Updated as of June 2018
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Any constructed pool used for swimming or bathing which has a depth in any part of 24 inches or more. A residential swimming pool is any swimming pool which is constructed on the same lot as and used in conjunction with a dwelling and which is available only to the occupants of the dwelling and their private guests.
It shall be unlawful to establish, construct, enlarge or renovate a private swimming pool within the City of Woodbury without having first obtained a permit therefor in the manner hereinafter prescribed.
The words, terms and phrases listed below, for the purpose of this chapter, shall be defined as follows:
Includes the Health Officer or other duly authorized representative thereof, except in such cases where the Board is referred to in a manner that contemplates action by it as a body.
Includes the Construction Code Official or other duly authorized representative thereof, except in such cases where the City is referred to in a manner that contemplates action by it as a body.
The building or constructing or installing of a new swimming pool or the enlarging of an existing swimming pool or any of its facilities.
Includes corporations, companies, associations, societies, firms and partnerships as well as individuals.
Any above-surface type of swimming, bathing or wading pool and all equipment and appurtenances thereto not designed or intended to be stationary or permanently fixed, but designed and intended to be removed and stored.
Any private pool, whether permanently constructed or of the portable type, having a depth of more than 18 inches below the level of the surrounding land, or any above-surface pool, including appurtenances such as decking, having a depth of more than 24 inches, designed, used and maintained for swimming or bathing purpose by an individual for the use of members of his or her household and guests and located on the applicant’s land as an accessory use to a residence, and includes all buildings, equipment, structures and appurtenances thereto.
Any shallow pool not included in the definition herein of “swimming pool.”
174-3Scope and application of provisions.
The application of the provisions herein to a permanent-type swimming pool constructed prior to the passage of this chapter shall be as follows:
Such pools shall not be subject to the requirements under § 174-8 hereof pertaining to distance of pool from boundary lines, etc., if a permit had been previously obtained or unless an enlargement of facilities is sought.
Such pools shall be exempt from requirements under § 174-4 pertaining to permits and fees if a permit had been previously obtained, unless an enlargement of facilities is sought.
Such pools, however, shall be subject to all the provisions and regulations relating to safety and sanitation, but also subject to the right of appeal provided in § 174-14 hereof.
The provisions of this chapter shall not pertain to wading pools or portable pools, unless specific reference is made in any section herein to any such type of pool.
174-4Application for permit; fee; approval or rejection.
Applications for the construction and maintenance of a private swimming pool shall be made to the Construction Code Official and shall be accompanied by duplicate sets of the following:
Swimming pool plans and specifications or proper description brochures.
Plot plan showing property lines of the premises upon which the swimming pool is to be constructed or installed, all existing houses and structures thereon, abutting streets and properties, as well as abutting structures, and the location and dimensions of the proposed pool and its auxiliary structures, including a description of the enclosure or fence to be used.
A description of the method of disinfection, treatment and disposal of the water to be used.
The Construction Code Official shall file a set of plans and specifications with the Board of Health prior to the issuance of a permit.
A fee of $25 shall be charged by the Construction Code Official for such permit and shall be tendered with the application to the Construction Code Official.
The Construction Code Official shall, within 15 days after receiving an application for a permit, act upon the same as follows:
Approve application as submitted and cause the permit to be issued; or
Require amendment to application to assure proper compliance with provisions of this chapter and then cause the permit to be issued; or
Reject application when it is determined that a permit should not be issued. Appeal shall be available to applicant pursuant to § 174-14.
Electrical fixtures, wiring and installation thereof used in connection with a pool shall conform to the standards of the National Board of Fire Underwriters for electrical wiring and apparatus. No temporary electrical connections shall be permitted.
174-6Construction and maintenance.
All materials used in the construction of swimming pools shall be waterproof and so designed and constructed as to facilitate emptying and cleaning and shall be maintained and operated in such manner as to be clean and sanitary at all time. Inlets shall be so located and spaced as to secure satisfactory dispersion of inflowing waters throughout the pool and to permit draining, cleaning and disinfecting of the bottom and sides. Sand or earth bottoms shall not be used.
