[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of the Town of West
New York 2-18-1981 by Ord. No. 1449. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
All existing and future buildings in the town used by a person for the purpose of conducting, managing or carrying on any business, with the exception of those hereinafter described, shall, when unattended, be so secured as to prevent unauthorized entry in accordance with specifications for physical security of exterior accessible openings as provided in this chapter. A commercial building shall be considered unattended when not occupied by a watchman, maintenance personnel or other authorized persons during the period that premises are closed to business. Further, all residential buildings, except one- and two-family dwellings, shall at all times be so secured as to provide the maximum possible security to the permanent and transient occupants in accordance with the specifications provided in § 142-12 of this chapter. Any building used for public assembly occupancy, as defined in the West New York Building Code,[1] as well as those buildings used for occupancy of the type requiring exit doors to be equipped with panic hardware locks, shall be exempt from the provisions of § 142-12 hereof relating to exterior doors.
The Division of Code Enforcement, the Police Department and the Fire
Department, except as herein specifically noted, are authorized and directed
to administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter relating to physical
security requirements for commercial and residential buildings in the town.
This chapter shall take effect January 1, 1981.
Responsibility for compliance with the provisions of this chapter shall
be as follows: If the buildings or other premises are owned by one person
and occupied by another under lease or otherwise, the orders issued in connection
with the enforcing of this chapter shall apply to the occupant thereof, except
where the rules or orders require the making of additions to or changes in
the premises themselves, such as would immediately become real estate and
be the property of the owner of the premises; in such cases, the rules or
orders shall affect the owner and not the occupant unless it is otherwise
agreed between the owner and the occupant.
A.
The enforcing authority shall cause the access points
of all commercial and residential establishments subject to the provisions
of this chapter to be inspected as follows:
(1)
All buildings and structures shall be inspected at least
once a year.
(2)
Buildings and structures in the process of construction
shall be periodically inspected during the process of construction additions,
alterations or repairs and shall be inspected at least once a year thereafter.
(3)
In addition to inspecting to determine if the mechanical
requirements of this chapter have been met, the enforcing authority shall
inspect to determine that the required mechanical devices have been properly
installed and are properly functioning.
B.
When an inspection reveals that the building or structure
does not meet the requirements of this chapter, the following procedure shall
be followed:
(1)
Written notice of the deficiencies discovered during
the inspection shall be given to the person responsible for compliance or
his designated agent.
(2)
Such notice shall set forth the amount of time within
which such deficiencies are to be corrected.
(3)
Upon correcting such deficiencies, the person responsible
for compliance or his designated agent shall transmit to the enforcing authority
notice that the deficiencies have been corrected.
(4)
The enforcing authority shall, upon receipt of notice
of correction, again inspect the building or structure and either approve
the corrections or disapprove them. The enforcing authority may grant a mutually
acceptable extension of time to correct deficiencies if, in the judgment of
the enforcing authority, the owner or his designated agent has made an honest
attempt to correct said deficiencies.
C.
The enforcing authority or its designated agents have
the right to enter any building or structure subject to the provisions of
this chapter during reasonable business hours for the purpose of inspecting
the premises to ascertain the degree of compliance with the provisions of
this chapter. If, after oral notification and the presentation of evidence
of identity and authority to the person responsible for compliance or his
designated agent, the right to enter the building or structure is refused,
the enforcing authority shall have the right to apply to a court of competent
jurisdiction for a search warrant.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any access point within either 18 feet of the ground or the roof
of an adjoining building or structure or within 14 feet of the same when the
facade faces directly on a public street or within three feet of an access
point, fire escape or ledge in or projecting from the same or an adjacent
wall and leading to another building or structure. A "roof" is any surface
of a building or structure which provides a horizontal supporting surface
of six feet or more in width. "Diagonally opposite" means that the angle measured
from the horizontal planes of the access points or surface in question is
not greater than 45°.
Any opening in the exterior of a building or structure, including
skylights and vents, which has a glass or open area of 96 square inches or
more and which has its smallest dimension in excess of six inches.
To make a locking device effective in preventing unauthorized entry
through the door, window or other access point to which the locking device
is attached.
As applied to a given material, mode of construction, piece of equipment
or device, means satisfying the requirements of this chapter as certified
by the enforcing authority or its authorized agents or by any other officials
designated by law to give approval on a particular matter dealt with by the
provisions of this chapter.
