The purpose of this chapter is to protect and promote the health,
safety and general welfare of the employees and the residents of the
Village of Depew by reducing the number of avoidable security and
or fire alarms requiring emergency responses which are susceptible
to high accident rates, interfere with genuine emergencies (responses)
and produce unnecessary alarm noise to the surrounding community.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
ALARM SYSTEM
A device or an assembly of equipment which is designed to
detect unauthorized entry, smoke, abnormal rise in temperature, fire
from a building, a structure or facility, or which is designed to
detect any emergency situation, and by reason thereof emits a response
to alert persons.
AUTOMATIC DIALER
A device that automatically dials and relays a prerecorded
message to an emergency agency.
EMERGENCY AGENCY
The Police Department, Fire Department, Central Fire Dispatch
or other emergency dispatch centers.
The owners and lessee of premises that have fire alarm systems
or any other system designed to detect emergency situations, shall
comply with all of the provisions of this chapter on or before the
first day of May 2013.
The activation of any alarm system through mechanical failure,
malfunction, improper installation, or the negligence of the owner,
user, custodian, or lessee of an alarm system, or of his or her employees,
requiring an emergency response when in fact an emergency does not
exist, constitutes an avoidable alarm. An avoidable alarm also includes
intentional activation of an alarm system when the activator knows
an emergency situation does not exist.
An owner or a lessee of real property to which an emergency
agency responds as a result of an avoidable alarm, shall pay a fee
for each such response in each calendar year as follows:
A. First avoidable alarm response: no charge.
B. Second and over avoidable alarm responses: $150 for each.
The owner or a lessee of real property which received an emergency
response by reason of an avoidable alarm shall be notified in writing
by means of first-class mail of each avoidable alarm in a calendar
year. The letter shall inform the owner or lessee of the times and
types of emergency responses provided to the address location and
shall contain a copy of this chapter.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be punished as provided in §
1-10 of this Code.