[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Caldwell as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-26-1974 by Ord. No. 569-74]
The Borough Administrator is hereby designated
as the public officer to exercise the powers prescribed by this article.
[Amended 7-13-1999 by Ord. No. 1073-99]
Whenever a petition is filed with the public
officer by a public authority or by at least five residents of the
Borough charging that any building is unfit for human habitation or
occupancy or use or whenever it appears to the public officer (on
his own motion) that any building is unfit for human habitation or
occupancy or use, the public officer shall, if his preliminary investigation
discloses a basis for such charges, issue and cause to be served upon
the owner of the parties in interest in such building a complaint
stating the charges in that respect and containing a notice that a
hearing will be held before the public officer (or his designated
agent) at a place therein fixed not less than 7 days nor more than
30 days after the serving of said complaint; that the owner and parties
in interest shall be given the right to file an answer to the complaint
and to appear in person, or otherwise, and give testimony at the place
and time fixed in the complaint; and that the rules of evidence prevailing
in the courts shall not be controlling in hearings before the public
officer.
If, after such notice and hearing, the public
officer determines that the building under consideration is unfit
for human habitation or occupancy or use, he shall state, in writing,
his findings of fact in support of such determination and shall issue
and cause to be served upon the owner thereof and parties in interest
an order:
A.
Requiring the repair, alteration or improvement of
said building to be made by the owner, within a reasonable time, which
time shall be set forth in the order or at the option of the owner
to vacate or have said building vacated and closed within the times
set forth in the order; and
B.
If the building is in such a condition as to make
it dangerous to the health and safety of persons on or near the premises,
and the owner fails to repair, alter or improve said building within
the time specified in the order, then the owner shall be required
to remove or demolish said building within a reasonable time as specified
in said order of removal.
If the owner fails to comply with an order to
repair, alter or improve or, at the option of the owner, to vacate
and close the building, the public officer may cause such building
to be repaired, altered or improved or to be vacated and closed. The
public officer may cause to be posted on the main entrance of any
building so closed a placard with the following words: "This building
is unfit for human habitation or occupancy or use; the use or occupation
of this building is prohibited and unlawful."
If the owner fails to comply with an order to
remove or demolish the building, the public officer may cause such
building to be removed or demolished or may contract for the removal
or demolition thereof after advertisement for, and receipt of, bids
therefor.
The amount of:
A.
The cost of the filing of legal papers, expert witnesses'
fees, search fees and advertising charges incurred in the course of
any proceeding taken under this article determined in favor of the
Borough; and
B.
Such cost of such repairs, alterations or improvements
or vacating and closing or removal or demolition, if any, or the amount
of the balance thereof remaining after deduction of the sum, if any,
realized from the sale of materials derived from such building or
from any contract for removal or demolition thereof shall be a municipal
lien against the real property upon which such cost was incurred.
If the building is removed or demolished by the public officer, he
shall sell the materials of such building. There shall be credited
against the cost of the removal or demolition thereof the proceeds
of any sale of such materials or any sum derived from any contract
for the removal or demolition of the building. If there are no such
credits or if the sum total of such costs exceeds the total of such
credits, a detailed statement of the aforesaid costs and the amount
so due shall be filed with the Municipal Tax Assessor or other custodian
of the records of tax liens, and a copy thereof shall be forthwith
forwarded to the owner by registered mail. If the total of the credits
exceed such costs, the balance remaining shall be deposited in the
Superior Court by the public officer, shall be secured in such manner
as may be directed by such Court and shall be disbursed according
to the order or judgment of the Court to the persons found to be entitled
thereto by final order or judgment of such Court.
[Amended 7-13-1999 by Ord. No. 1073-99]
C.
