[Amended 9-28-1998 by Ord. No. 75-98; 7-24-2000 by Ord. No. 29-00; 4-23-2001 by Ord. No. 18-01; 3-11-2002 by Ord. No. 06-02]

A. Generally. Every application for development, application for a land disturbance permit or application for a sign permit shall be accompanied by a check made payable to the Township for the application fees set forth below. Such fees are required to cover the cost of administering and processing the review procedures. An applicant seeking more than one type of approval in an application for development shall pay an aggregate fee equal to the total of all fees or each separate approval requested. Separate fees shall be payable for use variances and bulk variances.

B. Subdivisions.

(1) Residential.

(a) Minor subdivision: $500, plus $45 per lot.

(b) Major subdivision:

[1] Preliminary approval: $500, plus $45 per lot.

[2] Final approval: $500, plus $33 per lot.

(2) Nonresidential.

(a) Minor subdivision: $500, plus $110 per acre or portion thereof. In the case of a minor subdivision wherein one or two lots are to be subdivided out of a much larger tract such that the area of the created lot(s) is less than or equal to 25% of the total tract area, the area for fee calculation purposes shall be taken as 1 1/2 times the area of the created lot(s).

(b) Major subdivision.

[1] Preliminary approval: $500, plus $110 per acre or portion thereof.

[2] Final approval: $500, plus $55 per acre or portion thereof.

C. Site plans.

(1) Residential.

(a) Minor site plan: $500, plus $50 per acre or portion thereof. In the case of a minor site plan or preliminary or final approval of a major site plan wherein the portion of the lot/tract which is the subject of the application is less than or equal to 25% of the total lot/tract area, the land area (acres) for fee calculation purposes shall be taken as 1 1/2 times the land area of the subject portion.

(b) Major site plan.

[1] Preliminary approval: $500, plus $45 per dwelling unit.

[2] Final approval: $500, plus $33 per dwelling unit.

(2) Nonresidential.

(a) Minor site plan: $500, plus $75 per acre or portion thereof. In the case of a minor site plan or preliminary or final approval of a major site plan wherein the portion of the lot/tract which is the subject of the application is less than or equal to 25% of the total lot/tract area, the land area (acres) for fee calculation purposes shall be taken as 1 1/2 times the land area of the subject portion.

(b) Major site plan.

[1] Preliminary approval: $500, plus $110 per acre and $0.02 per square foot of gross floor area.

[2] Final approval: $500, plus $55 per acre and $0.02 per square foot of gross floor area.

D. General development plan: $500, plus $30 per dwelling unit plus $0.02 per square foot of nonresidential gross floor area.

E. Variances.

(1) Appeals (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70a): $150.

(2) Interpretation (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70b): $150.

(3) Bulk (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c): $150.

(4) Use (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d): $365.

(5) Permit (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-34 and 40:55D-36): $150.

F. Conditional use permits: see site plan fees (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67).

G. Appeals to governing body: $365.

H. Certificate of approval exempt subdivision: $50; $25 for recertification.

I. Land disturbance permit: $50 plus $10 for each 100 acres in excess of the first 10 acres.

J. Sign permit: $22 per sign plus annual renewal fee of $22 per sign.

K. Notice of decision: $20 (other than applicant).

L. Concept plan: $500 plus $30 per lot (credited towards or $55 per acre or review fees of the portion thereof same application whichever is the greater for development).

M. Photocopying charges:

(1) Public records.

(a) First page to 10th page: $0.75 per page.

(b) Eleventh page to 20th page: $0.50 per page.

(c) All pages over 20 pages: $0.25 per page.

(2) The above rates shall apply unless otherwise set by law.

(3) If the Director of the Department of Community Development or his designee finds that there is no risk of damage or mutilation of such records and that it would not be incompatible with the economic and efficient operation of the office and the transaction of public business therein, he may permit any citizen who is seeking to copy more than 100 pages of records to use his own photographic process, approved by the Director of the Department of Community Development or his designee, upon the payment of a reasonable fee, considering the equipment and time involved, to be fixed by the Director of the Department of Community Development or his designee of not less than $10 nor more than $50 per day.

N. Waiver of fees.

(1) The Township Council may waive the fees of any not-for-profit first aid squad or fire company holding tax exempt status under the Federal Internal Revenue Code of 1954 [26 U.S.C. § 501(c) or (d)] upon application of said organization confirming their tax exempt status and upon showing that:

(a) The first aid squad or fire company operates exclusively or primarily within the boundaries of the Township of Old Bridge; and

(b) The action applied for will directly benefit the residents of the Township as a whole.

