This chapter shall be known as "Beach and Dune
Protection Ordinance."
As used in this chapter the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
ACCRETION
Includes either natural or artificial accretion. "Natural
accretion" is the buildup of land, solely by action of the forces
of nature, on a beach by deposition of waterborne or airborne material.
"Artificial accretion" is a similar buildup of land by reason of an
act of man, such as the accretion formed by a groin, breakwater or
beachfill, deposited by mechanical means.
BACKSHORE
That zone of the shore or beach lying between the foreshore
and dune area and normally acted upon by waves only during severe
storms, especially when combined with exceptionally high waters.
BARRIER ISLAND
A land form consisting of single or multiple elongated sand
ridges, dunes, vegetated zones and marsh terraces rising above mean
sea level, running generally parallel to the coast, but separated
from it by lagoons or inlets.
BEACH
The zone of unconsolidated material that extends landward
from the low-water line to the place where there is a marked change
in the material of physiographical form, i.e., dune or bulkhead. It
includes the foreshore and backshore.
BEACH ACCESS PLAN
An augmented version of the Dune and Shore Management Plan
delineating existing vehicular and pedestrian accessways to be either
maintained or closed and restored. This plan also delineates dune
fields to be restored or reconstructed due to elevation, location,
vegetative condition or absence of dune formation.
BERM
A nearly horizontal part of the beach, or backshore formed
by the deposit of material by wave actions.
BULKHEAD
A structure or partition constructed of timber, sheet piling,
rock, etc., designed to retain or prevent sliding of the land or protect
the uplands against erosion due to wave action.
DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION
Any application made under Chapter
198, Land Use, or any other law to the Planning Board or Zoning Board of the City of Brigantine, for site plan approval, for subdivision approval or for variances of any kind or type or any application to the Construction Code Official of the City of Brigantine for a building permit.
[Added 4-2-1986 by Ord. No. 7-1986]
DEVELOPMENT RESTRICTION LINE
An artificial boundary delineating the various districts
and area contained within the Dune and Shoreline Management Plan and
the developed community. This line shows the extreme limit of allowable
development along the shore prior to intrusion into the existing dune
fields and beaches.
DUNE AND SHORELINE MANAGEMENT PLAN
A topographic survey of the dune fields and beaches delineating
the following districts: Dune Maintenance District, Dune Reconstruction
District, Dune Restoration District, development restriction line,
special areas (City and private) and least tern nesting area.
DUNE AREA
The area actually or normally occupied by dunes. For purposes
of this chapter, it shall be construed to include its actual dimensions.
DUNE CREST
The point or line where the dune's highest elevation is located.
DUNE LINE
A row of dunes, which may blend in with a berm or berms,
which blend in with each other, are roughly parallel to the ocean
and serve as a protective barrier against the elements.
DUNE MAINTENANCE DISTRICT
An artificial area delineating dune fields containing two
or more dune ridges and having a greater width than 400 feet. The
dune surface is stabilized by natural vegetation.
DUNE RECONSTRUCTION DISTRICT
An artificial area delineating a discontinuous dune field
or beach area without dunes, poorly developed, unstable and less than
75 feet in width.
DUNE RESTORATION DISTRICT
An artificial area delineating a dune field containing one
or more dune ridges which may be discontinuous between the beach and
upland structures and having a width of less than 300 feet.
DUNES
Systems or formations of drifting windblown material, usually
sand, which are upland of the beach and oriented roughly parallel
to the shoreline. These formations may be natural or of human origin
and are usually stabilized with natural vegetation. The term "dune"
includes all areas between the inland limits of the dry sandy beach
and the foot of the most inland slope. Dunes include the following
subcategories:
D.
ARTIFICIAL DUNESAccumulation of sediment in dune form which have been built by any nonnatural process such as bulldozing or sand fencing.
F.
DUNE FIELDSInclude but are not limited to any combination of dune types previously defined.
EROSION
The wearing away of land by the action of natural forces;
on a beach, the carrying away of beach materials by wave action, tidal
currents, littoral currents or by deflation.