If an actual and immediate danger to life is posed
by the threatened collapse of any fire-damaged or other structurally
unsafe building, the Borough Administrator may, after taking such
measures as may be necessary to make such building temporarily safe,
seek a judgment in summary proceedings for the demolition thereof.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to impair or limit in any
way the power of the municipality to define and declare nuisances
and to cause their removal or abatement, by summary proceedings or
otherwise, nor is anything in this article intended to limit the authority
of the enforcing agency or Construction Official under the State Uniform
Construction Code Act, P.L. 1975, c. 217 (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119 et seq.)
or any rules or regulations adopted thereunder.
[Amended 7-13-1999 by Ord. No. 1073-99]
[1]
Editor's Note: For additional information
regarding remedies available to aggrieved persons and recovery of
debt through the Superior Court, see N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.8 and 40:48-1.1,
respectively.
[Amended 7-13-1999 by Ord. No. 1073-99]
The public officer may determine that a building
is unfit for human habitation or occupancy or use if he finds that
conditions exist in such building which are dangerous or injurious
to the health or safety of the occupants of such building, the occupants
of neighboring buildings or other residents of the Borough. Such conditions
may include the following (without limiting the generality of the
foregoing): defects therein increasing the hazards of fire, accident
or other calamities; lack of adequate ventilation, light or sanitary
facilities; dilapidation; disrepair, structural defects; uncleanliness.
Prior to making a determination under this section, the public officer
shall consider reports from the Chief and the Building Inspector with
respect to any hazardous conditions present at the building site.
[Amended 7-13-1999 by Ord. No. 1073-99]
Complaints or orders issued by the public officer
pursuant to this article shall be served upon persons either personally
or by registered mail, but if the whereabouts of such persons is unknown
and the same cannot be ascertained by the public officer in the exercise
of reasonable diligence, and the public officer shall make an affidavit
to that effect, then the serving of such complaint or order upon such
persons may be made by publishing the same once in an official newspaper
of the Borough. A copy of such complaint or order shall be posted
in a conspicuous place on the premises affected by the complaint or
order. A copy of such complaint or order shall be duly recorded with
the Essex County Register of Deeds.
The public officer shall exercise such powers
as may be necessary or convenient to carry out and effectuate the
purposes and provisions of this article and of N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.3
et seq., including the following powers in addition to others herein
granted:
A.
To investigate the building conditions in the Borough
in order to determine which buildings therein are unfit for human
habitation or occupancy or use;
B.
To administer oaths, affirmations, examine witnesses
and receive evidence;
C.
To enter upon premises for the purpose of making examinations,
provided that such entries shall be made in such manner as to cause
the least possible inconvenience to the persons in possession;
D.
To appoint and fix the duties of such officers, agents
and employees as he deems necessary to carry out the purposes of this
article; and
E.
To delegate any of his functions and powers under
this article to such officers and agents as he may designate; provided,
however, that no additional personnel shall be hired without the express
approval of the Mayor and Borough Council.
As soon as possible after the adoption of this
article, the Borough Administrator is directed to prepare an estimate
of the annual expenses or costs to provide the equipment, personnel
and supplies necessary for periodic examinations and investigations
of the buildings in the Borough for the purpose of determining the
fitness of such buildings for human habitation or occupancy or use
and for the enforcement and administration of this article.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to
abrogate or impair any ordinances or regulations of the Borough; and
the powers conferred by this article shall be in addition and supplemental
to the powers conferred by any other law.
[Adopted 9-9-2003 by Ord. No. 1134-03]
A.
Whenever it shall be decided by the Director of Health
or his/her designee that any building or part thereof occupied as
a residence or business is unfit for human habitation by reason of
its unsanitary condition, the Director or his/her designee shall cause
a notice of such decision, together with the reasons therefor, to
be served in the following manner:
B.
The notice shall state that the building or a designated
part thereof shall be vacated within the time as is specified in the
notice and/or to abate the violations within the time as is specified
in the notice.
A.
Every house, apartment or dwelling and every yard,
court, passage area and alley connected therewith or belonging thereto
shall be kept clean.
