[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Egg Harbor 12-9-1987 by Ord. No. 61-1987. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The place where a person has a true, fixed and permanent
home and principal establishment and to which, whenever absent therefrom,
there exists an intention to return.
The holder of the license to conduct a motel business.
A building or buildings containing multiple units of dwelling
space where sleeping or dwelling accommodations are available to transient
occupants.
A room or suite of rooms in a motel occupied or designed
for temporary living or sleeping purposes and containing closet space
and a bathroom.
Actual and physical occupancy of a dwelling space by persons
with intent to remain indefinitely and to establish a domicile therein.
Any person who actually and physically occupies a dwelling
with an intent to remain indefinitely and to establish a domicile
therein.
A person physically occupying a motel unit and having a principal
residence elsewhere.
Permanent residency at motels is prohibited.
Motel units shall be rented only for the use
of transient occupants and shall not be used for occupancy on any
permanent basis. No such occupant shall be deemed to be a resident
therein. Nothing in this section shall apply to an employee of the
licensee required to live on the premises, provided that there is
compliance with this chapter and all other laws, statutes, regulations
and ordinances.
There shall be a minimum usable floor area of
50 square feet for each occupant of a motel unit. In motel units provided
with cooking and eating facilities by the licensee, there shall be
a minimum usable floor area for the initial occupant of 150 square
feet and 100 square feet of additional space for each additional occupant.
These minimum requirements are subject to the proviso that children
under the age of two shall not be considered additional occupants.
A.
Each licensee shall maintain on the motel premises
a complete register of all rentals therein which lists, by unit number,
the true name and permanent address of each person to occupy that
unit, the date of arrival and the date when the occupant or occupants
of each motel unit quit and surrender the same.
B.
No person shall occupy and no licensee shall permit
any person to occupy any motel unit on the licensed premises unless
each person or the head of the party who is to occupy the motel unit
shall first display to the licensee or to a duly authorized agent
or employee of the licensee in charge of the register written evidence
of this identity and residence.
C.
The register shall be kept and preserved by the licensee
for three years and shall be available on request at any time to any
code enforcement officer of the Township.
Cooking and the use of cooking appliances shall
be prohibited in all motel units, unless the licensee has specifically
equipped the unit with cooking facilities.
The keeping of animals/pets in motel units or
on motel premises by guests is prohibited, unless the licensee expressly
permits such animals/pets on the motel premises; provided, however,
that such animals/pets shall not cause unreasonable noise, noxious
or foul odors nor be the cause of any sickness hazardous to public
health.
[Amended 4-12-2006 by Ord. No. 20-2006]
Violation of any provision of this chapter shall,
upon conviction thereof, be punished by a minimum fine of $100 or
a maximum of $2,000 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90
days or by a period of community service not exceeding 90 days. Each
and every violation shall be considered a separate violation. Any
person who is convicted of violating the provisions of this chapter
within one year of the date of a previous violation and who was fined
for the previous violation may be sentenced by the Court to an additional
fine as a repeat offender. The additional fine imposed as a repeat
offender shall not be less than the minimum or exceed the maximum
fine provided herein, and same shall be calculated separately from
the fine imposed for the violation of this chapter.
A.
Any license to conduct a motel business issued by
the Township may be revoked by the Township Committee after notice
and a hearing for any knowing violation of this code by the licensee
or a duly authorized agent or employee of the licensee in charge of
the motel operation.
B.
Notice of a hearing for the revocation of a license
to conduct a motel business shall be given in writing by the Township
Clerk. The notice shall specifically set forth the grounds upon which
the proposed revocation is based and the time and place of the hearing.
It shall be served by mailing a copy to the licensee at his last known
address by certified mail, return receipt requested, at least five
days prior to the date set for the hearing.
C.
At the hearing, the licensee shall have the right
to appear and be heard, to be represented by an attorney, to present
witnesses on his own behalf, to cross-examine opposing witnesses and
to have a permanent record made of the proceedings at his own expense.
The Township Committee shall revoke or suspend the license if it is
satisfied by a preponderance of the evidence that the licensee is
guilty of the acts charged.
D.
The Township Committee may issue another license to
conduct a motel business to a person whose license has been revoked
or denied as provided in this section if, after a hearing, it is satisfied
by clear and convincing evidence that the acts which led to the revocation
will not occur again; otherwise, no person whose license to conduct
a motel business has been revoked nor any person acting for him, directly
or indirectly, shall be issued another license to carry on the same
activity.
[Added 7-15-2020 by Ord. No. 9-2020]
The Township Committee hereby find and adopt, as if set forth
more fully herein, the fact assertions of the "whereas" clauses of
this article, as their findings of fact.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said whereas clauses are included in the full
copy of Ord. No. 9-2020, on file in the Township offices.
A.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the Township
Code, it shall be unlawful for an owner, lessor, sub-lessor, any other
person(s) or entity(ies) with possessory or use right(s) in a dwelling
unit, their principals, partner or shareholders, or their agents,
employees, representatives and other persons(s) or entity(ies), acting
in concert or a combination thereof, to receive or obtain actual or
anticipated consideration for soliciting, advertising, offering, and/or
permitting, allowing, or failing to discontinue the use or occupancy
of any dwelling unit, as defined herein, for a period of 30 days or
less.
B.
Nothing in this article will prevent formation of an otherwise lawful
occupancy of a dwelling unit for a rental period of more than 30 days.
