No person, firm or corporation shall carry on
the business of operating a campground in the Township of Middle unless
and until said operator shall receive a campground license, which
license, in each case, may be granted only by the Township Committee
by appropriate resolution. No campground license shall be valid unless
on the face thereof is stated the number of sites for which said campground
is licensed.
As used herein, the following terms shall have
the meanings indicated:
CAMPGROUND
A plot of ground upon which two or more campsites are located,
established or maintained for occupancy by camping units of the general
public as temporary living quarters for recreation, education or vacation
purposes.
[Amended 4-5-1990 by Ord. No. 720-90; 12-19-1991 by Ord. No. 798-91; 5-3-2010 by Ord. No. 1346-10]
The annual license for campgrounds shall cover
one calendar year or any portion thereof, and there shall be no reduction
of the annual license fee for any period shorter than one calendar
year. The annual license fee for a campground shall be $300, plus
$3 for each individual campsite covered by said license as contained
in the most recent license application.
Application for every campground license or
for annual renewal of the same shall be made upon application forms
available at the office of the Township Clerk and shall be signed
by the applicant. Application for annual renewal of every campground
license shall be filed with the Township Clerk not later than December
1 of the expiring license year. An annual license fee shall accompany
said application. Failure to file a complete renewal application and
to pay the annual license fee on or before said date is hereby specifically
declared to be grounds for revocation of the license.
The license application forms and license renewal
application forms available at the office of the Township Clerk shall
provide appropriate spaces for the following information, which shall
be supplied by the applicant:
A. The full name and address of the applicant. If the
applicant is a corporation, the application shall contain the full
name and address of each director, each officer and each holder of
10% or more of the stock in said corporation.
C. The location of the premises covered by the license.
D. The total area of the premises.
E. The number of individual camping sites permitted.
F. Every application for a campground license renewal
shall be accompanied by a scaled diagram of the premises showing the
configuration of the campground, with each individual campsite delineated
and numbered. The number depicted on the diagram for each campsite
shall be physically affixed to the campsite so that each campsite
can be readily identified.
[Added 9-6-1994 by Ord. No. 906-94]
The applicant shall, in said application, certify
the truth of the information contained therein and shall also certify
as follows:
A. That there is on file with the Clerk of Middle Township a scale diagram of the premises sought to be licensed showing the number of individual campsites permitted, which number shall correspond to the number set forth in §
104-5E, with each individual campsite separately and serially numbered, and that a duplicate copy of said diagram is on file in the office of the campground operator.
B. That all sanitary requirements, Board of Health regulations
and police and fire regulations have been complied with.
C. That the applicant is aware that violation of this chapter is punishable by license revocation, and as provided for violations of this Code in Chapter
1, General Provisions.
Every campground operating hereunder shall provide
a minimum of 1,200 square feet of space per individual camping site,
and said individual camping sites shall be arranged in rows abutting
or facing upon a driveway or clear unoccupied space not less than
30 feet in width, with unobstructed access using such driveway to
a public street or highway. The area licensed for operation as a campground
shall not extend across or be divided by any public highway or public
toll road, either local, county, state, federal or other public highway
or public toll road.
The maximum number of campgrounds licensed at
any given time in this township shall be 15. No application for a
campground license shall be accepted nor shall any campground license
be issued if the granting of such application and issuance of such
license shall cause the number of outstanding licenses to exceed said
limited number. This limitation shall not be deemed to prohibit annual
renewals of any existing campground license.
Any change in the information required under §
104-5A,
B,
C,
D or
E shall be submitted to the Township Committee for approval, and such approval may be granted only after notice and public hearing. Operation of any campground prior to obtaining such approval shall subject the violator to the penalties set forth below. Notice shall be published once in the official newspaper of this township at least seven days before the date of the public hearing, and said notice shall contain all of the information required under §
104-5. Proof of said publication shall be filed with the Township Clerk prior to the date of the public hearing.
[Amended 2-1-1996 by Ord. No. 956-96; 5-17-2004 by Ord. No.
1160-04]
Each campground shall be permitted permanent
residential structures (single-family residential homes) on the campground
property as follows:
A. Each campground shall be permitted no more than two
permanent residential structures to be inhabited only by the owner(s)/operator(s)
of the campground and his or her family.
B. In addition to the permanent residential structures referred to in Subsection
A above, permanent residential structures for resident security personnel shall be permitted based upon the number of sites in the campground as shown below:
|
Number of Sites in Campground
|
Number of Permanent Residential Structures
for On-Site Security Personnel
|
---|
|
1 to 200
|
0
|
|
200 to 400
|
1
|
|
400 and above
|
2
|
(1) "Campground property" shall consist of all of the
property that comprises the campground, whether it is all on one lot
or more than one lot.