(2) The Township Council may waive the fees of any governmental or quasi-governmental entity which operates within the municipal boundaries of the Township of Old Bridge, including, but not limited to, the Old Bridge Township Housing Authority and the Old Bridge Township Municipal Utilities Authority.

O. Zoning permit fees. [Amended 6-27-2006 by Ord. No. 29-2006]

(1) New home:

(a) For tract homes from major subdivision: $30.

(b) For individual lot or minor subdivision lot: $50.

(2) Existing home:

(a) Additional level: $30.

(b) Additional footprint: $30.

(c) Dormers: $30.

(d) Porch: $30.

(e) Garage conversion to living space: $30.

(3) Garage, carport, pole barn or shed greater than 100 square feet:

(a) Attached: $30.

(b) Detached: $50.

(4) Shed less than 100 square feet: $25.

(5) Fence: $25.

(6) Gazebo: $30.

(7) Deck: $30.

(8) Pools and spas:

(a) In-ground pool: $100.

(b) Aboveground pool: $30.

(c) Hot tub/spa: $30.

(9) Commercial use change: $50.

(10) Commercial building: $50.

(11) Sign: $50.

(12) Zoning verification letter:

(a) Single-family and two-family residential: $50 plus $100 for each additional hour.

(b) Multifamily and nonresidential: $100 plus $100 for each additional hour.

[Amended 11-2-1992 by Ord. No. 42-92; 9-11-1995 by Ord. No. 47-95; 9-26-1995 by Ord. No. 59-95]

A. Payments to professionals for services rendered. In addition to the fees set forth in § 250-104, inclusive, an applicant shall be responsible for reimbursing the Township for:

(1) All expenses of professional personnel rendered to the municipality or approving authority for review of applications for development, review and preparation of documents, inspection of improvements or other purposes under the Municipal Land Use Law, including without limitations:

(a) Charges for reviews by professional personnel of applications and accompanying documents;

(b) Issuance of reports by professional personnel to the approving board setting forth recommendations resulting from the review of any documents submitted by applicant;

(c) Charges for any telephone conference or meeting requested or initiated by applicant, his attorney or any of his experts;

(d) Review of documents submitted by applicant not required by ordinance and issuance of reports relating thereto;

(e) Review or preparation of easements, developer's agreements, deeds, or the like;

(f) Preparation for and attendance at meetings related to any application;

(g) Preparation of summaries of preapplication and/or concept plan review meetings;

(h) The preparation of resolutions of memorialization, including, without limitation, resolutions pertaining to an application for general development plan approval pursuant to § 250-16A of this chapter and an application concerning which the resolution must contain a summary of more that two experts testifying on behalf of the applicant in order for the resolution to contain adequate findings of fact and conclusions based thereon pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10g.

(i) The costs of expert advice and/or testimony obtained by the approving board for the purpose of eliciting testimony on the same subject matter of applicant's experts.

(2) Fees or charges to be paid for review of applications for development, review and preparation of documents, inspection of improvements, or other purposes under the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law shall be based upon a schedule adopted by the Township Council by resolution.

(3) In addition to the aforesaid fees and charges, developers shall also pay such professionals or consultants for actual out-of-pocket expenses incurred, including normal and typical expenses incurred in processing applications and inspecting improvements.

(4) The municipality or approving authority shall not bill the applicant, or charge any escrow account or deposit for any municipal clerical or administrative functions, overhead expenses, meeting room charges, or any other municipal costs and expenses except as provided for in this chapter, nor shall a municipal professional add any such charges to his bill.

(5) The Township Council shall adopt a separate ordinance, at least annually, and from time to time, establishing the hourly base salary for any municipal professional employed by the Township of Old Bridge who reviews application, prepares or reviews documents, inspects improvements, or for other similar purposes under the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law. Such hourly base salary shall be set as a calculation based upon a forty-hour workweek (or in certain cases, a thirty-five-hour workweek, wherein an employee works less than 40 hours), even though the municipal employee is a managerial employee and/or an overtime exempt employee and/or is compensated on a set annual salary basis.

(6) Charges for professionals who are employees of the municipality may not exceed 200% of the sum of the products resulting from multiplying (1) the hourly base salary (established by ordinance, as aforesaid) by (2) the number of hours spent by the professional in reviewing the application for development or inspecting the developer's improvements, as the case may be.

