Consumer Affairs;
(9) 
Whether the entity, any officer, director, principal or person with an ownership interest of 10 percent or more in the commercial contractor business believes they are unable to meet the requirements of the Contractors' Registration Act, N.J.S.A. 56:8-136 et seq.; and
(10) 
The name and street address of an agent in the State of New Jersey for service of process.
C. 
In addition to the information required in Subsection B above, the applicant shall include the following with the initial application:
(1) 
Proof of the commercial contractor's commercial general liability insurance policy in a minimum amount of $500,000 per occurrence that complies with the requirements of Section 204-7; and
(2) 
The licensing or renewal registration fee in the amount specified in Section 204-6.
A. 
Every person who qualifies as determined by the City Clerk and Construction Official shall be licensed by the City Clerk to engage in and carry on any business or trade set forth in Section 204-6.
B. 
No person shall engage in any work as a residential contractor until he or she has registered with the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, if such registration is mandated under the New Jersey Contractors' Registration Act (N.J.S.A. 56:8-136), or has been exempted from said registration by any one of the exceptions found in N.J.S.A. 56:8-140.
C. 
No person shall engage in any work as a commercial contractor until he or she has secured a license from the City of Cape May under the requirements of this section.
D. 
No person who is exempt from registration under the New Jersey Contractors' Registration Act (N.J.S.A. 56:8-136) shall engage in any work as a residential contractor unless such person has secured a license from the City of Cape May under the requirements of this section.
The City Clerk is authorized to issue licenses upon the delivery to him of the certification and payment of the license registration fee. The license shall entitle the holder to be designated as a registered contractor, and shall only apply to the person or firm to whom issued.
A. 
Licenses shall run from January 1 to December 31 of each calendar year. Neither the license registration fee nor the annual renewal fee shall be prorated. For contractors, the license registration fee shall be $175 and the annual renewal fee shall be $150. If a license is not renewed during the first three months of the year, prior to March 31, it shall be treated as a new license, however, it shall not be considered a grace period for obtaining such license and any contractor who performs work as a commercial contractor without such license shall be in violation of this chapter.
B. 
For the purpose of this chapter, contractors shall include but be not limited to the following contractors:
(1) 
Air conditioning and refrigeration.
(2) 
Awning installation.
(3) 
Boat building.
(4) 
Brick and block masons, concrete and cement.
(5) 
Building.
(6) 
Carpeting installation.
(7) 
Carpentry.
(8) 
Contractors not otherwise classified, i.e., jobbers.
(9) 
Excavating, filling or cleaning of land.
(10) 
Floor and wall finishing.
(11) 
General.
(12) 
House moving.
(13) 
Iron and steel.
(14) 
Landscape gardening and nursery.
(15) 
Locksmiths.
(16) 
Metal storm door and window installation.
(17) 
Moving and hauling.
(18) 
Painting.
(19) 
Pile driving.
(20) 
Plastering.
(21) 
Plate glass and glazing.
(22) 
Roofing.
(23) 
Sign design and erecting.
(24) 
TV repair and TV antennas.
(25) 
Tile setting.
(26) 
Erection of a permanent or temporary tent.
No license shall be issued unless and until the applicant shall submit satisfactory evidence in writing that he is covered by liability insurance with a combined single limit of $500,000 per occurrence.