Any building or structure used to manage, conduct or carry on any
business, profession or enterprise and is intended to include all buildings
or structures used for commercial, retail, wholesale, industrial, professional,
manufacturing and warehousing purposes, but the term shall exclude buildings
solely occupied for residential dwelling use.
A key or similar mechanical implement that is normally used by authorized
persons to activate or deactivate a locking device.
The agency or person having the responsibility for enforcing the
provisions of this chapter.
That portion of a building or structure which is accessible to the
public when the commercial establishment housed therein is closed for business
and includes but is not limited to those portions of individual commercial
establishments which are housed in a common building or structure and which
are accessible to the public.
A mechanical implement or combination of mechanical implements attached
to a door, window or other access point of a building or structure and designed
to prevent unauthorized persons from entering the building or structure through
that door, window or other access point when the locking device is activated.
Those materials which meet Underwriters Laboratories Standards.
Those materials, such as wire glass, tempered glass or polymeric
material which meet Underwriters' Laboratories standards.
A.
The provisions of this chapter are not intended to prevent
the use of other devices or methods of construction than those provided herein,
provided that such other devices or mode of construction provide the same
or a greater degree of security than the minimum requirements of this chapter.
B.
When the person responsible for compliance desires to
use such device or mode of construction, the burden of proving to the enforcing
authority that the requirements of this chapter have been met or surpassed
shall be on the person responsible for compliance.
C.
Such other device or mode of construction may only be
used upon the approval of the enforcing authority. The enforcing authority
may require the person responsible for compliance to submit the device or
mode of construction to such tests as the enforcing authority deems necessary
and proper to determine if it meets or surpasses the requirements of this
chapter. Such tests shall be performed at the expense of the person responsible
for compliance.
A.
The promulgation of this chapter is a reasonable attempt
by the municipality to protect its citizens from burglary and other crimes
of property intrusion. The municipality does not, by this chapter, establish
a standard of care or duty for owners or occupants nor are these regulations
intended to establish a standard or degree of security for any safety locking
device.
B.
No portion of this chapter shall supersede any local,
state or federal laws, regulations or codes dealing with safety factors with
particular reference to the Fire Prevention Code of the Town of West New York[1] and Title 12 of the New Jersey Administrative Code, Chapter 115,
as it pertains to lock requirements.
All exterior doors shall comply with the following requirements:
A.
Wood or metal doors with panels of rated burglary-resistant glazing material, wood doors of solid core construction at least 13/8 inches thick and solid metal doors having at least equal strength to a wood door of core construction at least 13/8 inches thick shall be secured as in Subsection A(1). Doors not 13/8 inches thick or of equivalent strength shall be reinforced as in Subsection E. Doors with glass panels or with panels of glass adjacent to the door, including transoms, shall be secured as in Subsection G. The requirement noted in Subsection G(1) is recommended for doors facing the street.
(1)
Single swinging doors shall be equipped with either a
heavy-duty lock utilizing interlocking vertical bolts and striker or a one-inch
dead bolt.
B.
Single swinging doors or pairs of doors constructed of
glass that is not burglary-resistant may be retained in old buildings or structures.
However, when such a door or doors are replaced for any reason in old buildings
or structures, then the replacement door or doors shall be constructed of
rated burglary-resistant glazing material. Such doors on new buildings or
structures shall be constructed of rated burglary-resistant glazing material.
C.
Rolling, solid swinging, sliding or accordion garage-type
doors, whether closing vertically or horizontally, shall, when not controlled
or locked by electrical power operation, be secured on the inside as follows:
(1)
Hand-operated doors shall be equipped with slide or vertical
bolts at either the top or bottom of the door or both sides of the door, depending
on whether the door opens vertically or horizontally. On horizontal garage-type
doors having glass panels, a one-fourth-inch hole shall be drilled in the
roller track no more than six inches from the floor, and during the periods
when the building is unoccupied, a bolt or padlock shall be placed so as to
restrict movement of the door if the slide bolts are disengaged. This will
not be a burglary-resistant glazing material.
(2)
Chain-operated doors shall be equipped with a locking
device for securing the chain.
(3)
Crank-operated doors shall be equipped with an interior
locking device for securing the operating shaft.
D.
Metal accordion, grate or grille-type doors shall be
equipped with a metal guide track at the top and bottom and secured with either
a single cylinder lock which can only be deactivated with a key or similar
control device or with a padlock. The door and frame shall be so constructed
and installed that the door cannot be lifted from its track when the door
is closed.
E.