(2) The number of campsites shall be based on those campsites
actually built and available for rent and shall not be based on the
number of campsites licensed.
(3) The permanent residential structure(s) for the resident
security personnel may be occupied only by the security personnel
and his or her spouse.
(4) It is the intent of this section that the permanent
residential structures shall be for security personnel that will provide
on-site security to the campground; the permanent residential structures
are not to be rental properties leased to the general public. While
the occupation of the permanent residential structure will more than
likely be seasonal, it is not prohibited to have a year-round occupation
of the permanent residential structure as long as the occupant has
been or shall be security personnel of the campground. It shall be
a violation of this section to have anyone other than resident security
personnel and his or her spouse residing in the permanent residential
structure.
C. Under no circumstances can there be more than two
permanent residential structures for resident security personnel on
any campground property, and under no circumstances shall there be
more than a total of four permanent residential structures on any
campground property.
D. All permanent residential structures shall comply
with any and all current codes, including building codes and the Township
Zoning Code.
E. The permanent residential structures shall be independent
and have proper independent utilities so as not to interfere with
the campground closing.
F. Each campground owner shall register the resident
security personnel by providing a list of the resident security personnel
to the Township Clerk's Office arid the Township Police Chief's Office
by the first of April of each year. The list may be changed and updated
as necessary. The list shall be provided on campground letterhead
and shall include the name, address, and telephone number for each
resident security personnel and the name of spouse residing with the
resident security personnel.
G. Each resident security person shall maintain a log
showing his or her duties kept on an hourly basis and shall be available
for inspection by a Township Official at the main office of the campground.
H. A standard operating procedure for security personnel
must be written and available with the security log.
I. Each resident security person shall have a written
lease with the campground owner which conditions his or her occupancy
of the permanent residential structure on the continued employment
of the resident security person so that eviction may be made pursuant
to N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1(m).
J. This section may be enforced by the Township Code
Enforcement Officer and/or the Township Zoning Officer. Said officer
shall issue a notice to the campground owner/operator giving said
owner/operator 10 days to bring the campground into compliance with
this section. The campground owner/operator fails to bring the campground
into compliance with this section within 10 days of receipt of the
notice, the officer who issued the notice shall then file a complaint
with the Township Municipal Court. Any campground that violates this
section shall be subject to a fine of no less than $500 for each day
that the violation exists.
K. For the
purposes of this chapter, additions to an existing RVIA (Recreational
Vehicle Industry Association) or RPTIA (Recreation Park Trailer Industry
Association) certified recreational vehicle shall not be considered
permanent residential structures, but deemed to be temporary, if they
expressly comply with the following criteria:
[Added 10-3-2022 by Ord. No. 1658-22
(1) The decking beneath such addition shall be composed temporary wooden
platforms of modular ten-by-ten or eight-by-eight sectional decks
with a size limitation of total deck area in the amount of 400 square
feet.
(2) Additional front open decking, for access only, shall be permitted
subject to a 200-square-foot maximum. No construction shall be permitted
on said front open deck area. This shall be limited to the front addition
only.
(3) The footings upon which such deck areas sit shall be a post and girder
system (four-inch solid block buried at grade level). The deck area
shall be held down by hurricane straps attached to augers (helical
soil anchors) into the ground.
(4) The deck areas, as constructed, must be totally moveable.
(5) The deck area described in Subsection
K(1) above shall be permitted to contain a temporary Florida room addition expressly subject to the following criteria:
(a)
The temporary Florida room addition shall be a Craft Built,
Silvertop, DuraBuilt preengineered aluminum structure (or equal) which
shall be affixed to the deck area and trailer via tiedown/hurricane
anchors.
(b)
The Florida room addition must be totally movable.
(c)
No plumbing shall be permitted.
(d)
Only detachable wire molded electric on interior walls shall
be permitted.
(e)
Room size shall be limited to 400 square feet.
(f)
Roof-over structures are deemed to be permanent and are not
permitted.
(g)
Prior to construction, the applicant must obtain a zoning permit.
(h)
Prior to construction, the applicant must obtain a construction
permit for building, electrical and mechanical.
(6) Failure to obtain the requisite permits or to construct an addition
in compliance with the provisions of this section shall be deemed
to be a violation of this subsection subject to a fine of $250 per
day. After a violation notice has been issued, each day that the structure
has not been removed shall constitute a separate violation of this
subsection.
[Amended 9-6-1994 by Ord. No. 906-94]
A. The Township Health Officer, the Township Code Enforcement
Official and all inspectors of the Construction Official's office,
the Township Board of Health and the Township Committee or any authorized
officials are hereby authorized to make inspections to determine whether
any health laws and ordinances are being violated and may enter into
any campground to make any inspection.
