[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Wilton as indicated
in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Noise — See Ch. 79.
[Adopted 1-15-1992 by L.L. No. 1-1992]
This article is intended to promote the health, safety and general welfare
of the people of the Town of Wilton, New York, including the protection of
the property of the Town and its inhabitants, by proposing regulations on
the installation and maintenance of fire alarms.
For the purpose of this article, the words and phrases set forth in
this section shall be defined as set forth in this section:
Any fire alarm system designed to send a signal, recorded, coded
or otherwise, which terminates in any manner at any volunteer fire company,
at the Saratoga County Fire Control Center or at a facility responsible for
monitoring such alarm systems or any fire alarm system designed to emit an
audible signal at the exterior of the premises of the alarm installation.
Any accidental, deliberate, reckless or negligent initiation or activation
of an emergency fire alarm when any emergency situation does not exist.
Each and every emergency fire alarm system in the Town of Wilton shall
be properly maintained in operating condition by the building owner or his
agent.
A.
A false alarm within 120 days of a previously false alarm
shall cause a civil penalty of $100 to be levied against the owner of the
property from which said false alarms emitted, whether the false alarm was
caused by human error or malfunction of equipment; except, however, that such
civil penalty shall not apply to false alarms intentionally initiated by one
not under the control or supervision of the property owner or representative.
The civil penalty levied for any additional false alarms within the one-hundred-twenty-day
period shall be $200 per alarm. Nothing in this article shall exempt any person
from criminal prosecution under the New York State Penal Law covering in any
manner the intentional transmission of false alarms.
B.
Following response to an emergency fire alarm which subsequent
investigation determines to be false and the notification of said fact by
the Fire Department to the owner of the premises or his representative from
which the alarm emanated, the owner or representative shall file a written
report with the Fire Department in that district and with the Code Enforcement
Officer within 72 hours of such notification. Such report shall contain all
information pertaining to the reason for activation of the emergency fire
alarm, and the planned corrective action, if any, on the part of the property
owner to prevent future false alarms.
Each and every fire alarm system which terminates in any manner at any
volunteer fire company or the Saratoga County Fire Control Center or at a
facility responsible for monitoring such alarm system must be electrically
configurated so as to also terminate at the home or place of business of the
owner or a designated representative of the subject premises, and such owner
or representative must immediately report to the scene of the alarm.
There shall be no testing of emergency fire alarms which would normally
summon the appropriate fire company unless such test is first cleared, verified
and authorized by all entities and/or agencies where such alarm terminates,
including but not limited to the volunteer Fire Department servicing the property
and the Saratoga County Fire Control Center.
The owner of each property which contains an emergency fire alarm as
herein set forth must provide the local Fire Department and the Saratoga County
Fire Control Center with a list of three people, their addresses and telephone
numbers, who may be contacted in the event that an alarm is received, who
will be able to grant access to the subject premises.
A.
Neither the Town of Wilton nor the fire districts serving
the Town of Wilton shall be liable for any defects in operation of emergency
fire alarm systems, nor for failure to respond appropriately, nor any erroneous
response pursuant to the provisions of this article with respect to the installation,
operation and maintenance of equipment, the transmission of alarm systems
or messages or the relaying of such systems or messages.
B.
In the event that the Town of Wilton or any fire districts
within said Town find it necessary to disconnect any signaling device, the
foregoing parties shall incur no liability therefrom.
The civil penalty for violation of any of the provisions of this article
or any rules or regulations promulgated hereto, except where such penalty
is specifically provided for in said provision, rule or regulation, shall
be remitted to the Town of Wilton and thereupon 1/2 of the fine collected
shall be transmitted to the fire district in which the violation occurred.
A.
The duly designated Town Code Enforcement Officer shall
enforce the provisions of this article and shall investigate and report any
violation thereof.
B.
Upon the receipt of a signed complaint by the Code Enforcement
Officer concerning any alleged violation of this article, a civil summons
against the alleged violator may be issued by the Code Enforcement Officer
and said matter shall be considered a small claims case under New York law
for all procedural purposes.