Township of Derry, PA Fire Prevention

This chapter shall be known and cited as the "Derry Township International Fire Code Ordinance."

A certain document, three copies of which are on file in the office of the Township Secretary of the Township of Derry, being marked and designated as the International Fire Code, 2009 edition, as published by the International Code Council, be and is hereby adopted as the fire code of the Township of Derry, which Township is located within Mifflin County, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, regulating and governing the safeguarding of life and property from fire and explosion hazards arising from the storage, handling and use of hazardous substances, materials and devices, and from conditions hazardous to life or property in the occupancy of buildings and premises as herein provided, providing for the issuance of permits and collection of fees therefor, and each and all of the regulations, provisions, penalties, conditions and terms of said fire code on file in the office of the Township of Derry are hereby referred to, adopted and made a part hereof, as if fully set out in this chapter, with the additions, insertions, deletions and changes, if any, prescribed in § 121-3 of this chapter.

The following sections of the aforesaid International Fire Code, 2009 edition, are hereby deleted and revised, as applicable:

A.

Section 101.1. Insert: Township of Derry, Mifflin County, Pennsylvania.

B.

Section 108.1. Delete the provisions of Section 108.1, and replace with the following:

108.1 Board of Appeals established.
(a)	Board of Appeals. In order to hear and decide appeals of orders, decisions or determinations made by the fire code official relative to the application and interpretation of this code, there shall be appointed by the Township Board of Supervisors a Board of Appeals consisting of three persons.
(b)	Terms. Members of the Board of Appeals shall be residents of the Township, and shall be appointed for terms of three years. Of the members first appointed, one shall be appointed for a term of one year, one shall be appointed for a term of two years and one shall be appointed for a term of three years. Thereafter, subsequent members shall each be appointed for terms of three years.
(c)	Vacancies. Vacancies shall be filled for an unexpired term in the manner in which the original appointments are required to be made. In the case of a vacancy, the person appointed shall be appointed to complete the unexpired term.
(d)	Officers. The Board of Appeals shall elect from its number a Chairman and Vice Chairman.
(e)	Quorum. Two members of the Board shall constitute a quorum. In a ruling on the application of any provisions of this code or in an order modifying an order of the fire code official, an affirmative vote of the majority present shall be required.
(f)	Meetings. No schedule of regular meetings is prescribed for the Board of Appeals. The Board may schedule regular meetings and special meetings as it may determine to be necessary and appropriate for the purposes of conducting hearings on cases before it, taking formal and final action on such cases before it as may be ready for entry of decisions, and holding and/or resuming hearings in those cases which were previously scheduled and have been continued, postponed, rescheduled or recessed or adjourned to another date.
(g)	Sunshine Act. Meetings and hearings of the Board of Appeals shall be subject to the Pennsylvania Sunshine Act, 65 Pa.C.S.A. § 701 et seq., as it may be amended from time to time.
(h)	Conflict of interest. Members of the Board of Appeals with a material or financial interest in a matter before the Board of Appeals shall declare such interest and refrain from participating in discussions, deliberations and voting on such matters.
(i)	Hearings. Hearings before the Board of Appeals shall be held in accordance with the provisions of the Pennsylvania Local Agency Law, 2 Pa.C.S.A. § 551 et seq., as it may be amended and supplemented from time to time.
(j)	Legal counsel to the Board of Appeals. The Board of Supervisors, at its expense, shall furnish legal counsel, to the Board of Appeals to provide the Board of Appeals with general legal advice and legal services in relation to the conduct of its duties and responsibilities.
(k)	Appeal applications.
	1.	Appeal applications shall be in writing and shall set forth, at a minimum, the following information:
		a)	The appellant's name, address and telephone number;
		b)	If the appellant is represented by an attorney, the name, address and telephone number of the representative; and
		c)	A brief, concise, detailed statement in separate numbered paragraphs setting forth the facts related to the appeal and the reasons that support the request for relief.
	2.	Filing.
		a)	The appeal application must be filed at the office of the Derry Township Supervisors.
		b)	The appeal application shall be considered filed as of the date it is stamped as received at the office of the Derry Township Supervisors, or if mailed and postmarked by the United States Postal Service (note: postal machine postmarks shall not be acceptable), as of the date of mailing.
	3.	Incomplete appeal application.
		a)	If an appeal application fails to include the minimum information set forth above, the Board of Appeals, or a person duly authorized by the Board of Appeals, may request, in writing, that the appellant submit the omitted information.
		b)	Otherwise, on the failure of the appellant to submit the omitted information, the hearing shall be held based on the information in the appeal application.
	4.	Fees. The fee for an appeal to the Board of Appeals shall be established by resolution of the Board of Supervisors, from time to time, and shall not exceed the actual costs of the public notice of the hearing, the appearance fee of the court reporter and administrative fees, as necessary. The Fee Schedule may be reviewed from time to time to determine reasonable rates for appeals, for hearing costs and otherwise revised accordingly.
(l)	Notice of meeting or hearing. Notice of a meeting or a hearing shall be required to be published once in a newspaper of general circulation in Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, and copy of the notice shall be posted at the location where the meeting or hearing of the Board of Appeals is to be held. Notice shall be published and posted at least seven full days prior to the day of the meeting or hearing.
(m)	Notice to appellant. In the case of a hearing, written notice of a hearing shall be given to the appellant and to legal counsel, if such is listed in the appeal application, at least 15 days prior to the date of the hearing, unless waived, in writing, by the appellant.
(n)	Continuances. The Board of Appeals may grant a reasonable request for a continuance of a scheduled hearing. The request shall be made in writing and shall be signed by the appellant or appellant's previously authorized legal counsel and shall set forth the reasons for the request. The request shall be received by the Board of Appeals at least three days prior to any scheduled hearing.
(o)	Rules of evidence and procedure. The Board of Appeals shall not be bound by technical rules of evidence. It will receive evidence, including production of books, records, documents and other data, that may be relevant and of reasonably probative value to the appeal. Formal rules of evidence do not apply. Reasonable examination and cross-examination shall be permitted. However, the Presiding Officer may rule that irrelevant, immaterial, or unduly repetitious evidence is to be excluded; or, that hearsay evidence which cannot be contested or rebutted by another party is to be excluded. The appellant shall have the burden of proof on all issues.
(p)	Stenographic transcripts and record. All testimony may be stenographically recorded and a full and complete record may be kept of the proceedings. In the event all testimony is not stenographically recorded and a full and complete record of the proceedings is not provided by the Board of Appeals, such testimony shall be stenographically recorded and a full and complete record of the proceedings shall be kept at the request of any party agreeing to pay the costs thereof. A copy of any transcript of proceedings shall be made available to the party not initially requesting the transcription of the hearing, upon the payment for the cost of such copy by the party who did not initially request a transcription or a recording of the hearing.
(q)	Decision. The Board of Appeals shall issue a written decision, containing findings of fact and conclusions of law and the reasons for the decision within 45 days of the date of the last hearing. If a decision is not timely rendered, the appeal and the request therein will be deemed to be approved. The final decision will be served personally or mailed to all parties or to their legal counsel, as applicable and if any, within three business days of the date of the decision.
(r)	Appeal to the Court of Common Pleas. An appeal from the decision of the Board of Appeals to the Court of Common Pleas must be commenced within 30 days after the date of entry of the written decision of the Board of Appeals, per 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 933 and per 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 5571(b).

