The Board of Supervisors hereby determines that privately owned, outdoor swimming pools in residential settings are potentially dangerous to members of the public and are attractive nuisances if freely accessible and unbarricaded. The purpose of this Article is to provide minimum standards to safeguard life and limb, health, property and public welfare by requiring that access to outdoor swimming pools associated with, constructed as an improvement to or located on properties containing or adjacent to buildings or structures falling within Group R Occupancies as defined in the California Building Code be restricted by barricades meeting minimum design, construction, quality of materials, location and maintenance standards as set forth herein.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3407, effective 6-3-10; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
The provisions of this Article shall apply to swimming pools constructed or installed on properties containing or adjacent to Group R Occupancies buildings or structures as defined or designated by the California Building Code adopted from time to time under the provisions of this Chapter. The provisions of this Article shall not apply to public swimming pools as defined and regulated by the California Health and Safety Code sections 116025 through 116068.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3407, effective 6-3-10; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
It shall be unlawful for any person to install and construct any outdoor swimming pool as herein defined as an improvement to or located on property containing or adjacent to properties containing buildings or structures falling within Group R Occupancies as defined in the California Building Code unless such outdoor swimming pool is totally surrounded by a barrier meeting the standards set herein before the outdoor swimming pool is plastered or filled with water and the barrier is maintained at all times while the outdoor swimming pool is in place. When a barrier is required by the Chapter at the time of construction or installation of an outdoor swimming pool, it shall be unlawful for any person to maintain the swimming pool after its construction or installation without such barrier.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3407, effective 6-3-10; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
This Article and the prohibition, standards and requirements set forth herein shall not apply to the following:
(a) 
Indoor pools;
(b) 
Plastic, collapsible or otherwise portable pools and spas of which all parts are above ground level;
(c) 
Lakes, reservoirs, ponds, ponding basins, irrigation canals and ditches, and dairy sumps in which water may be stored, collected or transported;
(d) 
Swimming pools constructed or installed prior to January 1, 1997, and maintained since that date;
(e) 
Hot tubs or spas with locking safety covers that comply with the American Society for Testing Materials – Emergency Performance Specification (ASTM-ES 13-89).
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
This Article is not the exclusive regulation of swimming pools or the barriers surrounding such structures within the County. It shall supplement and be in addition to other regulating statutes, ordinances and standards heretofore or hereafter enacted by the State, the County or other legal entity or agency having jurisdiction except the Swimming Pool Safety Act set out in California Health and Safety Code section 115920 et seq. This Article shall supersede the Swimming Pool Safety Act or any successor act to the extent provided in California Health and Safety Code section 115922(e).
(Added by Ord No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
The Resource Management Agency Director or authorized representative shall administer this Article, shall cause any required inspections to be performed under this Article and shall enforce the requirements of this Article.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
For this purposes of this Article, the following words, terms, and phrases shall have the following meanings unless clearly indicated otherwise by the text:
(a) 
"Aboveground pool", "In-ground pool" and "On-ground pool"
shall have the same meanings as the term "swimming pool."
(b) 
"Barrier"
shall mean a fence, wall, building wall or a combination thereof, which completely surrounds and obstructs or controls access to the swimming pool.
(c) 
"Indoor swimming pool"
shall mean a swimming pool which is totally contained within a residential or other structure and surrounded on all four sides by the walls of said structure.
(d) 
"Outdoor swimming pool"
shall mean any swimming pool which is not an indoor swimming pool.
(e) 
"Resource Management Agency Director"
shall mean the Resource Management Agency Director of the County of Tulare or authorized representative.
(f) 
"Swimming pool"
shall mean any structure intended for swimming or recreational bathing that contains water over 18 inches deep. This includes in-ground, aboveground, and on-ground swimming pools, fixed-in-place wading pools, hot tubs, portable and nonportable spas except as provided in Section 7-15-1613 (Prohibitions: Exceptions).
