By: Linda Seida – Staff Writer
LAMBERTVILLE – Residents who want to see stronger controls over apartment rentals and harsher penalties for violators will have to wait a while longer as officials debate a range of stiffer fines.
The City Council last week began a discussion of the governing ordinance to "make it a little tighter," Mayor David Del Vecchio said. Council members debated heftier registration fees and fines, but tabled a decision for at least a month to allow city attorney, Philip Faherty, time to research the issue.
"We should have a better sense by the next meeting" on Sept. 20, Acting Clerk Cynthia Ege said.
The ordinance that governs landlords and rental units requires an annual registration accompanied by a $50 fee per building, not per rental unit. Under discussion, and subject to change, is the amount of the fee as well as whether it would be levied per building or per unit.
The ordinance now limits fines to a maximum of $2,000. The discussion among council members briefly touched on the possibility of changing the fine to a minimum of $2,000. "We certainly heard form a lot of community members who wanted to see the cap go up," Councilman Ward Sanders said.
The ordinance calls for a minimum fine of $250 plus court costs for the first offense. A second offense carries a minimum fine of $1,225, and each offense thereafter carries a $2,000 fine.
By placing a cap on the amount a landlord can be fined, "we give the prosecutor the ability to negotiate something," Mayor Del Vecchio said.
Residents asked officials to make changes because of worries about illegal boardinghouses and the possibility of overcrowding.
However, two separate complaints recently filed with the city found the dwellings were not illegal and there was no overcrowding. One residence, for instance, had out-of-town visitors, Ms. Ege explained.
Past complaints resulted in prosecutions when rental units were either unregistered or overcrowded.

