Albigese v. Jersey City

• Decision Date: 07 August 1974
• Citation: 324 A.2d 577,129 N.J.Super. 567
• Parties: Richard J. ALBIGESE, trading as Dominion Enterprises, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. JERSEY CITY, a municipal corporation, Defendant-Respondent. ROBERT GOLDBERG REAL ESTATE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. JERSEY CITY, Municipal Court, Rent Control Board, City Attorney of Jersey City, Defendant-Respondent.
• Court: New Jersey Superior Court — Appellate Division

Page 567

129 N.J.Super. 567

324 A.2d 577

Richard J. ALBIGESE, trading as Dominion Enterprises, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. JERSEY CITY, a municipal corporation, Defendant-Respondent.

ROBERT GOLDBERG REAL ESTATE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. JERSEY CITY, Municipal Court, Rent Control Board, City

Attorney of Jersey City, Defendant-Respondent.

Superior Court of New Jersey,

Appellate Division.

Argued April 29, 1974.

Decided Aug. 7, 1974.

Joseph L. Freiman, Union City, for plaintiff-appellant Richard J. Albigese, trading as Dominion Enterprises.

Harvey M. Douglen, Roselle Park, for plaintiff-appellant Robert Goldberg Real Estate Management Co. (Stier & Douglen, Roselle Park, attorneys).

Eileen Tulipan Martini, Asst. Corp. Counsel, Jersey City, for defendant-respondent Jersey City, a municipal corporation (Dennis L. McGill, Corp. Counsel, Jersey City, attorney), and defendant-respondent Jersey City, Municipal Council, Rent Control Board, City Attorney of Jersey City (Raymond A. Hayser, Acting Corp. Counsel, Jersey City, attorney).

Before Judges CONFORD, HANDLER and MEANOR.

PER CURIAM.

These two cases present challenges to the Rent Stabilization Ordinance of the City of Jersey City. All but one of the issues presented here were dealt with at the trial level in two opinions by Judge Larner. Albigese v. Jersey City, 127 N.J.Super. 101, 316 A.2d 483 (Law Div.1974) and Woodcliff Management v. North Bergen, 127 N.J.Super. 123, 316 A.2d 494 (Law Div.1974). The latter has not been appealed, and decided an issue relative to the rent rollback provisions of the ordinance which was not raised at the trial level but which is raised here in both of the cases now before us.

Substantially for the reasons set forth by Judge Larner in Woodcliff Management v. North Bergen, Supra, we modify the judgments under review to the end that any rent rollback in these matters be calculated in accordance with the decision in that case, and as so modified the judgments are affirmed essentially for the reasons set forth in Albigese v. Jersey City, Supra.

The ordinance in question was effective March 12, 1973 and by its own terms was to remain in effect 'for a period not to exceed one year from said effective date * * * unless specifically extended by the Municipal Council by Resolution extending said term from year to year.' The additional issue presented to us, not ripe at the time of the decisions below, is whether the municipality has power to extend this ordinance by resolution.

It is a recognized tenet of municipal law that the term 'ordinance' encompasses matters legislative in character, while the term 'resolution' refers to matters administrative or procedural in nature. McLaughlin v. Millville, 110 N.J.Super. 200, 264 A.2d 762 (Law Div.1970); O'Keefe v. Dunn, 89 N.J.Super. 383, 388, 215 A.2d 66 (Law Div.1965), affirmed o.b. 47 N.J. 210, 219 A.2d 872 (1966); Woodhull v. Manahan, 85 N.J.Super. 157, 164, 204 A.2d 212 (App.Div.1964), aff'd 43 N.J. 445, 205 A.2d 441 (1964); 5 McQuillin, Municipal Corporations, § 15.02 and § 16.42 (1969).

Unquestionably, the ordinance before us represents an exercise of legislative power. Thus, its enactment by ordinance and not by resolution was required. Amendment or reenactment of legislation required initially to be enacted by ordinance must be accomplished by the same means and may not be done by resolution. Kessler v. Passaic, 113 N.J.Super 59, 272 A.2d 570...