Upon filing of the application with the requisite
fee and upon written request of the Mercantile Tax Collector or City
Clerk, the Chief of Police shall ascertain if the applicant has any
criminal record and shall report, in writing, affirmatively or negatively
thereon within 14 days after said request is made, indicating in the
report his recommendation on the granting of the license and giving
the reasons therefor.
[Amended 12-13-1988 by Ord. No. 19-88[1]]
A.
After filing of the application and the requisite
fee with the Mercantile Tax Collector, the City Clerk shall undertake
to make any investigation necessary and shall indicate, in writing,
approval or disapproval of a license application within 30 days after
the application is filed with the City Clerk.
B.
If approved, the license shall be issued forthwith
in the name of the City Clerk. If disapproved, the Mercantile Tax
Collector or City Clerk shall forthwith notify the applicant and the
City Council, in writing, of the disapproval and the reason therefor,
and the applicant shall have 10 days after receipt of the notice of
disapproval to appeal from the decision of the Mercantile Tax Collector.
After due hearing and notice, together with an opportunity to be heard,
the City Council of the City of Northfield can affirm or reverse the
decision of the Mercantile Tax Collector. The decision of the City
Council shall be final.
Applications for renewal of a mercantile license
shall follow the same procedure as outlined in the preceding sections
for approval of original applications.
When a license has been issued and the activity
for which said license has been obtained is conducted at a fixed location
or from a vehicle, the license shall be prominently displayed at the
location or on the vehicle. In all other cases, the licensee shall
have the license in his possession at all times and display it upon
request of any police officer or any person with whom he is doing
business. It shall be the duty of any police officer of the City of
Northfield to require any person seen peddling, soliciting, canvassing
or distributing, and who is not known by such officer to be duly licensed,
to produce his peddler's, solicitor's, canvasser's or distributor's
license, as the case may be, and to enforce the provisions of this
chapter against a person found to be violating same.
No license provided for by this chapter shall
be transferred from one person to another person, and no license shall
cover any other place of business than for which it was issued.
[Amended 12-13-1988 by Ord. No. 19-88[1]]
A duplicate license may be issued by the City
Clerk to replace any license previously issued, which license has
been lost, stolen, defaced or destroyed, without any willful conduct
on the part of the licensee, upon the filing by the licensee of an
affidavit sworn before a notary public of the State of New Jersey
attesting to such fact and upon payment to the City Clerk (Municipal
Tax Collector) of a sum of $10.
No rebate or refund of any license fee or any
part thereof shall be made for any reason, regardless of retirement,
nonuse of such license or change of location or business or as a result
of fire or other accident or casualty rendering the use of the license
ineffective.
[Amended 12-13-1988 by Ord. No. 19-88]
Any application for a license filed on or after
January 2 of each licensing year shall be issued, upon approval, at
50% of the annual fee, with the exception of charges for special sales,
which will still result in assessment of the full charge. Any licenses
issued at 50% of the annual fee shall be issued only so long as the
application is filed for a new business or for a business which has
been acquired by a new owner not in excess of 20 days prior to January
1 of the licensing year. This section shall not apply to contractors'
licenses.
A.
It shall
be the responsibility of the licensee under this chapter, in order
to continually and continuously comply with the provisions of the
license, to:
(1)
Permit all reasonable inspections of his business.
(2)
Permit access to the licensed premises at all reasonable
times by the Mercantile Tax Collector, City Clerk, Building Department
or accredited agents, assistants or representatives of the City, including
but not limited to the Police Department, in the enforcement of the
laws of this City and this state.
[Amended 12-13-1988 by Ord. No. 19-88[1]]
(3)
Ascertain that at all times the licensee complied
with all laws and regulations applicable to such licensed business.
(4)
Avoid all improper or forbidden, unlawful or unnecessary
practices, businesses or conditions which do or may affect public
health, morals or welfare.
(5)
Refrain from operating a licensed business on premises
after expiration of the license and during the period when the license
is revoked or suspended.
(6)
Post and maintain his license upon his licensed premises
in a place where it may be seen at all times. However, in the case
of cigarette vending machines, jukeboxes, vending machines and mechanical
amusement devices, all licenses provided for them shall be posted
permanently and conspicuously at the location of the machine or device
in the premises where same is to be operated or maintained to be operated
and shall have affixed thereto an insignia delivered for use therewith
upon the outside of same so that it may be seen at all times.
B.
Failure to comply with the laws or ordinances after
due notice and opportunity to be heard may result in revocation of
such license.
A.
Upon sale of any business required to be licensed
by the provisions of this chapter, the seller shall give notice to
the City of Northfield, through the City Clerk, of the intended transfer,
together with the identity of the purchaser by name and address and
the date of settlement. This information shall be provided within
30 days of the date of settlement or, where an agreement of sale is
executed less than 30 days prior to settlement, the information shall
be provided within five days of execution of the agreement of sale.
B.
It shall be the responsibility of the purchaser of
the business, regardless of the manner or method of acquisition, to
apply for a mercantile license within 20 days of date of settlement.
Failure to do so shall be deemed to be a violation of this chapter.