FORESHORE
The part of the shore lying between the crest of the seaward
berm and the ordinary low-water mark and that is ordinarily traversed
by the uprush and backrush of the waves.
GROIN
A shore protection structure built (usually perpendicular
to the shoreline) to trap littoral drift or reduce erosion of the
shore. A "groin field or system" is a series of "groins" acting together
to protect a section of beach.
JETTY
A structure extending into a body of water and designed to
prevent shoaling of a channel by littoral materials and to direct
and confine a stream or tidal flow.
LEAST TERN NESTING AREA
A special area overlaying the Dune Maintenance District which
designates the nesting habitat of the least tern, between the backshore
and foredune, to be protected from human disturbance and encroachment.
MEAN SEA LEVEL
Includes the term "sea level" and refers to the 1929 sea
level datum as established by the United States Coast and Geodetic
Survey.
NATURAL VEGETATION
Includes the terms "native vegetation" and "indigenous vegetation."
Specifically, it shall mean such plants as beach grass (ammophila
brevigulata), dusty miller (artemisia stelleriana), hudsonia (hudsonia
tomentosa), sea rocket (cakile endentula), seaside goldenrod (solidago
sempervirens), bayberry (myrica pensylvanica) or beach plum (prunus
maritma) which normally grow or may be planted on the slopes of dunes
or behind them; no distinction is made as to how such plants are introduced
into their locations.
PERMIT
Specific permission granted to an applicant to carry out the activities described in any application brought pursuant to §
101-7 of this chapter, first made to the City Engineer of this City. No permit shall be effective unless formal permission for the requested activity is granted by resolution or by ordinance of the City of Brigantine.
[Added 4-2-1986 by Ord. No. 7-1986]
SAND FENCE
Includes the term "snow fence." A form of barricade established
in a line or pattern along the backshore or within the dune field
for the express purpose of accumulating sand to aid the formation
of dunes. The sand fence shall be a picket type, i.e., a commercial
type of light, wooden fence, four feet in height, held together by
wire and secured by posts. Alternate forms of barricades may be utilized
only with the approval of the City Engineer.
[Amended 5-5-1982 by Ord. No. 20-1982]
SLOPE, LEEWARD
The face or surface of the dune or berm going from its crest
or plateau away from the ocean.
SPECIAL AREA
An artificial area either overlaying or adjoining dune districts
delineating properties in either public or private ownership warranting
special consideration in either future development or assessment.
No development application shall be made for development of privately
owned property designated as, or claimed to be a special area, without
an application being first made to the Board of Commissioners of the
City of Brigantine a permit to develop the same area.
[Amended 4-2-1986 by Ord. No. 7-1986]
Within the districts as delineated within the
Dune and Shoreline Management Plan, all construction activities are
prohibited, with the following exceptions:
A. Shore protection projects such as construction of
bulkheads, jetties or groins, as approved and/or undertaken by the
City; Bureau of Shore Protection, Division of Coastal Resources, New
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection; or Department of Army,
Corps of Engineers.
B. Dune management programs designed to either maintain,
restore or reconstruct the existing dune fields, such as supplemental
plantings of natural vegetation, placement of sand fencing, construction
of artificial dunes of berms or any other programs that may be approved
by the City.
The City may erect or require the construction
of fencing in and along the districts delineated by the Dune and Shoreline
Management Plan as may be necessary to accomplish the purposes of
this chapter and provide or require suitable markings to identify
the same. Persons may enter such areas only to carry out the purposes
of this chapter. Where walkways or boardwalks exist, the dune shall
be suitably bordered with fences to prevent damage to the dunes or
berms which they cross.
[Amended 12-28-1992 by Ord. No. 28-1992]
A cash bond of not less than $1,000 shall be deposited by the applicant at the time of issuance of a permit. The actual amount of said bond shall be determined by the City Engineer, based upon the scope of work. An engineering fee as set forth in Chapter
210, Mercantile Businesses, Article
II, Fees Schedule, shall be paid to the City to defray the cost of engineering inspections. The bond shall be refunded upon the City Engineer's approval of the work which has been done. If the work has not been done in compliance with the specifications contained in §
101-11 hereof, the City shall have the right to have the work done as so required, charging the cost thereof against the bond. Any portion of the deposit remaining unused for such purpose shall be returned to the applicant. No interest will accrue on funds deposited as a performance guaranty.
