§ 16.52.070. Nonconforming lots, structures and uses.

A.

Lots.

1.

Whenever the owner of a lot as existing at the time of adoption of this title dedicates or conveys land to the borough in order to meet the minimum street width requirements of the official or master plan the borough, the construction official, subject to a prior written recommendation from the zoning officer, shall issue construction and occupancy permits for a lot whose depth and/or area is rendered substandard only because of such dedication and where the owner has no other adjacent lands to provide the minimum requirements.

2.

Any existing lot on which a building or structure is located and which lot does not meet the minimum lot size, or a structure which violates any yard requirements, may have additions to the principal building and/or construction of an accessory building without an appeal for variance relief provided: (a) the existing use(s) on the lot are conforming to the permitted use(s) stipulated in this title for the lot in question; (b) the total permitted building coverage is not exceeded; (c) the accessory building and/or addition does not violate any other requirements of this title such as, but not limited to, height, setback and parking and does not increase any existing nonconformity; and (d) the lot is not reduced in size.

3.

Whenever title to two or more contiguous lots is held by the same owner, regardless of whether or not each of such lots have been approved as portions of a subdivision or acquired by separate conveyance or by other operation of law, and one or more of such individual lots should, by reason of exceptional shallowness, topographic conditions, substandard area or yard space or similar measurements, not conform with the minimum lot area and dimension requirements for the zone in which it is located, the two or more contiguous lots of such owner shall be considered as a single lot for the purposes of this title.

4.

On any nonconforming lot of less than forty (40) feet in width, no building shall be erected consisting of more than one habitable story or exceeding twenty-four (24) feet in height.

5.

No nonconforming lot shall be further reduced in size.

6.

Non-conforming lots of record. In any zone in which single-family dwellings are permitted, for lots having a frontage of at least forty (40) feet and a total square footage of four thousand (4,000) feet or more, a single-family dwelling and customary accessory buildings may be erected on any single lot of record as of enactment of this section, or the date of any amendment hereto, provided all setbacks and bulk requirements of the zone in which the lot is located are met. Such lot shall be in a separate ownership and not of contiguous frontage with other lots in the same ownership. For lots not meeting the requirements above, a variance of area, width and yard requirement shall be obtained through the land use board.

B.

Structures and Uses.

1.

Any preexisting nonconforming use or structure existing at the time of the passage of this title may be continued upon the lot or in the structure so occupied and any such structure may be repaired in the event of partial destruction.

2.

Repairs and maintenance work required to keep a structure in sound condition may be made to a nonconforming structure or a conforming structure containing a nonconforming use, including renovation which may require structural alterations or reconstruction provided that such alteration or improvement does not increase the nonconformity.

3.

No structure containing a nonconforming use shall be enlarged or extended in any manner. An addition of a second story or part thereof, or the addition of lands associated with any alteration or improvement to a structure containing a nonconforming use, shall require variance approval pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d.

4.

A nonconforming use shall be considered abandoned if such nonconforming use is terminated by the owner. If the owner fails to use the property for a period of twelve (12) consecutive months, it shall be presumed to be abandoned. Thereafter, such building, structure and/or land shall not be used in a nonconforming manner.

5.

Any nonconforming use or structure which has been changed to a conforming use or structure shall not be changed back again into a nonconforming use or structure.

6.

Any nonconforming use, structure or lot may change ownership and continue to function as the same nonconforming use, structure or lot provided all other provisions of this title and other applicable laws are met.

(Ord. 93-5 § 507, 1993)

(Ord. No. 2014-04, § 1, 4-22-2014)