ORDINANCE
NO.
18-20
ORDINANCE
AMENDING
CHAPTER
XIV
(14)
BUILDING
OF
THE
REVISED
GENERAL
ORDINANCES
OF
THE
TOWNSHIPOF
PISCATAWAY,
COUNTY
OF
MIDDLESEX,
STATE
OF
NEW
JERSEY.
BE
IT
ORDAINED,
by
the
Township
Council
of
the
Township
of
Piscataway,
County
of
Middlesex,
State
of
New
Jersey,
that
Chapter
XIV
-
Building,
Section
14-3,
is
hereby
added
to
read
as
follows:
14-3
Certificates
of
Occupancy
and
Continued
Occupancy.
14-3.1
Establishment
of
Office
of
Supervising
Housing
Certificate
of
Occupancy
Official.
The
office
of
the
Municipal
Certificate
of
Occupancy
Official
and
hereby
created,
and
the
executive
official
in
charge
shall
be
known
as
the
Municipal
Supervising
Certificate
of
Occupancy
Official
(the
"Supervising
Official").
The
Supervising
Official
shall
be
appointed
as
provided
by
law,
and
shall
report
to
the
Township
Business
Administrator.
His
appointment
shall
continue
during
good
behavior
and
satisfactory
service.
He
shall
not
be
removed
from
office
except
for
cause
after
a
full
opportunity
has
been
given
to
him
to
be
heard
on
specific
charges.
During
temporary
absence
or
disability
of
the
Supervising
Official,
the
appointing
authority
shall
designate
an
Acting
Supervising
Official.
14-3.2
Duties
of
Supervising
Housing
Certificate
of
Occupancy.
It
shall
be
the
duty
of
the
Supervising
Certificate
of
Occupancy
Official,
and
his
Designee(s)
to
enforce
all
national,
state
and
municipal
laws,
codes,
ordinances,
rules
and
regulations
relating
to
the
use
and
occupancy
of
buildings
and
structures
within
the
Township.
14-3.3
Certificates
of
Occupancy
and
Continued
Occupancy.
a.
A
municipal
certificate
of
occupancy
("CO");
is
hereby
required
as
a
precondition
for
the
occupancy,
in
whole
or
in
part,
of
any
new
residential
dwelling
or
building
addition
to
a
residential
dwelling.
b.
A
municipal
certificate
of
continued
occupancy
("CCO")
is
hereby
required
as
a
pre-condition
for
the
continued
occupancy,
in
whole
or
in
part,
of
any
existing
residential
dwelling.
c.
A
CO
is
a
document
issued
by
the
Township
upon
a
determination
that
a
residential
dwelling
is
fit
for
human
habitation
in
accordance
with
the
provisions
of
the
Uniform
Construction
Code,
Ordinances
of
the
Township
of
Piscataway,
and
any
other
national
laws,
codes,
rules
and
regulations.
ORDINANCE
NO.
18-20
d.
A
000
is
a
document
issued
by
the
Township
upon
a
determination
that
an
existing
residential
dwelling
continues
to
remain
fit
for
human
habitation
in
accordance
with
the
provisions
of
the
Uniform
Construction
Code,
Ordinances
of
the
Township
of
Piscataway,
and
any
other
national
laws,
codes,
rules
and
regulations.
e.
No
owner
or
agent
shall
sell,
transfer
or
grant
with
right
of
occupancy,
whether
or
not
for
monetary
or
other
consideration,
any
new
or
existing
dwelling,
unit
or
premises
on
which
a
building
or
structure
is
located
and
used
for
human
occupancy,
unless
a
CO,
or
COG,
as
the
case
may
be,
is
first
obtained
from
the
Township,
after
submittal
of
a
complete
application
therefore
and
the
fee
provided
for
herein.
The
Township
Construction
Official
and/or
the
Supervising
Official
shall
be
afforded
the
opportunity
to
inspect
the
building,
structure
and
or
premises
by
the
owner,
and
said
owner
shall
consent
to
said
inspection(s).
f.
The
owner
of
a
residential
dwelling
unit
is
hereby
charged
with
responsibility
for
making
written
application
in
accordance
with
this
Ordinance
for
a
CCO.