Wood doors, except garage-type doors, not of solid core
construction and wood doors, except garage-type doors, of solid core construction
but containing panels that are less than 13/8 inches thick shall be covered
on the inside with at least sixteen-gauge sheet steel or with a rated burglary-resisting
glazing material attached with one-inch No. 8 screws placed six inches apart
on the perimeter of the plate.
F.
Accessible sliding doors shall be secured as follows:
(1)
Single sliding doors shall have the movable section of
the door sliding on the inside of the fixed section of the door and shall
be so constructed and installed that the movable section of the door cannot
be lifted from its track when the door is closed.
(2)
The movable section of single sliding doors shall be secured by vertical bolts at the top and bottom and with a center-locking device as provided in Subsection A(1) of this section. The locking device shall engage the strike to the extent necessary to prevent its being disengaged by possible movement of the doors with the clearances provided when the door is closed and the locking device is activated.
G.
Non-burglary-resisting glazing material panels in a door, except as provided by Subsection B of this section, or such panels adjacent to a door frame shall be secured as follows:
(1)
By replacing the existing panel with a panel of rated
burglary-resisting glazing material;
(2)
By securely fastening vertical or horizontal steel bars
of at least one-half-inch diameter spaced not more than four inches apart,
the bars to be attached on the inside of the panel; or
(3)
By securely fastening an iron or steel grille of at least
one-eighth-inch diameter material and not more than two-inch mesh on the inside
of the panel.
H.
The provisions of this subsection shall apply in addition
to the security requirements set forth in the preceding subsections hereof:
(1)
All door jambs shall be so constructed or protected as
to prevent violation of the function of the strike through such means as but
not limited to spreading of the door frame.
(2)
The locking device shall be so constructed and installed
that when the door is closed it cannot be made inactive through the removal
of mounting screws or bolts.
(3)
The bolts of all locking devices shall have a sufficient
throw when the door is closed and the locking device activated so that the
bolt will embed itself in its receptacle a minimum of 1/2 inch.
(4)
All locking devices shall have a minimum of 6,000 possible
combinations.
(5)
Locking devices and parts of locking devices shall not
be used if they bear any numbers or letters which, to trained person, would
reveal a combination from which a key or similar control device could be fashioned
or selected which could be used to deactivate the locking device.
(6)
When a padlock-type locking device is used, it shall
not be capable of being deactivated through rapping or other similar shocking
techniques applied by a trained person. Padlocks shall be constructed or installed
so that they cannot be removed when the door is closed or the padlock is activated.
Padlocks shall have a minimum of a two-inch cast and seven-sixteenths-inch
shackle made of material that will resist cutting with a bolt cutter of up
to 15 inches in length.
Windows in residential buildings converted to professional offices or any other nonresidential use shall meet the requirements set forth in § 142-12A(4). However, whenever any such window material must be replaced, glazing materials as permitted under this chapter shall be used as replacement material unless the other options as set forth in this section are used. Windows in all other commercial buildings as defined in this chapter shall be secured as follows:
A.
Nonopenable windows with an individual glass area of
less than 20 square inches per section and with metal window frames will not
require further protection.
B.
Nonopenable windows with an individual glass area greater
than 20 square inches per section or with an individual glass area of less
than 20 square inches per section constructed of wood shall be protected as
follows:
(1)
By rated burglary-resistant glazing material; or
(2)
By an iron or steel grille of at least one-eighth-inch
diameter material of not more than two-inch mesh and securely fastened on
the outside of the window; or
(3)
By steel bars of at least one-half-inch diameter or by
one-half-inch flat steel material spaced not more than five inches apart and
securely fastened on the outside of the window.
The following provisions will be recommendations only for owner-occupied
two-family apartment structures and shall be mandatory for all other residential
dwellings. Security requirements for multiunit structures shall be divided
into two categories as hereinafter noted: two-, three-, four- and five-unit
structures and multiple-unit structures of six or more units.
A.
Two-, three-, four- and five-unit residential structures.
(2)
Entrance doors constructed with nonresistant glazing material may be retained in existing structures. However, if a breaking and entering occurs by breaking the glass in such a door, the glass shall be replaced with burglary-resistant glazing material as noted in § 142-5. Further, if the door is replaced for any reason, it shall be constructed with rated burglary-resistant glazing material or contain no more than 300 square inches of glass area. Other building entrance doors, such as to basements or garages, shall have any type of locking device to prevent access.
(3)
Entrance doors to individual apartment units shall have a lock as per § 142-8A(1) and shall be so constructed that the lock may be opened from the inside without the use of a key. Each entrance door to an apartment unit shall also have a chain door guard installed.