C.

Section 109.3. Delete the provisions of the code and replace and insert the following:

Section 109.3 Violations and penalties Except as otherwise set forth herein, persons who shall violate a provision of this code or shall fail to comply with any of the requirements thereof or who shall erect, install, alter, repair or do work in violation of the approved construction documents or directive of the fire code official, or of a permit or certificate used under the provisions of this code, shall be guilty of a summary offense. Enforcement thereof shall be by an action brought before a Magisterial District Judge in the same manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure. Any person who shall violate any provision of this chapter, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine in an amount not of not less than $500 and not more than $1,000 per violation and the costs of prosecution, and, in default of payment of such fine and costs of prosecution, shall undergo imprisonment of not more than 90 days; provided, further, that each day's continuance of a violation shall constitute a separate event.[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

D.

Section 111.4. Delete the provisions of the code and replace and insert the following:

Section 111.4 Failure to comply. Any person who shall continue to work after having been served with a stop-work order, except such work as that person is directed to perform to remove a violation or unsafe condition, shall, upon conviction before a Magisterial District Judge, be liable to pay a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $1,000 per violation and the costs of prosecution, and, in default of payment of such fine and costs of prosecution, shall undergo imprisonment of not more than 90 days; provided, further, that each day's continuance of a violation shall constitute a separate event.[2]

[2]

Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

That the geographic limits referred to in certain sections of the 2009 International Fire Code are hereby established as follows:

A.

Section 3404.2.9.6.1 (geographic limits in which the storage of Class I and Class II liquids in aboveground tanks outside of buildings is prohibited). Storage of Class I and Class II liquids in aboveground tanks outside of buildings as set forth in the 2009 International Fire Code shall only be permitted in Zoning Districts in the Township in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 215, Zoning, as amended and supplemented from time to time; otherwise, such shall be prohibited.

B.

Section 3406.2.4.4 (geographic limits in which the storage of Class I and Class II liquids in above-ground tanks is prohibited). Storage of Class I and Class II liquids in aboveground tanks as set forth in the 2009 International Fire Code shall only be permitted in Zoning Districts in the Township in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 215, Zoning, as amended and supplemented from time to time; otherwise, such shall be prohibited.

C.

Section 3506.2 (geographic limits in which the storage of flammable cryogenic fluids in stationary containers is prohibited). Storage of flammable cryogenic fluids in stationary containers as set forth in the 2009 International Fire Code shall only be permitted in Zoning Districts in the Township in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 215, Zoning, as amended and supplemented from time to time; otherwise, such shall be prohibited.

D.

Section 3804.2 (geographic limits in which the storage of liquefied petroleum gas is restricted for the protection of heavily populated or congested areas). Storage of liquefied petroleum gas is restricted for the protection of heavily populated or congested areas as set forth in the 2009 International Fire Code and shall only be permitted in Zoning Districts in the Township in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 215, Zoning, as amended and supplemented from time to time; otherwise, such shall be prohibited.

Nothing in this chapter or the fire code hereby adopted shall be construed to affect any suit or proceeding pending in any court, or any rights acquired, or liability incurred, or any cause or causes of action acquired or existing, under any ordinance, resolution or motion hereby repealed as cited in Section 5 of Ordinance No. 2011-2; nor shall any just or legal right or remedy of any character be lost, impaired or affected by this chapter.