B.
The owner, agent, lessee and occupant of any tenement
house, apartment, house or dwelling or part thereof shall maintain
the interior and exterior premises free of garbage, filth, decaying
organic matter, organic waste, stagnant water, or any condition that
may become a detriment or menace to the health of the inhabitants
of this municipality.
C.
The use of any paint or any pigmented, liquid substance
applied to surfaces by brush, roller or spray, in which the total
nonvolatile ingredients contain more that 0.5% of lead by weight or
5,000 parts per million (PPM) by atomic absorption analysis or one
milligram per square centimeter (mg/cm2) on the interior or exterior
surfaces of any dwelling unit shall be prohibited.
D.
When it is determined that a lead-based hazard exists,
the Director of Health or his/her designee may order the removal or
abatement of such hazard. Such removal or abatement must be conducted
in such a manner as not to constitute a threat to the health or safety
of residents, occupants or workers and shall be conducted by properly
trained workers under the direction of qualified supervisors and utilize
currently acceptable industry standards and work practices.
E.
For any building or structure built prior to 1978,
unconfined power sanding is prohibited. A sander with a dust-catching
cover equipped with a HEPA vacuum is required. For all methods of
paint removal, ground cover must be used to catch fallen chips and
must be rolled up and discarded after use. Chips and dust that falls
to the ground must be cleaned.
A.
Every premises that is to be occupied as residential
or commercial shall be provided with a safe supply of potable water
meeting the standards as set forth in potable water standards as published
by the New Jersey State Department of Health. All premises shall be
provided with a supply of hot water with a minimum temperature of
120° F.
B.
The minimum rate of flow of hot or cold water issuing
from a faucet or fixture shall be not less than two gallons per minute.
In each dwelling, a minimum of one toilet in
good and serviceable condition shall be provided for each family living
separately. All premises that is to be occupied as commercial or business
shall be provided with a minimum of one toilet in good and serviceable
condition or as otherwise prescribed by the Uniform Construction Code.[1]
No chimney, smoke pipe, smokestack, flue or
any part thereof or any connection therewith shall be or remain defective
or out of repair as to allow any noxious fumes or odors to escape
from the building.
A.
Before any building, dwelling, or structure in the
Township shall be demolished, razed or moved, the owner thereof or
the person responsible for such demolition, razing or movement shall,
before such razing or demolition, fumigate, exterminate and treat
said premises in an approved manner so as to destroy any rats, rodents
or other vermin then in the structure, and provide written proof therefor
to the Director of Health or his/her designee within 30 days of the
completion of said treatment.
(1)
The owner thereof or the person responsible for such
demolition shall ensure that the building, dwelling or structure subject
to demolition, razing, or moving shall remain free of rats, rodents
or other vermin for the duration of the demolition, razing, or moving
process by hiring a pest control company duly licensed in the State
of New Jersey to monitor the site by performing site visits at least
once every two weeks, and submit written assessments of the site to
the Director of Health or his/her designee at least once a month until
completion of the project.
(2)
If the presence of rats, rodents or other vermin is
detected, the owner or person responsible for such demolition shall,
within two weeks of detection, fumigate, exterminate and treat said
premises in an approved manner so as to destroy any rats, rodents
or other vermin then in the structure, and provide written proof thereof
to the Director of Health or his/her designee within 30 days of completion
of said treatment.
B.
For the duration of the demolition, razing or moving
process, the owner thereof or person responsible for such demolition
shall provide for a method of containing migrant dusts at the site
by hydrating at intervals reasonably necessary to contain the spread
of migrant dusts on the construction site.
[Amended 10-14-2008 by Ord. No. 1187-08]
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate
any of the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction, be punished
by a fine not exceeding $2,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding
90 days or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days, or
a combination thereof, and each violation of the provisions of this
article and each day the same is violated shall be deemed and taken
to be a separate and distinct offense.
