A4180

An Act concerning certain development in the coastal area and amending P.L.1973, c.185 and P.L.1993, c.190.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 3 of P.L.1973, c.185 (C.13:19-3) is amended to read as follows:

3. As used in [this act] P.L.1973, c.185 (13:19-1 et seq.) :

"Beach" means a gently sloping unvegetated area of sand or other unconsolidated material found on tidal shorelines, including ocean, inlet, bay and river shorelines, and that extends landward from the mean high water line to either: the vegetation line; a man-made feature generally parallel to the ocean, inlet, bay or river waters such as a retaining structure, seawall, bulkhead, road or boardwalk, except that sandy areas that extend fully under and landward of an elevated boardwalk are considered to be beach areas; or the seaward or bayward foot of dunes, whichever is closest to the ocean, inlet, bay or river waters;

"Commercial development" means a development designed, constructed or intended to accommodate commercial or office uses. "Commercial development" shall include, but need not be limited to, any establishment used for the wholesale or retail sale of food or other merchandise, or any establishment used for providing professional, financial, or other commercial services;

"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Environmental Protection;

"Department" means the Department of Environmental Protection;

"Development" means the construction, relocation, or enlargement of any building or structure and all site preparation therefor, the grading, excavation or filling on beaches or dunes, and shall include residential development, commercial development, industrial development, and public development;

"Dune" means a wind- or wave-deposited or man-made formation of vegetated sand that lies generally parallel to and landward of the beach, and between the upland limit of the beach and the foot of the most inland slope of the dune. Dune includes the foredune, secondary and tertiary dune ridges, as well as man-made dunes, where they exist;

"Dwelling unit" means a house, townhouse, apartment, cooperative, condominium, [cabana,] hotel or motel room, a room in a hospital, nursing home or other residential institution, mobile home, campsite for a tent or recreational vehicle or any other habitable structure of similar size and potential environmental impact, except that dwelling unit shall not mean a vessel as defined in section 2 of P.L.1962, c.73 (C.12:7-34.37);

"Governmental agency" means the Government of the United States, the State of New Jersey, or any other state, or a political subdivision, authority, agency or instrumentality thereof, and shall include any interstate agency or authority;

"Industrial development" means a development that involves a manufacturing or industrial process, and shall include, but need not be limited to, electric power production, food and food by-product processing, paper production, agri-chemical production, chemical processes, storage facilities, metallurgical processes, mining and excavation processes, and processes utilizing mineral products;

"Person" means any individual, corporation, company, association, society, firm, partnership, joint stock company, or governmental agency;

"Public development" means a solid waste facility, including an incinerator and landfill, wastewater treatment plant, public highway, airport, an above or underground pipeline designed to transport petroleum, natural gas, or sanitary sewage, and a public facility, and shall not mean a seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry, an educational facility or power lines;

"Public highway" means a public highway as defined in section 3 of P.L.1984, c.73 (C.27:1B-3);

"Reconstruction" means the repair or replacement of a building, structure, or other part of a development;

"Residential development" means a development that provides one or more dwelling units;

"Seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry" means a beach badge shed, bench, canopy, cabana, lifeguard stand and associated temporary equipment storage container, picnic table, portable restroom, stage platform, and wooden walkway, typically used for recreational purposes during the summer months; and

"Solar panel" means an elevated panel or plate, or a canopy or array thereof, that captures and converts solar radiation to produce power, and includes flat plate, focusing solar collectors, or photovoltaic solar cells and excludes the base or foundation of the panel, plate, canopy, or array.