174-7Equipment and sanitary quality of water.
All swimming pools, including the portable pools, shall be so constructed, installed and maintained as to provide necessary equipment for the chlorination and other disinfection and filtering of water to comply with approved bacteriological standards as may be promulgated by regulations issued by the Board of Health of the City of Woodbury and the New Jersey State Department of Health.
The physical, chemical and bacterial qualities of the water of swimming pools and portable pools shall include maintaining a pH level between 7.2 and 8.2 and a chlorine residual level of at least 0.4 parts per million and shall comply with the regulations and standards now or hereafter provided in the Sanitary Code of the City of Woodbury.
[Amended 12-14-2009 by Ord. No. 2110-09]
A private swimming pool or portable pool may be constructed, installed and maintained only upon a lot having a residential dwelling, as defined in the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Woodbury,[1] or upon a lot immediately adjacent to the owner’s residence. Pools shall not be permitted in front yards.
Editor’s Note: See Ch. 202, Zoning.
Such private swimming pool or portable pool may not be located closer than 10 feet to any side or near property line, 10 feet to any dwelling located on said premises, 25 feet to any dwelling located on adjacent premises, nor nearer to any street line than 40 feet, except that in the case of a corner lot a pool shall not be constructed closer to the side street line than the required setback line as set forth in the Zoning Ordinance, provided also that a four-foot and no taller than a six-foot fence with proper landscape screening is installed.
The appurtenances associated with a private swimming pool or portable pool shall not be located any closer than five feet from any side or rear property line and eight feet from the water’s edge.
The drainage waste from swimming pools shall be dispersed upon the premises wherein said pool is located, and if not practicable, then into a seepage pit or storm sewer. The discharge of any wastewater shall in no case cause or create a nuisance to the abutting property or the public.
There shall be no connection between a potable (public or private) water supply system and a swimming pool, portable pool or wading pool at a point below the maximum flow of the pool or to a recirculating or heating system of a pool, unless such physical connection is so installed and operated that no pool water can be discharged or siphoned into a potable water supply system.
All pools referred to in § 174-2, not equipped with facilities for the recirculation and reuse of the pool water, may be subject to closure by order of the Board of Health during any period of emergency water shortage.
Whenever any pool as set forth in § 174-2, by reason of mechanical defects or failure to comply with the requirements of this chapter, is a hazard to the health of users thereof, the Health Officer may summarily close such pool and keep such pool closed until further hazard to users of the same no longer exists, subject to the right of appeal to the Board of Health by the owner of such pool, which appeal shall not stay the action of the Health Officer.
Every swimming pool having a depth of 18 inches below the level of the land surrounding the pool and all above-surface pools having a depth of 24 inches or more shall, within 60 days of the enactment of this chapter, be protected by an enclosure adequate to make such pool inaccessible to small children. The enclosure shall be a fence constructed of durable material not less than 42 inches in height nor more than six feet in height. Such fence may, in part, consist of a wall or building. The enclosure shall be constructed so as to afford no external handholds or footholds, of materials which are impenetrable by toddlers, and equipped with a self-closing and positive self-locking gate mechanism not more than six inches below the top of the gate and provided with hardware for permanent locking.
It shall be deemed that there is sufficient compliance with this section when the yard in which a pool is located is completely enclosed as described in Subsection A above
Existing aboveground swimming pools of a height of four feet or more above ground level shall be considered to be in compliance with the fencing requirements contained herein where adequate safeguards exist, such as absence of permanent access, or where decking exists, with suitable fencing around such decking as well as a self-locking gate at either the top or base of the ladder or steps giving access to such decking.
Lights used to illuminate any pool shall be so arranged and shaded as to reflect light away from the adjoining premises.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment of the City of Woodbury shall hear all appeals from the requirements of this chapter in the same manner as required for other variance requests; provided, however, that when any question of sanitation is involved, then the Board of Health shall be consulted in order to determine whether there is created a harm to public health.
174-15Violations and penalties.
[Amended 11-28-2005 by Ord. No. 2015-05]
Any person or persons violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to one or more of the following: a fine not exceeding $1,000; imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 90 days; or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days. Every day that such violation continues shall be deemed to be a separate offense.
