[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Castleton-on-Hudson 8-11-2008 by L.L. No. 1-2008. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Building construction and fire prevention — See Ch. 101.
The chapter shall be known as the "Emergency Access Systems
Local Law of the "Village of Castleton-on-Hudson."
The Village of Castleton-on-Hudson has recognized the importance
of providing the Town's emergency services rapid entry into locked
buildings. An Emergency Access Systems Local Law provides for the
placement in secured, locked containers of keys to important areas
within a structure and information that may be vital and necessary
to the health, safety, and welfare of the occupants and responding
emergency crews. The delay in gaining entry can result in substantial
property damage, delays in providing lifesaving or other medical procedures,
and increased danger for emergency services personnel and the building
occupants. To assist the emergency service providers in gaining rapid
entry, the Village of Castleton-on-Hudson adopts an Emergency Access
Systems Local Law.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
- AUTOMATIC FIRE-SUPPRESSION SYSTEM
- A system or assembly of piping, valves, controls and sprinklers which are designed and installed to comply with the National Fire Protection Association which utilize water, foam, carbon dioxide or other gas to automatically react to and suppress fire.
- BUILDING DEPARTMENT
- A department of the Village of Castleton-on-Hudson located at the Village Hall.
- EMERGENCY ALARM
- Any device designed to alert police, fire or emergency medical personnel to an emergency condition requiring attention and to which police, fire or emergency medical service units are expected to respond. This definition shall include alarms that terminate at an answering service, as well as those that emit an audible or visible signal.
- FALSE ALARM
- An alarm signal from an emergency alarm or notification by an emergency alarm answering service which calls for an emergency response from the Town of Schodack Police Department, fire services or emergency medical services where an emergency situation does not in fact exist. The term "false alarm" shall not include an alarm signal caused by testing or repairing of telephone or electrical lines or equipment outside of the premises, an attempted illegal entry of which there is visible evidence, violent conditions of nature or other extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject to control by the alarm user or alarm supplier.
- KEY BOX
- A high-security key vault of UL-type approved by the Village of Castleton-on-Hudson Building Department, master keyed with a Medeco® Biaxial Level 7 or equivalent lock. Locks shall be keyed to the key configuration provided by the Village of Castleton-on-Hudson. Such vaults shall have weatherproof gaskets, shall have a covered lock opening and shall be highly resistant to drilling or vandalism.
- KEY BOX DOCUMENT VAULT
- A high-security steel plate vault, a minimum of 14 inches high by 12 inches wide by two inches deep, constructed to the same standards as the lock box, for the storage of documents.
This chapter shall be applicable to:
One- and two-family dwellings and buildings having a twenty-four-hour,
seven-day-per-week guard system shall be specifically exempted from
the requirements for a key box.
A.
The key box shall be installed on the front of the building, near
the main entry door and between six feet and eight feet above the
ground, unless approved for another location or at a higher or lower
level by the Building Department. The department must approve all
installations.
B.
Keys within the lock box shall be labeled for easy identification
either by the tenant name or indexed to a floor plan of the building
and shall be kept current.
C.
The key box shall contain the following:
(1)
Unless otherwise agreed upon with the local chief, key(s) or magnetic cards for the exterior doors, the keys or magnetic cards for all the interior doors identified in Subsection C(2) to C(5) below within the building, and a scaled floor plan of the building. Mixed occupancies and strip shopping center keys shall be provided only for the occupancies where system control valves or fire alarm system panels exist.
(2)
Keys or magnet cards to locked mechanical equipment and sprinkler
control rooms.
(3)
Keys or magnet cards to locked electrical rooms or panels or fire
alarms control panels.
(4)
Keys or magnet cards to locked elevator rooms or controls, and elevator
keys, if required.
(5)
Keys or magnet cards to other areas as directed by the Building Department.
(6)
Access codes to digital fire alarm keypads.
D.
The key box document vault shall contain those items required to
be stored in a key box, and, unless the local Fire Chief otherwise
agrees, the following additional items:
(1)
A current list of facility personnel knowledgeable about safety procedures
of the materials on site, complete with the telephone numbers for
each person.
(2)
A current emergency and hazardous chemical inventory form and binder
containing the material safety date sheets (MSDS) or, in the event
that the volume of MSDS sheets is too great to keep practically in
the document vault, the location of on-site MSDS, and those MSDS shall
be readily available for use by emergency response personnel.
(3)
A facility site plan showing the location of storage and use of hazardous
materials on site, and any other building floor plan deemed necessary
by the Building Department.
A.
All existing buildings covered by this chapter shall comply within
36 months of the effective date of this chapter.
B.
All new construction covered by this chapter, including buildings
currently under construction as of the effective date, for which no
certificate of occupancy has been issued, shall comply immediately.
A.
Any person who shall fail to comply with any of the applicable provisions
of this chapter or any lawful order, notice, directive, permit or
certificate of the Building Department made hereunder shall be punishable
by a fine of $250. Each month that a violation continues shall be
deemed a separate offense.
B.
In lieu of said fine, any person charged with violating the provisions
of the chapter shall immediately install and maintain a key box or
key box document vault subject to approval of the Building Department.
C.
It shall be unlawful for any person to tamper, meddle with, deface,
vandalize or interfere in any way with an emergency access system.
D.
Except as otherwise provided by law, such a violation shall not be
a crime. The penalty or punishment imposed therefor shall not be deemed
for any purpose a penal or criminal penalty or punishment.
The Village of Castleton-on-Hudson Building Department shall
administer the provisions of this chapter. The Building Department
shall enforce the provisions.
