No person shall obstruct or hinder the Board
of Fire Wardens, Chief of the Fire Department, Fire Inspector or any
other inspector designated by the Council or said Board in the performance
of their duties as prescribed in this chapter.
[Amended 12-5-1984 by L.L. No. 17-1984]
Any person or persons directly aggrieved by
the strict application of the provisions of this chapter to premises
owned or occupied by him or them may, in writing, duly verified, and
upon payment of an application fee of $100, apply to the Board of
Fire Wardens of the City of Rye for a variance as to the premises
so owned or occupied of any provision or provisions of this chapter.
No variance, however, shall be granted unless the applicant shall
state and subsequently prove to the satisfaction of said Board all
of the following:
A. Practical difficulties preventing substantial compliance
with the provisions as to which a variance is sought.
B. Substantial unnecessary hardship would be imposed
on the applicant by requiring him to comply strictly with the provisions
of this chapter. Pecuniary hardship alone shall not be a sufficient
basis for establishing substantial unnecessary hardship.
C. Granting of a variance will not violate the spirit
of this chapter, will not prejudice public or private safety and will
not endanger adjacent properties.
Any person or persons directly aggrieved by
any decision or order of the Fire Inspector may, in writing, appeal
to the Board of Fire Wardens from any such decision or order. In passing
on such appeals, the Board may affirm, modify or reverse the decision
or order of the Fire Inspector. In addition, the Board may, before
reaching a decision on any appeal, remand the matter to the Fire Inspector
for further inspection or consideration. All such appeals must be
taken within 30 days from the date of issuance of the decision or
order against which the appeal is taken.
[Amended 1-20-1982 by L.L. No. 3-1982; 4-11-2007 by L.L. No. 1-2007]
In the event an activity is not being performed
in accordance with this chapter, the owner of the property or the
owner's agent or the person performing such violation shall be notified
to suspend all work, and any such persons shall forthwith stop such
work and suspend all activities. Such order and notice shall be in
writing and may be served upon a person to whom it is directed either
by delivering it personally to him or her or by posting the same upon
a conspicuous portion of the property and sending a copy of same by
registered or certified mail. Any person who shall violate or cause,
suffer or permit the violation of any of the provisions of this chapter
or who shall fail to comply with any written order made hereunder
or who shall build in violation of any detailed statement or specifications
or plans submitted and approved hereunder or any certificate or permit
issued hereunder and from which no appeal has been taken or who shall
fail to comply with such an order as affirmed or modified by the Board
of Fire Wardens or by a court of competent jurisdiction within the
time fixed herein shall severally for each and every such violation
and noncompliance, respectively, upon conviction thereof, be punished
upon such first conviction by a fine of not more than $250 or by imprisonment
not exceeding 15 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment, and
each day that such violation shall continue shall be construed as
a separate offense. Upon any subsequent conviction for the same offense,
such person shall be subject to a fine of not more than $500 or by
imprisonment not exceeding 15 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
The imposition of one penalty for any violation shall not excuse the
violation or permit it to continue, and all such persons shall be
required to correct or remedy such violations or defects within a
reasonable time. The application of these penalties shall not be held
to prevent the enforced removal of prohibited conditions.