Specifications for moving or displacement of
sand shall be as follows:
A. The applicant or the applicant's contractor shall,
in the process of performing work on the dune, maintain the elevation
of the dune as established by the City Engineer.
B. The applicant shall be required to preserve all existing
dune grass during the course of any construction work, removal or
displacement of sand within the dune field. The reestablishment or
transplanting of dune grasses shall be required in all disturbed areas.
These grasses shall be American beach grass (ammophila breviligulata)
and planted in conformance with the current standards of the United
States Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service. Reference
is made to Technical Note NJ-25, Guide for Dune Protection, New Jersey,
dated October 1978.
[Amended 5-5-1982 by Ord. No. 20-1982]
C. The applicant shall place a one-inch mat of salt hay
over the entire area of the portion of the dune which has been disturbed
during construction.
D. Where required, in lieu of or in addition to the planting
of dune grasses, the applicant shall install sand fencing. Said fencing
shall be set in a parallel row or rows in the backshore area and along
the foredune according to the specification of the City Engineer.
[Amended 5-5-1982 by Ord. No. 20-1982]
E. The applicant shall notify the City Engineer 72 hours
prior to the start of any construction or work.
F. The applicant will be notified within 15 workdays
from the date of the application or when a completed application was
submitted as to whether a permit will be granted or denied.
G. Where, by the action of high winds and/or tides, sand
is blown or washed upon the lands, including street ends, lying westwardly
from the dune line, said sand shall be placed only on the backshore
area.
[Amended 5-5-1982 by Ord. No. 20-1982]
[Amended 5-5-1982 by Ord. No. 20-1982]
This chapter shall take effect immediately upon
final passage and publication as provided by law but shall not be
deemed to affect any project for which Planning Board approval has
been previously granted.
[Added 10-3-2018 by Ord.
No. 23-2018]
There is hereby established in the City of Brigantine a dune
vegetation maintenance permit (DVMP) which certain property owners
who qualify pursuant to this chapter may seek application for and
receive from the City. Such permits will be issued by the Office of
the City Engineer of the City of Brigantine.
[Added 10-3-2018 by Ord.
No. 23-2018]
A. A private property owner may apply for a dune vegetation maintenance
permit if such property owner owns property that is consistent with
one of the following categories:
(1) The property owner owns property that is contiguous to the dunes;
(2) The property owner is an owner of property, which property is contiguous
to City-owned facilities and which facilities are contiguous to the
City-owned dunes;
(3) The property owner owns property that is on a public right-of-way,
which public right-of-way is contiguous to dunes directly across the
right-of-way from the private property;
(4) A property owner who owns property directly across the public right-of-way
contiguous to a City-owned parking lot, which is then contiguous to
the City-owned dunes.
B. Such property owners shall make application to the City for the dune
vegetation maintenance permit through the Office of the City Engineer
on a form provided by the City Engineer or his or her designee.
[Amended 2-20-2019 by Ord. No. 2-2019]
A. All applications for a dune vegetation maintenance permit are to
be reviewed by the City Engineer, or his or her designee, who shall
review such application, and as appropriate, approve such application,
it being the intention of this chapter that the Engineer, or his designee,
shall have final approval authority.
B. The approval authority provided to the office of the City Engineer is herein provided for notwithstanding any other section of Chapter
101 of the City Code.
C. The City Engineer's office shall be notified 48 hours prior
to the start of proposed work. Work cannot begin on-site until there
has been an on-site meeting between the City Engineer, or his or her
designee, and the contractor employed by the owner. Upon conclusion
of the work, the office of the City Engineer will be advised and the
City Engineer's office will perform a final inspection and close
out.
At the time of the filing of the application for dune vegetation
maintenance permit, the property owner shall pay a fee to the City
in an amount provided for on the permit application form. Specific
additional fees may be imposed by the City for certain tasks and maintenance
functions, which additional fees shall be identified and provided
for in the application.