Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.12a
et seq. and N.J.S.A. 40:49-5.1, the New Jersey State Housing Code,
the April 1993 Regulations for Hotels and Multiple Dwellings, the
New Jersey Uniform Construction Code, and their respective amendments,
as may be approved and adopted subsequent thereto by the Department
of Community Affairs of the State of New Jersey, are hereby accepted,
adopted and established as a standard to be used as a guide in determining
whether dwellings in the Township of Harrison are safe, sanitary and
fit for human habitation and rental. Copies of said code and the regulations
and the amendments thereto of the New Jersey Housing Code are available
at the office of the Clerk of the Township of Harrison and are available
to all persons desiring to use and examine the same.
The New Jersey Housing Code, and its amendments
thereto, are for Harrison Township, amended by the addition of the
following sections on duties and responsibilities of owner, operator
and/or registered agent as pertains to the residential unit offered
for rent:
A. Maintenance of the exterior of the premises, free
of hazards and unsanitary conditions. The exterior of the premises,
and all structures thereon, shall be kept free of all nuisances, and
any hazard to the safety of occupants, pedestrians and any other persons
utilizing the premises, and free of unsanitary conditions, and any
of the foregoing shall be promptly removed and abated by the owner,
operator and/or registered agent of residential rental unit. It shall
be the absolute duty of the owner, operator and/or registered agent,
individually or jointly, to keep the premises free of hazards, which
include, but are not limited to the following:
(1) Refuse: brush, weeds, broken glass, stumps, roots,
obnoxious growth, filth, garbage, trash, waste and debris.
(2) Natural growth: dead and dying trees, limbs, stumps
and other natural growth by which rotting or deteriorating conditions
or storm damage constitute a hazard to persons in the vicinity thereof.
Trees, bushes and green growth shall be kept pruned and trimmed to
prevent such conditions.
(3) Overhanging objects: loose and overhanging objects
and accumulations of ice and snow which, by reason of location of
aboveground level, constitute a danger of falling on persons in the
vicinity thereof.
(4) Ground surface hazards or unsanitary conditions: holes,
excavations, breaks, projections, obstructions, icy conditions, uncleared
snow, excretions of pets and other animals on paths, walks, sidewalks,
curbs, driveways, parking lots and parking areas, or other parts of
the premises which are accessible to and used by persons on the premises.
All such holes and excavations shall be filled and repaired, and any
excrement or other waste shall be promptly removed.
(5) Brush and hedges near the roadway: Any and all brush,
hedges and similar plant life growing within 10 feet of any roadway
and/or within 25 feet of an intersection of two roadways shall be
cut to a height not more than 2 1/2 feet in elevation from ground
level. The purpose of this is to provide clear sight triangles for
motorists exiting from a driveway or road.
B. Responsibility. The occupant and any owner of any
rental unit shall be jointly and individually responsible for compliance
with all waste and recycling regulations of the Township of Harrison.
The owner, operator or registered agent shall require by the lease
terms that the tenant comply with such regulations. This shall not
release the owner, operator or registered agent from joint responsibility.
C. Storage of materials on premises. No storage of building
materials, commercial or industrial goods shall be permitted on residential
property unless allowed by a use variance, which may be the subject
of this chapter.
D. Signs. All signs permitted by reason of other regulations
or as a lawful nonconforming use shall be maintained in good repair
for purposes of protecting health and safety.
E. Obstructions. No obstructions shall be permitted in
any residential unit being offered for rental for human occupancy
so as to prevent access to and from the residential unit to the outside.
No obstruction shall be permitted to be placed outside of any rental
unit so as to impede the exit or entry to and from said building.
F. No residential unit being offered for rental shall
be permitted to be occupied unless the residential unit shall contain
operational windows, screens and operational doors, all of which must
be maintained in a safe fashion, so as to permit their use by occupants.
G. No residential unit shall be offered for rental unless
the following systems are in satisfactory operating order:
(1) The heating and air-conditioning systems. (Air conditioning
only to apply if installed).
(3) The plumbing system, including domestic water, or
public sewage and potable water supply.
H. No owner, operator and/or registered agent of any
residential unit which may be covered by this chapter shall be rented
to a new occupant without first notifying the Housing Officer of the
Township of Harrison.
I. In the event of an agreement, in writing, when the
new tenant or owner of the rental unit has agreed to comply with the
requirements of this chapter, as a condition of rental, the Township
of Harrison shall permit the new tenant or owner of the rental unit
to complete the repairs for purposes of complying with this chapter,
but shall not permit the residential unit to be occupied until such
time as a certificate of occupancy has been issued by the Housing
Officer of the Township of Harrison.
The Township of Harrison shall appoint a person
to exercise the powers proscribed in this chapter, by resolution duly
adopted, at any time subsequent to the adoption of this chapter, by
designating one or more public officers, which may include the Construction
Code Official, the Building Inspector, or the designated Housing Officer,
and Board of Health, for the enforcement of the provisions of this
chapter.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
BASEMENT
That portion of a building which is partly above grade, and
has at least 1/2 its ceiling height above grade. Any sleeping rooms
in a basement shall comply with the emergency escape section of the
aforesaid New Jersey Uniform Construction Code.
CELLAR
That portion of a building which is partly or completely
below grade, and has more than 1/2 its ceiling height below grade.
FARM LABOR HOUSING
Is specifically excluded from any jurisdiction pertaining
to this chapter.
HABITABLE ROOM
A room or enclosed floor space within a dwelling unit used
or designed to be used for living, sleeping, cooking or eating purposes,
excluding bathrooms, water closet compartments, laundries, pantries,
foyers or communicating corridors, closets and storage spaces.
OCCUPANT
Any individual who lives or sleeps in, or has actual possession
of, a residential unit.
OWNER, OPERATOR or REGISTERED AGENT
The applicant, owner, operator or registered agent shall
be an individual or organization who shall be responsible for receiving
notice of violation of this chapter, who exercises control of a rental
facility, buildings and/or structures, and/or fulfills the responsibilities
of managing, handling or dealing with a rental facility, for the purpose
of correcting such violations. That person shall be described as a
"registered agent," if not the owner or direct operator of the rental
facility. The person designated as registered agent must be an individual
or a responsible representative, who shall be a resident of the Township
of Harrison, who may be contacted in the event of an emergency, or
be capable of being served in the Township of Harrison of any notice
required under this chapter. An owner/operator may also be a registered
agent for purposes of this section. The name, address and telephone
number of such registered agent, owner or operator shall be filed
with the Township of Harrison, as provided for in this chapter.
RENTAL FACILITY
Every building, group of buildings or a portion thereof consisting
of a dwelling, apartment and/or one or more rooms.
RESIDENTIAL UNIT
A room or group of rooms or any part thereof located within
a building, forming a single habitable unit with facilities which
are used or designed to be used for living, sleeping, cooking and
eating.
The Township of Harrison may, by resolution
of the Township Committee, direct the abatement of a nuisance, to
correct a defect, or to require the premises to be placed in such
proper condition so as to comply with the requirements of this chapter,
and that the costs thereof, upon the certification to the Township
Committee by the Housing Office, of the amount of such costs, shall
be charged as a lien against the subject lands and premises, and shall
be added to and shall become a form of taxes next to be assessed and
levied upon such lands and premises, to bear interest at the same
rate as taxes, and shall be collected and enforced in the same manner
as real estate taxes.
The Township Committee of the Township of Harrison
is hereby authorized to prepare such forms and documents as may be
necessary from time to time in order to implement and enforce the
provisions of this chapter.