(4)
All openable ground floor windows or windows of an easily accessible roof shall be equipped with any device which will limit movement of the sash in six-inch increments in addition to having a window-locking mechanism. Cellar windows shall have a bolt-type locking mechanism and burglary-resistant glazing material or grille work as noted in § 142-9B(2).
B.
Garden, townhouse and multiple-unit structures of six or more units. Structures in this category shall satisfy the requirements of Subsection A, plus additional requirements as follows:
(1)
Any building entrance door entering into a common corridor
shall be self-closing and self-locking and shall be openable from the corridor
without a key.
(2)
All doors leading to service areas shall be self-closing
and self-locking and openable from the inside without a key.
(3)
Doors to each apartment unit shall have a visitor observation
port installed.
(4)
In the case of senior citizens apartment structures,
electronically activated emergency door locks are allowable under this chapter
in lieu of other locks noted herein. In cases where this type of lock is used,
the installation of a door chain guard shall not be required.
(5)
Where needed, passenger elevators shall have mirrors
so placed as to make visible the whole of the elevator interior to prospective
passengers outside the elevator.
(6)
Elevator emergency stop buttons shall be installed and
connected so as to activate the elevator alarm.
(7)
Subject to the approval of the enforcing authority, alternate
locking devices may be submitted for those required herein, provided that
such devices are of equal capability to resist illegal entry, and further
provided that the installation of same does not conflict with other requirements
of this chapter and other ordinances regulating safety of exit.
C.
A superintendent, agent or other representative of the
landlord shall be available on the premises at all times.
A.
It is neither the intent nor in the spirit of this chapter
to require the installation of burglar alarm systems in any commercial establishment.
However, if, after all the requirements of this chapter have been satisfied,
the premises is plagued by continued unlawful entries because of either the
condition of the structure or the nature of the business or use, the enforcing
authority may require the installation and maintenance of an Underwriters'
Laboratories certificated burglar alarm system covering all accessible access
points or a combination of interior devices, including but not limited to
photoelectric, ultrasonic, microwave, proximity and sound devices. The enforcing
authority may require that the system used be a local alarm, local alarm with
police connection or a central station system.
B.
The person responsible for compliance may request that the enforcing authority allow the commercial establishment to substitute an Underwriters' Laboratories certificated burglar alarm system or intrusion detection device for the physical security devices required by this chapter. The enforcing authority shall grant this request subject to the requirements set forth in § 142-6.
C.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall prevent a commercial
establishment from installing and maintaining burglar alarm systems or intrusion
detection devices. Access points covered by a burglar alarm system or intrusion
detection device shall not require the installation of additional security
devices as noted in this chapter. However, those access points not covered
by a burglar alarm or intrusion detection device when installed, it shall
be maintained in an operative condition at all times, and it shall be unlawful
for any owner or occupant to reduce the effectiveness of the system or device,
except where necessary to make tests, repairs, revisions or additions.
A.
Within 10 days after the receipt of written notice from
the Chief of Police requiring the installation and maintenance of photoelectric,
ultrasonic or other intrusion detection device, the person responsible for
compliance therewith may appeal in writing to the Department of Public Affairs
and the Department of Public Safety. In filing such notice of appeal, the
appellant shall set forth the specific grounds wherein it is claimed there
was an error or abuse of discretion by the Chief of Police or wherein the
issuance of the written notice was not supported by proper evidence.
B.
Upon receipt of such appeal, the Department of Public
Affairs and the Department of Public Safety shall set the matter for hearing
and cause notice thereof to be given to the appellant and to the Chief of
Police or his authorized representative not less than five days prior to the
date set for the hearing. At such hearing, the appellant shall show cause
on the grounds specified in the notice of appeals why the action excepted
to should not be affirmed.
C.
The Department of Public Affairs and the Department of
Public Safety may affirm, reverse or modify the decision of the Chief of Police
requiring the installation and maintenance of a photoelectric, ultrasonic,
or other intrusion detection device. If the decision is affirmed or modified
by the Department of Public Affairs and the Department of Public Safety, the
appellant shall be given written notice thereof by the Chief of Police setting
forth the installation to be made and the period of time within which the
same shall be completed. In no event shall the period be less than that originally
granted to the appellant.
Any person responsible for compliance with the provisions of this chapter who violates an order of the enforcing authority shall be subject to the penalties is provided in § 1-16 of the Municipal Code of the Town of West New York.
