Township of Hampton, NJ Fire Prevention

Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided for the repeal of former Ch. 61, Fire Prevention, which chapter consisted of Art. I, Adoption of BOCA Code, adopted 9-12-1978, as amended, and Art. II, Uniform Fire Code, adopted 8-27-1985, as amended.

§ 61-1 Local enforcement.

Pursuant to Section 11 of the Uniform Fire Safety Act (P.L. 1983, c. 383),[1] the New Jersey Uniform Fire Code (N.J.A.C. 5:70-1 et seq.) shall be locally enforced in the Township of Hampton.

Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 52:27D-202.

§ 61-2 Agency designation.

The local enforcing agency shall be the Hampton Township Fire and Rescue Inc., through its Bureau of Fire Prevention which is hereby created therein. The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall hereinafter be known as the "local enforcing agency."

§ 61-3 Duties of agency.

The local enforcing agency shall enforce the Uniform Fire Code in all buildings, structures, and premises within the established boundaries of the Township of Hampton other than one- and two-unit owner-occupied dwellings used exclusively for dwelling purposes and buildings, structures, and premises owned or operated by the federal government, interstate agencies or the state.

The local enforcing agency shall faithfully comply with all the pertinent requirements of the Uniform Fire Safety Act and the Uniform Fire Code.

§ 61-4 Organization.

The Bureau of Fire Prevention established by § 61-2 of this chapter shall be under the direct supervision and control of a Fire Official who shall report to the Township Administrator.

[Amended 10-31-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-03]

The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall have at least one paid Fire Official and such paid Inspectors, as necessary.

§ 61-5 Appointments; qualifications; term of office; removal.

Appointment and qualifications of the Fire Official. The Fire Official shall be certified by the state and appointed by the governing body.

Appointment and qualifications of inspectors and other employees. Inspectors and other employees of the enforcing agency shall be appointed by the governing body upon recommendations of the Fire Official. All life-hazard-use inspectors shall be certified by the state.

Appointment of legal counsel. The governing body shall specifically appoint legal counsel to assist the agency in enforcing the Uniform Fire Code.

Term of office. The Fire Official shall serve for a term of a minimum of one year. Any vacancy shall he filled for the unexpired term.

Removal from office. The Fire Official, inspectors and other employees of the agency shall be subject to removal by the governing body for just cause. Before removal from office, all persons shall be afforded an opportunity to be heard by the governing body or a hearing officer designated by the same.

§ 61-6 Life-hazard uses.

The Bureau of Fire Prevention established by § 61-2 of this chapter shall carry out the periodic inspections of life-hazard uses required b the Uniform Fire Code on behalf of the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs and collect the fees established by the Uniform Fire Code.

§ 61-7 Non-life-hazard uses.

In addition to the registrations required by the Uniform Fire Code, the following non-life-hazard uses shall register with the Bureau of Fire Prevention. These uses shall be inspected at least once every three years and pay the following fee for each inspection:

[Amended 1-31-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-2]

Use		Inspection Fee
A Assembly
A-1	Eating establishment with fewer than 50 authorized occupants	$25
A-2	Take-out food service (no seating)	$25
A-3	Places of worship	$25
A-4	Recreation centers, multipurpose rooms, etc., with fewer than 50 authorized occupants	$50
A-5	Senior citizen centers with fewer than 50 authorized occupants	$50
B Business/Professional
B-1	Professional use one- and two-story less than, 5,000 square feet per floor	$25
B-2	One- and two-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet per floor	$50
B-3	One- and two-story, more than10,000 square feet	$75
B-4	Three- to five-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$100
B-5	Three- to five-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet per floor	$150
B-6	Three- to five-story, over 10,000 square feet per floor	$200
C Retail (mercantile)
M-1	One- and two-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$125
M-2	One- and two-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 12,000 square feet	$150
M-3	Three- to five-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$200
M-4	Three- to five-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet	$225
Hardware stores and home improvement centers of more than 3,000 square feet, and retail stores over 12,000 square feet are life-hazard uses.
D Manufacturing (factory)
F-1	One- and two-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$75
F-2	One- and two-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet per floor	$100
F-3	One- and two-story, more than 10,000 square feet	$150
F-4	Three- to five-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$175
F-5	Three- to five-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet	$200
F-6	Three- to five-story, over 10,000 square feet	$250
F exception life-hazard uses.
S Storage S-1 (moderate hazard S-1, low hazard S-2)
S-1	One- and two-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$50
S-2	One- and two-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet per floor	$100
S-3	One- and two-story, more than 10,000 square feet	$150
S-4	Three- to five-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$175
S-5	Three- to five-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet	$200
S-6	Three- to five-story, over 10,000 square feet	$250
S exception life-hazard uses.
F Residential (Regardless whether or not LEA listed with multifamily BHI) (Fee is for each building)
R-1	1 to 6 units	$25
R-2	7 to 12 units	$50
R-3	13 to 20 units	$75
R-4	21 to 50 units	$100
R-5	For each additional unit over 50 units	$2
R Common areas (each building)
R-1	One- and two-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$50
R-2	One- and two-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet per floor	$75
R-3	One- and two-story, more than 10,000 square feet	$100
R-4	Three- to five-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$125
R-5	Three- to five-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet	$150
R-6	Three- to five-story, over 10,000 square feet	$200
Common areas (LEA not listed with BHI) (each building)
R-1	One- and two-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$50
R-2	One- and two-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet per floor	$75
R-3	One- and two-story, more than 10,000 square feet	$100
R-4	Three- to five-story, less than 5,000 square feet per floor	$125
R-5	Three- to five-story, more than 5,000 square feet and less than 10,000 square feet	$150
R-6	Three- to five-story, over 10,000 square feet	$200

R(A) one- and two-family rental where owner does not occupy shall be inspected and charged a fee every three years and upon sale or change of tenant.

