[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Council of the Village of Ridgewood 8-23-1977
by Ord. No. 1647. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
There is hereby established in the Village of Ridgewood
a State Uniform Construction Code enforcing agency to be known as the "Department
of Building and Inspections," consisting of a Construction Official, Building
Subcode Official, Plumbing Subcode Official, Electrical Subcode Official,
Fire Protection Subcode Official and such other subcode officials for such
additional subcodes as the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs,
State of New Jersey, shall hereafter adopt as part of the State Uniform Construction
Code. Said officials shall be those department personnel designated by the
Village Manager. The Construction Official shall be the chief administrator
of the enforcing agency. For purposes of providing the required services of
any of the subcode officials mandated hereinabove, the Village Manager shall
have the authority, from time to time, to designate personnel from such other
departments of the Village of Ridgewood to the Department of Building and
Inspections who shall thereupon be subject to the procedures and policies
of the enforcing agency and be primarily responsible to the Construction Official.
B.
Each official position created in Subsection A hereof shall be filled by a person qualified for such position pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., as amended, and N.J.A.C. 5:23, provided that in lieu of any particular subcode official, an on-site inspection agency may be retained by contract pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:23. More than one such official position may be held by the same person, provided that such person is qualified pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., and N.J.A.C. 5:23 to hold each such position.
C.
The public shall have the right to do business with the
enforcing agency at one office location except for emergencies and unforeseen
or unavoidable circumstances.
A.
The Building Code Board of Appeals heretofore established
by resolution dated May 11, 1976, is hereby designated the Construction Board
of Appeals to hear appeals from decisions by the enforcing agency. Such Board
shall consist of five members. At least one Board member shall be a registered
architect or licensed professional engineer of building construction experience,
and at least one Board member shall be as qualified as a plumbing subcode
official and one as qualified as an electrical subcode official. No more than
two Board members shall be selected from the same business or profession.
Each Board member shall have had at least three years' experience in construction,
design or supervision as a licensed engineer or registered architect or, in
the alternative, five years' experience in construction, design or supervision
as an architect or engineer with a bachelor's degree in architecture or engineering,
respectively, from an accredited institution of higher education or, as a
further alternative, supervision as a journeyman in a construction trade or
as a construction contractor, subcontractor or inspector.
B.
The Village Manager shall appoint the Board members and
any alternative members. For the members first appointed, the Village Manager
shall designate the appointees' terms so that one shall be appointed for a
term of one year, one for a term of two years, one for a term of three years
and two for terms of four years. At the expiration of such terms and thereafter,
appointments shall be made for terms of four years. Vacancies shall be filled
for the unexpired term. The Village Manager shall appoint such number of alternates
as may be appropriate or terms not to exceed four years; or may, in the alternative,
appoint alternates on a case-by-case basis. No regular or alternative Board
member may be a member of the enforcing agency, the decisions of which are
subject to the review of the Board.
C.
Neither regular nor alternate members of the Construction
Board of Appeals shall receive any compensation for services rendered.
[Amended 2-14-1978 by Ord. No. 1663; 2-26-1980
by Ord. No. 1746; 1-12-1982 by Ord.
No. 1833; 2-28-1984 by Ord. No. 1916; 5-7-1984
by Ord. No. 1924; 2-12-1985 by Ord.
No. 1972; 9-9-1986 by Ord. No. 2061; 4-12-1988
by Ord. No. 2147; 12-12-1989 by Ord.
No. 2232; 10-13-1992 by Ord. No. 2375]
A.
The fee for a construction permit and other related permits shall be as set forth in Chapter 145, Fees, and shall be paid before the permit is issued.
B.
The fee for plan review, as set forth in said Chapter 145, Fees, shall be paid before the plans are reviewed. The amount paid for said fee shall be credited toward the amount of the fee to be charged for the construction permit.
C.
In order to provide for the training, certifications and technical support programs required by the Uniform Construction Code Act and the regulations, the enforcing agency shall collect, in addition to the fees specified above, a surcharge fee as set forth in Chapter 145, Fees. Said surcharge fee shall be remitted to the Bureau of Housing Inspection, Department of Community Affairs as required by the state.
D.
No person shall be charged a construction permit surcharge
fee or enforcing agency fee for any construction, reconstruction, alteration
or improvement designed and undertaken solely to promote accessibility by
disabled persons to an existing private structure or any of the facilities
contained therein. For the purposes of this subsection, "disabled person"
means a person who has the total and permanent inability to engage in any
substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable, physical
or mental impairment, including blindness, and shall include but not be limited
to any resident of this state who is disabled pursuant to the Federal Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 416), or the Federal Railroad Retirement
Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. § 231 et seq.) or is rated as having a 60%
disability or higher pursuant to any federal law administered by the United
States Veterans' Act. For purposes of this subsection, "blindness" means central
visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with the use of a correcting
lens. An eye which is accompanied by a limitation in the fields of vision
such that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle no greater
than 20° shall be considered as having a central visual acuity of 20/200
or less.
[Added 10-13-1998 by Ord. No. 2641]
[Amended 10-13-1992 by Ord. No. 2375]
The enforcing agency shall report as required by the state the total
amount of the surcharge fee collected in the fiscal year. In the fiscal year
in which the regulations first become effective, said report shall be for
the third and fourth quarters only.
[Amended 10-13-1992 by Ord. No. 2375]
To control types of construction based on the inherent fire hazard by
reason of the use groups of buildings, there are hereby established fire district
limits to include all areas in which congested business, commercial and public
assembly use may be housed. Such areas shall be designated as "within the
fire limits" and shall be bounded and described as being all lands within
the B-1, B-2 and B-3 Retail Business Districts, C Commercial District, OB-1
and OB-2 Office Building Districts, R-4 Garden Apartment Residence District,
and R-5 Multifamily Residence District as such areas are now or may be from
time to time shown on the Zoning Map of the Village of Ridgewood. In addition,
all regulations of the fire district limits regarding construction materials,
procedures and safety requirements shall apply to all schools, churches, hospitals
and municipal buildings, in no matter what zone the same may be located.
