Source: https://www.ecode360.com/13240096
Timestamp: 2020-05-25 08:46:42
Document Index: 242709547

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179', '§ 179']

City of Linwood, NJ Mercantile Licenses
§ 179-2 Applications.
§ 179-3 Term of license.
§ 179-4 Fee schedule.
§ 179-5 Compliance with ordinances and regulations; license display.
§ 179-6 Revocation; nontransferability.
§ 179-7 Purpose of fees.
§ 179-8 Use of the police force.
§ 179-9 Word usage.
§ 179-11 Access to buildings or premises.
§ 179-12 Exclusion of governmental agencies and certain regulated businesses.
Chapter 179 Mercantile Licenses
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Linwood 4-9-1969 by Ord. No. 6-1969. Amendments noted where applicable.]
No person or persons, firm or corporation shall engage in or carry on any business in Linwood, nor aid or assist as employees, clerks or otherwise in carrying on such business, or in using any wagon, vehicle, stand, store or other place or thing, nor sell or offer for sale any goods or things for which a license is required by the terms of this chapter, unless a license is herein provided for shall have been first obtained therefor.
[Amended 5-22-1991 by Ord. No. 9-1991]
Application for license shall be made to the City Clerk of the City of Linwood on and after July 1, 1991, and no license shall be granted until the payment for the same shall have been made. Every license shall specify by name the person to whom it shall be issued, the business for which it is granted, the location at which such business is to be carried on and a statement that the owner/proprietor of the business is actively engaged in said business for which the mercantile license is being issued.
[Added 4-13-2005 by Ord. No. 8-2005]
Each application for a new business, not previously licensed, shall be referred to the Chief of Police or a police officer designated by the Chief who shall undertake an investigation of the applicant's suitability for a license, including the applicant's character, honesty and integrity as they may be relevant to the conduct of the business. This investigation shall include, but need to be limited to, a criminal history record background check for the presence of potentially disqualifying criminal record. The investigation shall determine if the applicant's background indicates a reasonable likelihood that the applicant would conduct the business honestly, free from fraud or serious misconduct and generally in accordance with the law.
The investigation shall be completed as soon as is possible and the findings provided to the City Clerk with a recommendation as to whether such license should be issued. If the investigation recommends against the issuance of a license, then the City Clerk may not issue the license, but the applicant may request a review of the application by the Public Safety Committee of the Municipal Council which shall consider the matter at its next regularly scheduled meeting. If, after review of the application, the Public Safety Committee does not issue the license, the applicant may request a hearing before the Public Safety Committee of the Municipal Council; such hearing shall be held within 30 days of a request by the applicant.
In addition to any other required fees, the applicant shall be responsible for the cost of the criminal history record background check. The applicant shall submit a check or money order in the amount of such fee as may be imposed by the Superintendent of the State Police, payable to the New Jersey Bureau of Investigation (NJSBI) at the time the application is submitted. The applicant shall complete such application forms as may be required by the City, including a consent to the background check.
All license fees shall be due and payable to the City Clerk on the first day of July of each year, the term thereof commencing on July 6 and expiring on June 30 thereafter.
Any license fees not paid by August 1 of each year shall be subject to a late fee of $10.
[Amended 5-22-1991 by Ord. No. 9-1991; 4-13-2005 by Ord. No. 8-2005]
The license fees to be paid annually as above provided to the City of Linwood for conducting the businesses, trades, professions or occupations herein named, at the places to be designated in the license certificate issued therefor, or in using any store or place for the sale of any goods or thing, or the type of service hereinafter named, shall be as follows:
Convalescent and/or nursing home
Fewer than 25 beds
51 to 75 beds
76 or more beds
Every concession therein (jewelry, etc.)
Food concessions and food vendors therein
Floor-covering company
Flowers, plants and shrubberies
Furniture and house furnishings (new or secondhand)
Garden supplies only
Over 4,000 to 8,000 square feet
Lumber and mill work yard
Nurseries only
Paint store, retail
Photographic establishments
Plumbing, steam or gas fitting supplies and appliances
Radio and television stores and service
Restaurants (sub shops, coffee shops or any place where food is served)
31 to 100 seats
101 to 250 seats
251 or more seats
Any trade or business not listed above
[Amended 4-13-2005 by Ord. No. 8-2005]
No license shall be granted for any theater, scenic theater, moving-picture show or dance hall or in any public place until the Electrical Inspector, Building Inspector, Plumbing Inspector, Zoning Officer, Atlantic County Board of Health and City Fire Chief of the Fire Department all certify in writing to the Mercantile License Inspector that the applicant has complied with all the ordinances and regulations respecting protection of life and property relating to such places.[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 106, Buildings, Unsafe; Ch. 119, Construction Codes, Uniform; Ch. 152, Fire Prevention; Ch. 241, Streets and Sidewalks; and Ch. 277, Zoning.