The
buyer
of
such
dwelling
may
elect
to
assume
the
seller's
responsibility
including
the
obligation
to
correct
all
violations;
provided,
however,
that
such
election
shall
be
in
writing
and
shall
state
that
the
buyer
is
totally
aware
that
he,
she
or
it,
is
assuming
responsibility
for
obtaining
a
CCO
pursuant
to
this
Ordinance,
and
provided,
further,
that
such
written
election
shall
be
filed
with
the
Supervising
Official.
If,
in
the
opinion
of
the
Supervising
Official,
the
violations
do
not
affect
life
safety,
then
the
buyer
may
be
permitted
to
occupy
the
residential
unit
during
the
time
the
violations
are
being
corrected.
The
buyer
shall
not
occupy
the
residential
until
all
life
safety
violations
are
corrected
and
the
residential
unit
is
reinspected
by
the
Township.
Upon
correction
of
all
violations
of
any
nature,
the
buyer
shall
request
the
Township
to
reinspect
the
residential
unit
for
compliance.
Upon
the
Township
determining
that
buyer
is
in
complete
compliance,
an
unconditional
CCO
shall
be
issued.
g.
The
Supervising
Official
shall
issue
a
residential
CCO,
provided
that
there
are
no
violations
of
law
or
orders
of
the
Construction
Official,
in
consultation
with
the
Zoning
Officer,
and
it
is
established
after
site
inspection
and
investigation
of
available
municipal
records
that
the
alleged
use
of
the
building
or
structure
has
lawfully
existed.
The
CCO
shall
evidence
only
that
a
general
inspection
of
the
visible
parts
of
the
building
or
structure
has
been
made
and
that
no
violations
of
N.J.A.C.
5:23-2.14,
as
amended
(Construction
Permits
When
Required),
and
N.J.A.C.
5:2q3-2.18,
as
amended
(Required
Inspections),
have
been
determined
to
exist,
no
conditions
of
violation
of
N.J.A.C.
5:23-
2.23,
as
amended
(Unsafe
Structures),
or
unsafe
conditions
have
been
observed
and
no
violations
of
the
Revised
General
Ordinances
of
the
Township
of
Piscataway
have
been
found
to
exist.
ORDINANCE
NO.
18-20
h.
If
the
Supervising
Official,
as
the
result
of
a
permit
records
search
and/or
a
general
inspection
of
visible
parts
of
the
structure,
finds
a
violation
as
set
forth
in
subsection
e.
He
shall
notify
the
owner
of
the
violation
in
writing
by
electronic
or
regular
mail,
or
by
hand
delivering
the
notice
to
the
owner
or
his
agent.
The
notice
shall
identify
the
premises
and
specify
the
violations
and
any
remedial
action
required,
along
with
a
compliance
date.
The
notice
will
require
the
owner
to
satisfy
the
violations,
file
any
necessary
permits
as
required,
and
the
notice
shall
also
state
that
failure
to
correct
the
violations
within
the
times
specified
shall
result
in
fines
as
prescribed
in
the
Uniform
Construction
Code.
i.
A
temporary
Certificate
of
Continued
Occupancy,
if
issued,
in
the
discretion
of
the
Supervising
Official,
shall
be
effective
for
a
period
of
up
to
ninety
(90)
days.
One
(1)
administrative
extension
of
not
more
than
thirty
(30)
days
may
be
granted
by
the
Supervising
Official.
If
the
owner
of
the
dwelling
unit
fails
to
sell,
transfer
or
grant
the
right
of
occupancy
within
this
period,
the
owner
shall
make
a
new
written
application
for
and
obtain
a
new
CCO.
j.
A
CO
and
CCO
shall
be
valid
for
a
period
of
six
months
from
the
date
of
issue
unless
a
change
in
occupancy
has
occurred,
and
must
be
renewed
for
each
occupancy.
14-3.4
Fees.
The
Township
of
Piscataway
shall
charge
application
fees
for
a
CO
and
CCO
as
follows:
CO
or
CCO
-
One
or
two
family
(1-5
business
days)
$100.00
per
unit
CO
or
CCO
-
One
or
two
family
(6-10
business
days)
$
75.00
per
unit
CO
or
CCO
-
Three
or
more
dwelling
units
(1-5
business
days.
$
50.00
per
unit
CO
or
CCO
-
Three
or
more
dwelling
units
(6-10
business
days.