(7) Fees charged by consulting professionals, including those normally utilized by the municipality or approving authority, shall be at the same rate charged as all other work of the same nature by the professional when fees are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants or developers.

(8) All professional charges for review of an application for development, review and preparation of documents or inspection of improvements shall be reasonable and necessary, given the status and progress of the application or construction.

(9) Review fees shall be charged only in connection with an application for development presently pending before the approving authority, or upon review of compliance with conditions of approval, or review of requests for modification or amendment made by the applicant.

(10) A professional shall not review items which are subject to approval by any state governmental agency and not under municipal jurisdiction, except to the extent consultation with a state agency is necessary due to the effect of state approvals in the subdivision or site plan.

(11) Inspection fees shall be charged only for actual work shown on a subdivision or site plan or required by an approving resolution. Professionals inspecting improvements under construction shall charge only for inspections that are reasonably necessary to check the progress and quality of the work, and such inspections shall be reasonably based on the approved development plans and documents.

(12) If the municipality retains a different professional or consultant in the place of the professional originally responsible for development, application review, or inspection of improvements, the municipality or approving authority shall be responsible for all time and expenses of the new professional to become familiar with the application or the project, and the municipality or approving authority shall not bill the applicant or charge the deposit or the escrow account for any such services.

B. Escrow deposits for review of development applications.

(1) Any applicant for development shall post the following initial sums to be held in escrow: [Amended 3-11-2002 by Ord. No. 06-02]

(2) An application shall be deemed incomplete if the initial sums to be deposited in escrow are not posted.

(3) A developer requesting either a preapplication meeting or concept plan review prior to submitting an application for development shall submit with such request a fee, in addition to that required by § 250-104, in the amount of 30% of the escrow deposit required by this chapter; provided, however, that the combined fee charged under this subsection for a preapplication meeting and a concept plan review in connection with a particular development shall not exceed such 30%. Such fee shall be held in escrow for the uses and purpose described in this § 250-105. The developer shall receive a credit in the amount paid under this § 250-105. The developer shall receive a credit in the amount paid under this subsection against the fee charged for application review escrows at the time of filing its application for development.

(4) No subdivisions plats or deeds, or site plan, shall be signed nor shall any zoning permits, building permits, certificates of occupancy or any other types of permits be issued with respect to any approved application for development until:

(a) All bills for reimbursable services have been received by the municipality from professional personnel rendering the services in connection with such application;

(b) Payment of such bills has been approved by the governing body; and

(c) The applicant has reimbursed the municipality for the excess of such bills over the escrow amount otherwise herein provided for.

(5) In the event the approving board or body shall determine that the amount remaining as an escrow deposit is insufficient to pay for the reasonably anticipated fees and charges of professionals with respect to a pending application or development, the board shall require, by notice to the applicant and resolution, additional amount to be posted. Said additional amount shall be paid by the applicant prior to advancing to the next step in the approval procedure. The term "next step" shall include in its definition continuance of hearings before the approving board.

C. Deposits for inspection fees. Any developer shall post deposits for reasonably anticipated fees to be paid to the Township Engineer for inspection of improvement as follows:

(1) Unless the reasonably anticipated fees for inspections equal or exceed $10,000, the developer shall post all reasonably anticipated fees for inspection of improvements. Such sums shall be posted as a condition precedent to the signing of any plans or the issuance of any permit.

(2) In the event the reasonably anticipated fees are $10,000 or greater, fees may, at the option of the developer, be paid in four installments. The initial amount deposited by a developer shall be 25% of the reasonably anticipated fees. When the balance on deposit drops to 10% of the reasonably anticipated fees because the amount deposited by the developer has been reduced by the amount paid to the Municipal Engineer for inspection, the developer shall make additional deposits of 25% of the reasonably anticipated fees. The Municipal Engineer shall not perform any inspection if sufficient funds to pay for those inspections are not on deposit. In the event an inspection must be made to protect health or safety for which insufficient sums are on deposit, the Engineer shall render such inspections and charge such work against future replenishment of the escrow fund or against the developer directly.

D. Financial control and accounting for charges against escrow deposits.

(1) Each payment charged to the deposit for review of applications, review and preparation of documents and inspection of improvements shall be pursuant to a voucher from the professional, which voucher shall identify the personnel performing the service, and for each date the services performed, the hours spent to 1/3 hour increments, the hourly rate and the expenses incurred.