No license shall be granted for any new commercial business establishment until and unless the Linwood Planning Board has certified, in writing, to the City Clerk that all provisions of the ordinances of the City of Linwood and laws of the State of New Jersey pertaining to municipal site plan review have been complied with. [2]
No license certificate shall be issued to any person who has not complied with the laws of the State of New Jersey or the ordinances of the City of Linwood, providing regulations respecting the safety of persons who may have occasion to use the premises, place or thing licensed, and in case any person licensed fails to comply with such laws or ordinances, after due notice of 10 days and an opportunity to be heard within 10 days thereafter, the Council of the City of Linwood and the City Clerk may revoke said license. 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 other than that for which it was issued.
The fees herein imposed for such licenses are imposed for revenue.
Any proper officer may and is hereby authorized and directed to use such of the police force in the City as is necessary to execute and enforce all necessary and lawful police regulations that may best facilitate the carrying on of business, trades and occupations licensed by this chapter.
The use of the word "person" shall, for the purpose of this chapter, be deemed to include persons, firms, copartnerships and corporations.
The use of the word "business" shall, for the purpose of this chapter, be deemed to include businesses, trades, callings, professions and vocations, except that no mercantile license is required for any person/business offering only a service if said service requires an annual state licensing. If any person/business offering such a service sells any merchandise or product, either retail, wholesale or at auction, then a mercantile license is required..
The use of the words “criminal history record background check” or “background check” shall, for the purpose of this chapter, mean a determination whether a person has a criminal record by cross-referencing that person's name with the records available to the State Bureau of Identification in the Division of State Police.
The use of the words “disqualifying criminal record” shall, for the purpose of this chapter, mean the conviction of a crime:
Involving danger to the person pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1 et seq. (homicide); 2C:12-1 et seq. (assault); 2C:13-1 et seq. (kidnapping); 2C:14-1 et seq. (sexual offenses); 2C:15-1 et seq. (robbery); or danger to property pursuant to 2C:17-1 et seq. (arson); 2C:18-1 et seq. (burglary); 2C:20-1 et seq. (theft); 2C:21-1 et seq. (forgery); or to public order pursuant to 2C:34-1 et seq. (prostitution and obscenity); 2C:35-1 et seq. (dangerous substance); 2C:39-1 et seq. (firearms).
In any other state or jurisdiction for conduct which, if committed in New Jersey, would constitute any of the crimes included above.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection D(1) and (2) above, an applicant shall not be disqualified for a license on the basis of any conviction disclosed by a criminal history check if the individual has demonstrated evidence of rehabilitation or if the offense is not relevant to the particular business. In making such determination, the following factors may be considered: the nature of the business being sought to be licensed; the nature and seriousness of the offense; the circumstances under which the offense occurred; the date of the offense; the age of the applicant when the offense was committed; whether the offense was repeated; and other evidence of rehabilitation, including subsequent conduct in the community and acquisition of academic or vocational education.
The use of the word “applicant” shall, for the purpose of this chapter, mean if an individual, such individual; if a partnership, all partners; and if a corporation, limited liability company or other business entity, all shareholders or interest holders having more than a ten-percent ownership.
It shall be a condition of the issuance of any and all licenses under this chapter that said business shall be used and operated only for lawful purposes and not in violation of any Zoning Ordinance[1] of the City of Linwood. Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction in the Municipal Court of the City of Linwood, be punished for each offense by a fine not to exceed $500 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days in the county jail or any place provided by the municipality for the detention of prisoners, or both. Each day after the initial violation shall be considered a new and individual violation.
Every person conducting a business required to be licensed hereby shall permit the department heads or its accredited agents or assistants to have access to any building or premises for the purpose of ascertaining whether there has been compliance with the provisions of this chapter and other ordinances and to determine the fees to be paid, and any refusal thereof shall be deemed a violation of this chapter and be subject to the penalties.
This chapter shall not apply to any corporation authorized to transact business by the Department of Banking and Insurance of the State of New Jersey, or to persons authorized to transact business by any department of the government of the United States of America, or to any person licensed to transact business by the State of New Jersey or any department, board or commission thereof, or to plumbers, builders or electricians now licensed or to persons hereafter to be licensed under ordinance of the City, or to interstate commerce or to public utilities.