[Amended 5-19-1987 by Ord. No. 1526-87; 11-28-2005 by Ord. No. 2015-05; 12-14-2009 by Ord. No. 2110-0]
All fences erected in the City of Woodbury shall be subject to the following requirements:
A fence permit issued by the Zoning Officer shall be required prior to the erection of any fence, except a living fence, in the City. The term “fence” shall include walls not part of other structures, but shall not include temporary planting enclosures intended for weather protection. Except where specifically provided herein, none of the restrictions or provisions herein shall apply to living fences.
The application for a fence permit shall be presented on an approved form prepared by the Zoning Officer and shall include the following:
The name of the property owner and the address of the property where the fence is to be erected.
The name and address of the person or company installing the fence.
A description with a pictorial elevation and a construction plan of the fence and landscaping details. The construction plan shall address materials and color.
A plot plan of the premises in question, at a scale of not less than one inch equals 30 feet, showing the location of the proposed fence, the location of all structures, including structures on adjacent properties within 10 feet of the proposed fence, the distance the proposed fence will be from those structures and sight lines.
A fence no taller than six feet may be constructed along a rear alley.
No fence erected on or around a residential lot or parcel of land shall exceed six feet in height. Preconstructed fences must be installed as close to the ground as possible. The total height of the fence will not include any slight undulation of the ground, provided that 80% of the fence does not exceed the maximum height of six feet.
No fence shall be erected in a front yard of any lot in a residential zone or along a public right-of-way or alley unless the fence is not more than 50% solid and is not more than 48 inches in height.
The following fences and fencing materials are specifically prohibited: barbed-wire fences, short pointed fences, canvas, cloth or electronically charged fences, razor ribbon, poultry netting, temporary fence, such as snow fences, expansible fences and collapsible fences, except during construction on such property.
All fences shall be erected with the face or finished side away from the property and the structural side toward the interior of the property. Fence gates shall have a latch and shall open into the property and not onto the sidewalk, street or other adjacent property.
Fences which are painted shall be painted in only one color harmonious with the surrounding area. Multicolored fences are prohibited.
Living fences or screens shall be planted no closer than four feet to the property line and shall not encroach over a sidewalk or beyond a property line. Living fences shall be maintained in a neatly trimmed condition.
Fences shall be erected in a manner as to permit the flow of natural drainage and shall not cause surface water to be blocked or dammed to create ponding.
Fences higher than six feet, such as those required around a tennis court, may be permitted in a residential zone by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. However, such a fence will be considered a structure requiring a building permit and shall meet minimum side and rear yard requirements for an accessory building. For fences required around a swimming pool, see Chapter 174, Swimming Pools, Private. In the case of required fencing for open-air motor vehicle parking lots located in residential districts and in Planned Apartment Districts, which are provided for in Chapter 202, Zoning, those requirements shall supersede and be paramount to any fencing requirements contained herein.
A four-foot-wide landscaped area shall be placed between a property line and a fence if that fence is located along a street line.
Fences shall not be erected on the property line without the approval of the adjacent property owner submitted, in writing, with the application for a fence permit, and in no event shall a fence extend beyond a property line. All fences shall respect sight lines as verified by the City Engineer.
Every fence shall be maintained in a safe, sound, upright condition and in accordance with the approved plan on file with the Zoning Officer.
If the Zoning officer, upon inspection, determines that any fence or wall or portion of any fence or wall is not being maintained in a safe, sound, upright condition, he shall notify the owner of such fence, in writing, of his findings and state briefly the reasons for such findings and order such fence or wall or portion of such fence or wall repaired or removed within 30 days of the date of the written notice. Each day the person fails to obey the order referred to above shall constitute a separate violation of this order.
[Amended 11-28-2005 by Ord. No. 2015-05]
Any person violating any provision of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by one or more of the following: a fine not exceeding $1,000; imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days; or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days.
For more information on New Jersey pool fencing laws and regulations, or if you are interested in what designs work best around your pool, visit Carl’s at www.bycarls.com or call 732-504-3372.