$
40.00
per
unit
Temporary
CO
or
CCO
-
One
or
two
family
dwelling
$100.00
per
unit
Temporary
CO
or
CCO
-
Three
or
more
dwelling
units
$
75.00
per
unit
Second
inspection
fee
$
75.00
Third
inspection
fee
$150.00
14-3.5
Liability
of
Supervising
Certificate
of
Occupancy
Official.
The
Supervising
Official
or
any
employee
charged
with
the
enforcement
of
this
Ordinance,
acting
in
good
faith
and
without
malice
in
the
discharge
of
his
duties,
shall
not
thereby
render
himself
liability
personally;
and
he
is
hereby
relieved
from
all
personal
liability
for
any
damage
that
may
occur
to
persons
or
property
as
a
result
of
any
act
required
or
by
reason
of
any
act
or
omission
in
the
discharge
of
his
duties.
Any
suit
brought
against
the
Supervising
Official,
or
his
employee,
because
of
such
act
or
omission
performed
by
him
in
the
enforcement
ORDINANCE
NO.
18-20
of
any
provisions
of
this
Code,
shall
be
defended
by
the
legal
department
of
the
Township
at
the
Township's
sole
cost
and
expense,
until
final
termination
of
the
proceedings.
14-3.6
Right
of
Entry
The
Supervising
Certificate
of
Occupancy
Official,
in
the
discharge
of
his
official
duties
and
upon
property
identification,
shall
have
authority
to
enter
any
building,
structure
or
premises
at
any
reasonable
hour,
if
there
is
reason
to
believe
work
is
being
performed
contrary
to
regulations
of
the
State
of
New
Jersey
Uniform
Construction
Code
N.J.A.C.
5:23.
14-3.7
Enforcement
and
Penalties
a.
Any
person,
firm
or
corporation
violating
any
provisions
of
this
Section
14-
3
shall,
upon
conviction,
be
punishable
by
a
fine
not
exceeding
$1,000.00,
imprisonment
for
a
period
not
exceeding
thirty
(30)
days
and/or
a
period
of
community
service
not
exceeding
thirty
(30)
days.
b.
The
issuance
of
a
CO
or
CCO
shall
not
preclude
the
imposition
of
penalties
upon
subsequent
discovery
of
a
violation.
14-3.8
Effective
Date.
This
Ordinance
shall
become
effective
on
January
1,
2019.
If
any
article,
section,
subsection,
sentence,
clause
or
phrase
of
this
Ordinance
is,
for
any
reason,
held
to
be
unconstitutional
or
invalid,
such
decision
shall
not
affect
the
remaining
portions
of
this
Ordinance
and
they
shall
remain
in
full
force
and
effect,
and
to
this
end
the
provisions
of
this
Ordinance
are
hereby
declared
severable.
All
other
ordinances
in
conflict
or
inconsistent
with
this
Ordinance
are
hereby
repealed,
to
the
extent
of
such
conflict
or
inconsistency.
In
the
event
of
any
inconsistencies
between
the
provisions
of
this
Ordinance
and
any
prior
Ordinance
of
the
Township,
the
provision
hereof
shall
be
determined
to
govern.
All
other
parts,
portions
and
provisions
of
the
Ordinances
of
the
Township
are
hereby
ratified
and
confirmed,
except
where
inconsistent
with
the
terms
hereof.
This
Ordinance
shall
take
effect
twenty
(20)
days
after
final
passage,
adoption
and
publication
according
to
law.
ORDINANCE
NO.
18-20
Attest:
CHANELLE
MCCULLUM,
Council
President
MELISSA
A.
SEADER,
Township
Clerk
Adopted,
First
Reading:
Publication
Date:
Adopted,
Second
Reading:
Publication
Date:
August
28,
2018
Accost
BRIAN
C.
WAHLER,
Mayor
Date:
9^1^'
^OlR
CERTIFIED
FORM
AND
LEGALITY:
RKIN
III,
ESQ.
bwnship
Attorney
STATEMENT
OF
PURPOSE
The
purchase
and
intent
of
this
Ordinance
is
require
Certificates
of
Occupancy
and
Certificates
of
Continued
Occupancy
for
various
residential
buildings,
or
residential
building
additions
fit
for
human
habitation.
