Bergenfield, NJ Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Encroachment Permits (2026)

Article V of the Streets and Sidewalks chapter, adopted in 1975, opens with § 273-16, which bars any person from encumbering or obstructing a street, highway, public lane, alley or other public place in the Borough by placing building material or any other article or thing on it, unless the Borough Engineer has first given written permission. That permit requirement functions as Bergenfield's mechanism for private encroachments into the right-of-way, whether it is a contractor staging lumber for a renovation, a dumpster, or scaffolding materials, and it puts the approval authority specifically with the Borough Engineer rather than the Clerk or Council.

The same article layers in related right-of-way controls: § 273-17 separately bars sidewalk merchandise displays and advertising devices, and § 273-18 sets a minimum seven-foot clearance for awnings projecting over a street or sidewalk and bars them from extending more than ten feet past the curbline. Section 273-19, most recently amended in 2025, lets the Mayor and Council grant permission for the sale of merchandise on public highways, streets and walks on 30 days' application, subject to a bond of up to $500 and notice to the Chief of Police and Chief Health Officer.

Together these sections show the encroachment permit at § 273-16 is not a standalone formality but the entry point for an article that treats every private use of the public right-of-way, materials, displays, awnings, and vending alike, as something the Borough must approve first.