B. Each licensee shall afford the township year-round
access to the campground, including but not limited to the providing
of a key to each and every gate in the campground, said key to be
provided annually at the time of application for license renewal,
so that the township will be assured access for police, fire and rescue
vehicles, as required.
[Amended 1-16-1992 by Ord. No. 804-92]
A. All campgrounds within the Township of Middle shall
be closed from Monday at 8:00 a.m. until Friday at 12:00 noon between
November 1 and March 1 of each year.
B. No licensee shall permit the occupancy of any campsite during the proscribed time periods as set forth in Subsection
A above, excepted as provided below.
C. Between November 1 and March 1, campgrounds may be
open during the following time periods:
(1) From Friday at 12:00 noon until Monday at 8:00 a.m.
(2) From Friday at 12:00 noon until Tuesday at 8:00 a.m.
during weekends containing any of the following holidays:
(3) From 12:00 noon on the Wednesday preceding Thanksgiving
until 8:00 a.m. on the Monday following Thanksgiving.
(4) From 12:00 noon on the Friday preceding Christmas
until 8:00 a.m. on January 2, unless January 2 falls on a Friday,
Saturday or Sunday, in which event closure shall occur at 8:00 a.m.
on the Monday next following January 2.
(5) With approval of the Township Committee, during any
weekday period during which a special excursion of limited duration
will be occupying the campground. Such special excursions may include
but not be limited to hunting clubs, Boy Scouts and the like.
Each licensee shall be solely responsible for
sanitation within its campground. Each licensee shall comply with
all state, county and municipal regulations concerning sanitation
and shall effectuate the removal and recycling of garbage and trash
from the campground at its own expense.
Any licensee found to be in violation of any
of the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to immediate revocation
of the license. The procedure for revocation shall be as follows:
A. Any township official determining that any licensee
is violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall file a complaint
with regard thereto with the Township Clerk.
B. The Township Clerk shall provide the licensee with
five days' notice to abate the violation.
C. In the event that the licensee has failed to take
all reasonable steps to abate the violation within the time provided
for abatement or any extension thereof, the Township Committee may
cause a hearing to suspend the license and close the campground for
good cause to be held within 15 days from the date a notice of intention
to hold a hearing is served upon the licensee, either personally or
by certified mail, return receipt requested. Each licensee shall annually
advise the Township Clerk of the address where said service may be
effectuated.
D. The licensee may appear personally or by attorney
and may present evidence to the Township Committee.
E. The Township Committee may suspend the license and
close the park until the violation is abated.
[Added 2-2-1998 by Ord. No. 1004-97]
A. There is hereby created a campground expansion license
in the Township of Middle.
B. Any holder of a Middle Township Campground License
may apply for a campground expansion license. Each campground license
existing prior to December 31, 1996 shall be entitled to one expansion
license.
C. A campground expansion license shall entitle the holder
to expand his/her pre-existing campground by a maximum of 200 additional
sites beyond the number of sites existing on December 31, 1997. In
no event shall the number of sites, both original and expanded, exceed
1,000 sites.
D. Application for a campground expansion license shall
be made on a form provided by the Clerk of the Township of Middle
and shall be submitted to the Clerk of the Township of Middle for
review and approval by the Township Committee of the Township of Middle.
The application fee shall be $2,500, payable as follows:
(1) Five hundred dollars upon filing of the application;
and
(2) Two thousand dollars upon receipt of all required
approvals from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
In the event that the applicant cannot obtain the required NJDEP approvals,
then the remaining $2,000 payment shall not be required.
E. The application shall be submitted to the Township.
The Township Committee may, in its sole discretion, approve or disapprove
the application.
F. Any approval by the Township Committee shall be expressly
conditioned upon the applicant's obtaining site plan approval for
the campground expansion from the Planning Board of the Township of
Middle.
G. Any successful applicant for campground expansion
license shall comply with all ordinances of the Township of Middle.
H. The holder of a campground expansion license shall
annually pay a fee of $1,000 for the renewal of said license. Additionally,
the holder of said license shall pay an annual fee of $10 per site.
The campground owner shall commence payment of the campground license
annual fee upon receipt of all required approvals from the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection.
I. No campground expansion license shall be issued to
any campground owner unless the campground in question is free of
all violations of federal, state, and county law, and local ordinance.
J. Any campground owner who shall engage in expansion
of his campground without compliance with the terms of this section
shall be in violation of this section. In such event, he shall be
subject to a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000, imprisonment
for a term not to exceed 90 days, and/or community service not to
exceed 180 days. Each day during which an illegal expansion exists
shall be deemed a separate and distinct violation of this section.
K. This section shall expire on June 30, 2003. No application
received by the township subsequent to that date shall be entertained,
and no campground expansion appurtenant to such an application shall
be allowed, it being the express intention of the Township of Middle
that the available window for expansion of campgrounds expire on June
30, 2003.