[HISTORY: Adopted by Board of Supervisors
of the Township of West Whiteland 5-10-2005 by Ord. No. 329. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
The Board of Supervisors finds that the ability
of police, fire, ambulance, and other emergency providers and personnel
to communicate with each other within buildings and structures, and
to communicate from within structures and buildings to personnel and
locations outside the building and structure, is of vital public importance.
A breakdown in communications among emergency providers and personnel
creates a serious risk of harm to and is a serious threat to the safety
and welfare of emergency personnel, the citizens of West Whiteland
Township and the public in general. Therefore, pursuant to the police
power, the Board enacts this chapter to protect the public health,
safety, and welfare.
The following words and terms shall, for the
purposes of this chapter and as used elsewhere in this Code, have
the meanings shown herein.
Association of Public Safety Communication Officials International.
National Association of Business and Education Radio.
Chester County Department of Emergency Services.
Personal Communications Industry Association.
Federal Communications Commission.
National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee.
A.Â
Except as otherwise provided, no person shall erect,
construct, alter, refit, change the use of or provide an addition
of more than 20% of the existing floor area to any building or structure
or a part thereof or cause the same to be done, which fails to support
adequate radio coverage for CCDES, the West Whiteland Township Fire
Department and the West Whiteland Township Police Department. For
the purposes of this chapter, adequate radio coverage shall include
all of the following:
(1)Â
A minimum signal strength of -95dBM available in 95% of the area
of each floor of the building when transmitted from the closest CCDES
radio communications systems site.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
(2)Â
A minimum signal strength of -95dBM received at the closest CCDES
radio communications site when transmitted from 95% of the area of
each floor of the building.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
(3)Â
The frequency range, which must be supported from 763 MHz to 861
MHz.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
(4)Â
A ninety-percent reliability factor.
(5)Â
Signal strength measurements, for the purpose of measuring
the performance of a bidirectional amplifier, shall be based on one
input signal adequate to obtain a maximum continuous operating output
level.
B.Â
The provisions of this chapter shall become applicable
upon notification to the property owner that unacceptable levels exist.
The property owner shall have 90 days from date of notification to
enhance radio coverage and bring it within the acceptable limits of
these provisions.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
Buildings and structures which cannot support the required level
of radio coverage shall be equipped with either a radiating cable
system or an internal multiple antenna system with or without FCC
type accepted bidirectional 800 MHz amplifiers as needed. If any part
of the installed system or systems contains an electrically powered
component, the system shall be capable of operating on an independent
battery and/or generator system for a period of at least 12 hours
without external power input. The battery system shall charge in the
presence of an external power input. If used, bidirectional amplifiers
shall include filters to reduce adjacent frequency interference at
35 dB below the NPSPAC band. Settings used should not attenuate the
NPSPAC frequencies and further provided that they are not more than
one MHz from the NPSPAC frequencies.
A.Â
Acceptance test procedure:
(1)Â
When an in-building radio system is required, and
upon completion of installation, it will be the building owner's
responsibility to have the radio system tested to ensure that two-way
coverage on each floor of the building is a minimum of 95%. Each floor
of the building shall be divided into a grid of approximately 20 equal
areas. A maximum of two nonadjacent areas will be allowed to fail
the test. In the event that three of the areas fail the test, in order
to be more statistically accurate, the floor may be divided into 40
equal areas. In such event, a maximum of four nonadjacent areas will
be allowed to fail the test. After the 40 area tests, if the system
continues to fail, the building owner shall have the system altered
to meet the ninety-five-percent coverage requirement. The test shall
be conducted using the most current portable radio, or its equivalent,
available to the West Whiteland Township Police and/or Fire Department,
talking through the CCDES as specified by the authority having jurisdiction.
A spot located approximately in the center of a grid area will be
selected for the test; then the radio will be keyed to verify two-way
communications to and from the outside of the building through the
CCDES. Once the spot has been selected, prospecting for a better spot
within the grid area will not be permitted.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
(2)Â
The gain values of all amplifiers shall be measured,
and the test measurement results shall be kept on file with the building
owner so that the measurements can be verified each year during the
annual tests. In the event that the measurement results become lost,
the building owner will be required to rerun the acceptance test to
reestablish the gain values.
B.Â
Annual tests. When an in-building radio system is
required, the building owner shall test all active components of the
system, including but not limited to amplifiers, power supplies and
backup batteries, a minimum of once every 12 months. Amplifiers shall
be tested to ensure that the gain is the same as it was upon initial
installation and acceptance. Backup batteries and power supplies shall
be tested under load for a period of one hour to verify that they
will properly operate during an actual power outage. If within the
one-hour test period, in the opinion of the testing technician, the
battery exhibits symptoms of failure, the test shall be extended for
additional one-hour periods until the testing technician confirms
the integrity of the battery. All other active components shall be
checked to determine that they are operating within the manufacturer's
specifications for the intended period.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
C.Â
Five-year tests. In addition to the annual test, the
building owner shall perform a radio coverage test a minimum of once
every five years to ensure that the radio system continues to meet
the requirements of the original acceptance test. The procedure set
forth above shall apply to such tests. A copy of accepted tests shall
be provided to the Chester County Emergency Services Engineering Department.
D.Â
Qualifications of testing personnel. All tests shall
be conducted, documented and signed by a person in possession of a
current FCC technician license or a current technician certification
issued by the APCO, NABER, or the PCIA. All test records shall be
retained on the inspected premises by the building owner and a copy
submitted to officials of the West Whiteland Fire Company and the
West Whiteland Township Police Department.
[Amended 2-10-2016 by Ord. No. 432]
Police and fire personnel, after providing reasonable
notice to the owner or his representative, shall have the right to
enter onto the property to conduct field testing to be certain that
the required level of radio coverage is present.
This chapter shall not apply to structures in
Use Groups R-3 and R-4 of the International Building Code, any building
constructed of wood frame, any building 35 feet high or less, as long
as none of the aforementioned buildings make use of any metal construction
or any underground storage or parking areas. For purposes of this
chapter, parking structures and stairwells are included in the definition
of "building" and stair shafts are included in the definition of "all
parts of a building," but elevators may be excluded.
Any nonexempt building or structure existing, under construction or for which a building permit application is pending or has been provided as of the effective date of this chapter, shall comply with the requirements of this chapter if the CCDES, West Whiteland Township Fire Department or West Whiteland Township Police Department determines that adequate radio coverage as defined in § 148-3 of this chapter does not exist in the building or structure. The owner of the building or structure shall be notified, in writing, of the inadequacy of the coverage and shall have a period of 90 consecutive calendar days from the date of the notice to comply with this chapter, including but not limited to enhancing radio coverage and bringing it within the acceptable limits of this chapter.
Any person who violates or commits the violation
of any provision of this chapter shall be subject to a fine in the
amount of at least $150, but not to exceed $1,000, plus all court
costs. In addition, the Township, through its Solicitor, may institute
injunctive, mandamus or any other appropriate action or proceeding
at law or in equity for the enforcement of this chapter.