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
Every swimming pool otherwise subject to the prohibition of Section 7-15-1612 (Prohibition) shall be totally surrounded by a barrier in accordance with this Article. Every barrier required by this Article shall be installed, constructed, and maintained in accordance with the following standards and requirements:
(a) 
The barrier shall be located within One Thousand (1000) Feet of the pool edge or no further than the legal boundary of the parcel upon which the outdoor swimming pool is located, whichever distance is shorter.
(b) 
The top of the barrier shall be at least 60 inches above grade measured on the side of the barrier which faces away from the swimming pool. The maximum vertical clearance between grade and the bottom of the barrier shall be 2 inches measured on the side of the barrier which faces away from the swimming pool. Where the top of the pool structure is above grade, such as an aboveground pool, the barrier may be at ground level, such as the pool structure, or mounted on top of the pool structure. Where the barrier is mounted on top of the pool structure, the maximum vertical clearance between the top of the pool structure and the bottom of the barrier shall be 4 inches.
(c) 
Barriers shall be constructed so as to withstand a minimum of 10 pounds per lineal foot.
(d) 
Openings in the barrier shall not allow passage of a 4-inch diameter sphere.
(e) 
Solid barriers which do not have openings, such as masonry or stone walls, shall not contain indentations or protrusions except for tooled masonry joints.
(f) 
Where the barrier is composed of horizontal and vertical members and the distance between the tops of the horizontal members is less than 45 inches, the horizontal members shall be located on the swimming pool side of the fence. Spacing between vertical members shall not exceed 2 inches in width. Where there are decorative cutouts within vertical members, spacing within the cutouts shall not exceed 2 inches in width.
(g) 
Where the barrier is composed of horizontal and vertical members and the distance between the tops of the horizontal members is 45 inches or more, spacing between vertical members shall not exceed 4 inches. Where there are decorative cutouts within vertical members, spacing within the cutouts shall not exceed 3/4 inches in width.
(h) 
The maximum mesh size for barriers made of chain link fence shall be 2 inch square unless the fence is provided with slats fastened at the top or the bottom which reduce the openings to no more than 2 inches. The wire mesh shall not be less than 13 gauge.
(i) 
Where the barrier is composed of diagonal members, the maximum opening formed by the diagonal members shall be no more than 2 inches.
(j) 
Barriers shall be constructed prior to plaster inspection.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
The walls of a dwelling may be used as a part of a barrier. To the extent that the walls of a dwelling are used as part of a barrier, the requirements of Section 7-15-1630 (Barriers: Requirements) shall not apply.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
Access gates in any barrier shall comply with the requirements and standards:
(a) 
Access gates shall comply with the requirements set out in Section 7-15-1630 (Barriers: Requirements).
(b) 
Access gates shall be equipped to accommodate a locking device.
(c) 
Pedestrian-access gates shall open outward away from the pool and shall be self-closing and have a self-latching device. Where the release mechanism of the self-latching device is located less than 54 inches from the ground:
(1) 
The release mechanism shall be located on the pool side of the gate at least 3 inches below the top of the gate; and
(2) 
The gate and barrier shall have no opening greater than 1/2 inch within 18 inches of the release mechanism.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
Where an aboveground pool structure is used as a barrier or where the barrier is mounted on top of the pool structure and the means of access is a ladder or steps, then the ladder or steps shall meet one of the following requirements:
(a) 
The ladder or steps shall be capable of being secured, locked or removed to prevent access; or
(b) 
The ladder or steps shall be surrounded by a barrier which meets the requirements of section 7-15-1630 (Barriers: Requirements).
In addition, when the ladder or steps are secured, locked or removed, any opening created shall not allow the passage of a 4-inch diameter sphere.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)
Any person violating any provisions of this Article shall be guilty of an infraction and shall be punishable as provided in Section 125 (Violations) of this Ordinance Code. Any person in violation of any provision of this Article shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each and every day, or portion thereof, during which any violation of any such provision of this Article is committed, continued or allowed.
(Added by Ord. No. 3173, effective 1-16-97; amended by Ord. No. 3457, effective 4-17-14)