However, rental of a room or a portion of the premises, which includes
accessory structures, recreational vehicles, tents or any similar
structures, for any term is not permitted.
Notwithstanding the restriction set forth in § 155-11, minimum rentals of seven days are permitted in the West Atlantic City section of the Township as well as the neighborhoods of Anchorage Poynte and Seaview Harbor during the period of May 15 through October 15.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any form of solicitation, promotion, and communication for
marketing, used to solicit, encourage, persuade, or manipulate viewers,
readers, or listeners into contracting for goods and/or services in
violation of this article, as same may be viewed through various media,
including but not limited to, newspapers, magazines, flyers, handbills,
pamphlets, commercials, radio, direct mail, internet websites, or
text or other electronic messages for the purpose of establishing
occupancies or uses of rental property, for consideration, which are
prohibited by this article.
Soliciting, charging, demanding, receiving or accepting any
legally recognized form of consideration including a promise or benefit,
a quid-pro-quo, rent, fees, other form of payment, or thing of value.
Any structure, or portion thereof, whether furnished or unfurnished,
which is occupied in whole or in part, or intended, arranged or designed
to be occupied, for sleeping, dwelling, cooking, gathering and/or
entertaining, as a residential occupancy, by one or more persons.
This definition includes an apartment, condominium, building, co-operative,
converted space, or portions thereof, that is offered to use, made
available for use, or is used for accommodations, lodging, cooking,
sleeping, gathering and/or entertaining of occupants and/or guest(s),
for consideration, for a period of 30 days or less.
Constitutes a family-type situation, involving one or more
persons, living together that exhibit the kind of stability, permanency
and functional lifestyle equivalent to that of a traditional family
unit, as further described in the applicable reported and unreported
decisions of the New Jersey Superior Court.
Any individual using, inhabiting, living, gathering, entertaining,
being entertained as a guest, or sleeping in a dwelling unit, or portion
thereof, or having other permission or possessory right(s) within
a dwelling unit.
Any person(s) or entity(ies), association, limited liability
company, corporation, or partnership, or any combination, who legally
use, possess, own, lease, sub-lease or license(including an operator,
principal, shareholder, director, agent, or employee, individually
or collectively) that has charge, care, control, or participates in
the expenses and/or profit of a dwelling unit pursuant to a written
or unwritten agreement, rental, lease, license, use, occupancy agreement
or any other agreement.
An individual, firm, corporation, association, partnership,
limited liability company, association, entity, and any person(s)
and/or entity(ies) acting in concert or any combination therewith.
The lease or rental, for the purposes, of any amenity, feature,
accessory use, or appurtenance to or associated with a dwelling is
prohibited, whether it be the owner or tenant of a property.
[Added 2-15-2023 by Ord. No. 7-2023]
The use of a dwelling unit by an occupant(s).
The residential occupancy of an otherwise lawful and lawfully
occupied dwelling unit for a period of 30 days or less by any person
who is a member of the housekeeping unit of the owner, without consideration,
such as house guests, is permitted.
The lease or rental of any dwelling for commercial or corporate
purposes is prohibited.
The print, electronic, or internet advertisement of any rental
that is prohibited or fails to comply with provisions of this article
or any other applicable provision of the Township Code is prohibited.
[Amended 8-17-2022 by Ord. No. 37-2022]
A.
Any owner, lessor, sublessor, any other person(s) or entity(ies)
with possessory or use right(s) in a dwelling unit who chooses to
rent their dwelling unit in accordance with this article must register
the dwelling unit with the Division of Inspections annually and obtain
a certificate of continued occupancy (CCO) on an annual basis.
B.
The fee for annual registration shall be $50 and the fee for the
CCO shall be $200, with completed application on the Township website.
A.
The provisions of this article shall be enforced by the Building
Code Official, Fire Official, other Sub-Code or Code Official, Zoning
Officer or the Police Department as their jurisdiction may arise,
including legal counsel for the Township or other persons designated
by the Township Administrator, to issue municipal civil infractions
directing alleged violators of this article and/or to appear in court
or file civil complaints.
B.
A violation of this article is hereby declared to be a public nuisance,
a nuisance per se, and is hereby further found and declared to be
offensive to the public health, safety and welfare.
C.
Violation of any provision of this article shall, upon conviction
thereof, be punished by a minimum fine of $200 or a maximum of $2,000
or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days or by a period
of community service not exceeding 90 days. Each and every violation
shall be considered a separate violation. Each and every day a violation
of this article persists shall constitute a separate violation. Any
person who is convicted of violating the provisions of this article
within one year of the date of a previous violation and who was fined
for the previous violation may be sentenced by the court to an additional
fine as a repeat offender. The additional fine imposed as a repeat
offender shall not be less than the minimum or exceed the maximum
fine provided herein, and same shall be calculated separately from
the fine imposed for the violation of this article.
[Amended 2-15-2023 by Ord. No. 7-2023]
D.
The penalty imposed herein shall be in addition to any and all other
remedies that may accrue under any other law, including, but not limited
to, eviction proceedings and/or injunction, reasonable attorney's
fees or other fees and costs, in the Township's Municipal Court or
the Superior Court of New Jersey, or in such other Court or tribunal
of competent jurisdiction, by either summary disposition or by zoning
or construction code municipal proceeding.