(cf: P.L.2010, c.4, s.3)

2. Section 6 of P.L.1993, c.190 (C.13:19-5.1) is amended to read as follows:

6. a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule , or regulation to the contrary, the commissioner is authorized to issue a general permit in lieu of a permit issued pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1973, c.185 (C.13:19-5). The department shall adopt rules and regulations which identify the activities subject to general permit review, and which establish the criteria for the approval or disapproval of a general permit issued pursuant to this section. The department shall approve, approve with conditions, or disapprove an application for a general permit pursuant to this section in accordance with P.L.1975, c.232 (C.13:1D-29 et al.).

b. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, the commissioner shall issue a general permit in lieu of a permit issued pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1973, c.185 (C.13:19-5) for the construction of a seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry at a commercial development, a hotel, a motel, or a residential development having 75 or more dwelling units, subject to the following criteria:

(1) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall not be located on a dune, coastal bluff, or in a wetland;

(2) the placement of the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall not include the excavation, grading, or filling of a beach;

(3) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall have no adverse impact on a special area as that term is defined by the department in rules and regulations adopted pursuant to P.L.1973, c.185 (C.13:19-1 et seq.);

(4) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall be located a minimum of 50 feet from a wetland;

(5) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall remain in place only from May 1 through October 31, except that underground utilities, floor decking, open drink and food concession stand shells, and stage shells may remain in place on a year-round basis;

(6) public access shall be provided in accordance with P.L.2019, c.81 (C.13:1D-150 et al.), and any rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto;

(7) a seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry located on a beach shall be immediately removed from the beach and relocated to a secure place at any time that the National Weather Service issues a Severe Weather Alert, for the municipality in which the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry is located, for significant weather events, such as Coastal Flood Warning, Extreme Wind Warning, Hurricane Warning, Tornado Warning, or Tropical Storm Warning, that would directly affect any structure left on the beach, for the duration of the Severe Weather Alert; and

(8) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall be located a minimum of 50 feet landward of the mean high water line, except that a seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry may be located on a beach when the structure is located on the most landward portion of the beach, and the structure complies with the following conditions:

(a) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry occupies no more than 33 percent of the total width of the beach berm area within the limits of the development and is limited to the most landward one-third of the useable beach berm area;

(b) the total area of beach coverage, including all structures and support facilities, shall not exceed one acre, provided, however, that the department may further limit the coverage due to prevailing beach conditions, public access, and safety concerns at the site;

(c) the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry shall not unreasonably conflict with ocean views or other beach uses;

(d) the beach shall be open to the public; and

(e) for each year of the duration of the permit, the permittee shall submit on or before April 1st to the department for its review and approval documentation of compliance with the conditions set forth in this subsection and one copy of a revised site plan, dated no more than 30 days prior to the submittal, including supplemental documents as appropriate, showing the location of the beach berm area. The department, based on the documentation submitted pursuant to this subparagraph, may approve the seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry as proposed or require modifications to the footprint or design in order to comply with this subsection.

(cf: P.L.1993, c.190, s.6)

3. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill amends the “Coastal Area Facility Review Act” (CAFRA), P.L.1973, c.185 (C.13:19-1 et seq.), which regulates development in the coastal area of the State.

Specifically, this bill: amends the definition of “dwelling unit” to omit cabanas from the definition; adds a definition for “seasonal or temporary structures related to the tourism industry”; and establishes a general permit allowing for the construction of certain seasonal or temporary structures related to the tourism industry.

The term “seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry” is used in CAFRA in the definition of “public development”; however, the term is not defined in the law. This bill would define the term in a similar manner to how the term is defined by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in its Coastal Zone Management Rules, N.J.A.C.7:7-1.1 et seq., with the addition of cabana to the list of structures included within the definition.

This bill would also codify in the statutes the DEP's General Permit No. 22, currently authorized in the administrative code at N.J.A.C.7:7-6.22, concerning the construction of certain structures related to the tourism industry at hotels and motels, commercial developments, and multi-family residential developments with more than 75 units. This bill would require the DEP Commissioner to issue a general permit (a type of simplified permit in lieu of a permit otherwise required by the law) for the construction of a seasonal or temporary structure related to the tourism industry at a commercial development, a hotel, a motel, or a residential development having 75 or more dwelling units, provided that certain specified criteria set forth in the bill are met.