Uses not classified above that are subject to the Uniform Fire Code will be classified as business/professional uses.

Uses required to register with the state as life-hazard uses shall not be required to register under this section.

In the discretion of the Fire Official, vacant buildings will be charged and inspected according to the previous use of the building.

§ 61-8 Permits and certificate of fire code status.

The application fees for the permits listed in N.J.A.C. 5:70-2.7(b) shall be as provided by state regulation.

The fee for the issuance of a certificate of smoke alarm, carbon monoxide alarm, and portable fire extinguisher compliance (CSACMAPFEC) pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:70-2.3 shall be $50. If the property shall fail to comply on initial inspection, the fee for reinspection shall be $40 for each reinspection needed to issue the certificate. The property owner is responsible for applying for each reinspection.

[Amended 7-27-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-10]

§ 61-9 Lock box entry system. [1]

[Added 9-24-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-04]

The following structures shall be equipped with a key lock box at or near the main entrance or such other location as required by the Fire Official, Fire Chief, or Building Official:

Commercial or industrial structures.

Multifamily residential structures that have restricted access through locked doors but have a common corridor for access to the living units

Schools, whether public or private.

Governmental structures and nursing care facilities unless the building is staffed or open 24 hours.

A1l new construction and new occupancies by tenants subject to § 61-9A shall have a key lock installed and operational prior to the issuance of an occupancy permit. All structures in existence on the effective date of this section and subject to § 61-9A shall have 15 months from enactment date of this section to have a key lock box installed and operational.

In order to provide unity within the Township, the type of key lock boxes to be implemented within the Township shall be a Knox-Box® brand system.

Installation.

The size and model of the Knox-Box® installed shall be determined by the number of keys to be placed in the box and the specifications set forth by the Knox-Box® manufacturer.

The number of keys in the Knox-Box® cannot exceed the maximum number recommended by the box manufacturer.

All Knox-Boxes® shall be installed to the left side of the main business door.

All Knox-Boxes® shall be mounted 60 inches from the ground.

(5)

In the event that the Knox-Box® cannot be installed at the aforesaid location and/or height, the Fire Official, Fire Chief, or Building Official may designate in writing a different location and installation specifications.

(6)

All Knox-Boxes® may have a tamper switch installed in the building as an intrusion/burglar alarm.

(7)

All realty and/or property with an electronic security gate shall have the Knox-Box® installed OUTSIDE of the gate.

(8)

The Fire Official, Fire Chief, or Building Official must approve any changes in the installation.

(9)

Purchase and installation of the Knox-Box® will be the sole responsibility of the building owner.

Maintenance. The operator of the building shall immediately notify the Fire Official, Fire Chief, or Building Official when any locks are added, changed or rekeyed which cannot currently be opened by the current key set in the Knox-Box®. Additional keys should be added to the Knox-Box® immediately.

Contents of lock box. The contents of the lock box should include (but not be limited to) the following:

Keys to locked points of ingress or egress, whether on the interior or exterior of such buildings.

Keys to all mechanical rooms.

Keys to all locked electrical and utility rooms.

Keys to elevators and their control rooms.

(5)

Keys to the fire alarm panels and fire suppression systems.

(6)

Keys to reset pull stations or other fire protective devices.

(7)

Building access cards, as needed.

(8)

Keys to any other areas as requested by the Fire Official, Fire Chief, or Building Official.

Fire Department responsibilities.

No fire department personnel shall carry a Knox-Box® master key unless at an emergency scene.

All Knox-Box® master keys shall be installed in a Knox-Box® Sentra-Loc or similar system installed in the fire apparatus and the Fire Chief's official vehicle.

Exceptions to requirement to install key lock box system. The following structures are exempt from the mandate to install a key lock box system:

Single-family structures and multifamily structures that do not meet the definition set forth in § 69-9.1A.

Structures that have twenty-four-hour, three-hundred-sixty-five-day on-site security personnel, or have other personnel on site.

Businesses that are open and staffed 24 hours, 365 days per year (which may include but are not limited to, nursing homes, hospitals, police and fire stations, etc.).

Rental storage facilities where there is a single lock on the separate storage pods that are renter supplied; provided, however, the entry security gates(s) will require a Knox-Box® if electronically controlled, or locked with a master key issued by the landlord to all tenants.[2]

[2]

Editor's Note: Former Subsection H(5) and (6), regarding exemptions for businesses that must protect patient confidentiality and businesses that handle hazardous materials, respectively, added 5-26-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-03, were repealed 5-28-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-04.

Violations and penalties; severability.

Any person, entity or corporation who has violated any provisions of this section or who has failed to comply with any order issued by the Fire Official, Fire Chief, or Building Official or has failed to comply with any order issued pursuant to any subsection thereof shall, upon conviction before the proper judicial authority, be punished by a fine of not more than $300. Each day a violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.

If any sentence, clause or section or any part of this section is for any reason found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such unconstitutionality, illegality or invalidity shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses or sections or parts of the same contained in this section. It is hereby declared as the intent of the Township Committee of the Township of Hampton that this section would have been adopted had such unconstitutionality, illegality or invalidity, sentence, clause or section or part thereof not been included therein.

Editor's Note: Former § 61-9, Technical amendments, was reserved and contained no content.

§ 61-10 Board of Appeals.

Pursuant to Sections 15 and 17 of the Uniform Fire Safety Act,[1] any person aggrieved by any action of the local enforcing agency shall have the right to appeal to the Local Construction Board of Appeals. If no such body exists, appeals shall be made to the County Construction Board of Appeals.