(2) All professionals shall submit vouchers to the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality on a monthly basis in accordance with schedules and procedures established by the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality. The professional shall send an informational copy of all vouchers or statements submitted to the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality simultaneously to the applicant.

(3) If the services are provided by a municipal employee, the municipal employee shall prepare and submit to the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality a statement containing the same information as required on a voucher, on a monthly basis.

(4) The Chief Financial Officer of the municipality shall prepare and send to the applicant a statement which shall include an accounting of funds listing all deposits, interest earnings, disbursements, and the cumulative balance of the escrow account.

(5) This information shall be provided on a quarterly basis, if monthly charges are $1,000 or less, or on a monthly basis, if monthly charges exceed $1,000.

(6) If an escrow account or deposit contains insufficient funds to enable the municipality or approving authority to perform required application reviews or improvement inspections, the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality shall provide the applicant with a notice of the insufficient escrow or deposit balance.

(7) In order for work to continue on the development or the application, the applicant shall within a reasonable time period post a deposit to the account in an amount to be agreed upon by the municipality or approving authority and the applicant. In the interim, any required health and safety inspections shall be made and charged back against the replenishment of funds.

E. Close-out procedures for escrow deposits.

(1) The following close-out procedure shall apply to all deposits and escrow accounts established under the provisions of P.L. 1975, c. 291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.) and shall commence after the approving authority has granted final approval and signed the subdivision plat or site plan, in the case of application review escrows and deposits, or after the improvements have been approved as provided in Section 41 of P.L. 1975, c. 291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53), in the case of improvement inspection escrows and deposits.

(2) The applicant shall send written notice by certified mail to the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality and the approving authority, and to the relevant municipal professional, that the application or the improvements, as the case may be, are completed.

(3) After receipt of such notice, the professional shall render a final bill to the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality within 30 days, and shall send a copy simultaneously to the applicant.

(4) The Chief Financial Officer of the municipality shall render a written final accounting to the applicant on the uses to which the deposit was put within 45 days of receipt of the final bill.

(5) Any balances remaining in the deposit or escrow account, including interest in accordance with Section 1 of P.L. 1985, c. 315 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.1), shall be refunded to the developer along with the final accounting.

F. Disputes and appeals.

(1) An applicant shall notify in writing the governing body with copies to the Chief Financial Officer, the approving authority and the professional whenever the applicant disputes the charges made by a professional for service rendered to the municipality in reviewing applications for development, review and preparation of documents, inspection of improvements, or other charges made pursuant to the provisions of P.L. 1975, c. 291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.).

(2) The governing body, or its designee, shall within a reasonable time period attempt to mediate any disputed charges.

(3) If the matter is not resolved to the satisfaction of the applicant, the applicant may appeal to the County Construction Board of Appeals established under Section 9 of P.L. 1975, c. 217 (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-127) any charge to an escrow account or a deposit by any municipal professional or consultant, or the cost of the installation of improvements estimated by the Municipal Engineer pursuant to Section 15 of P.L. 1991, c. 256 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.4).

(4) An applicant or his authorized agent shall submit the appeal in writing to the County Construction Board of Appeals. The applicant or his authorized agent shall simultaneously send a copy of the appeal to the municipality, approving authority, and any professional whose charge is the subject of the appeal.

(5) An applicant shall file an appeal within 45 days from receipt of the informational copy of the professional's voucher required by Subsection c of Section 13 of P.L. 1991, c. 256 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.2), except that if the professional has not supplied the applicant with an informational copy of the voucher, then the applicant shall file his appeal within 60 days from receipt of the municipal statement of activity against the deposit or escrow account required by Subsection c of Section 13 of P.L. 1991, c. 256 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.2).

(6) An applicant may file an appeal for an ongoing series of charges by a professional during a period not exceeding six months to demonstrate that they represent a pattern of excessive or inaccurate charges. An applicant making use of this provision need not appeal each charge individually.

(7) The contract between Old Bridge Township and any outside professional employee who will be paid from developer's escrows shall contain provision requiring reimbursement to the municipality in the event such fees are successfully challenged.

(8) In the event an applicant disputes any unpaid charge against any escrow account for professional fees or expenses, the professional must justify the reasonableness of such fees and charges to the Chief Financial Officer in order that he pay it.