[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of
the City of Jamestown 12-10-1990. Amendments noted where applicable.]
It is the purpose and intent of this chapter
to protect and promote the health, safety and general welfare of the
residents of the City of Jamestown by reducing the number of avoidable
alarms to the City's 911 Emergency Operations Center. Avoidable alarms
contribute to ineffective utilization of public safety personnel and
equipment. In addition, avoidable alarms require emergency responses
which may contribute to the potential of accidents and delayed responses
to genuine emergencies. This chapter intends to assure that police
and fire communications and facilities will be available to dispatch
police and fire personnel for actual emergencies and to alleviate
the nuisance of avoidable alarms within the City of Jamestown. Additionally,
this chapter is intended to provide the City of Jamestown with the
names of responsible individuals to contact in case of activation
of an alarm.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A device or an assembly of equipment which emits an audible
response which is intended to alert persons outside of premises to
the existence of a hazard or emergency or which is intended to alert
emergency agencies by automatically dialing an emergency agency or
which is connected to a private answering point for the purpose of
reporting such alarms to emergency agencies or which is directly connected
to the 911 Emergency Operations Center of the City of Jamestown or
other emergency agency.
Any person who owns, leases or uses an alarm system within
the City of Jamestown, except for a person whose alarm system is on
a motor vehicle or is a proprietary system; provided, however, that
if an alarm system on a motor vehicle is connected with an alarm system
at a premises (other than a proprietary system) in the City of Jamestown,
the person using such system is an alarm user.
The activation of an alarm system through mechanical failure,
malfunction, improper installation or the negligence of the owner,
user, custodian or lessee of an alarm system or of his employees or
agents or through any other cause which is a direct connection to
an emergency agency or which through notification of the emergency
by a private answering point or automatic dialing service, or a Fire
Department alarm system or which through notification to an emergency
agency by a second party or means indicates that an emergency situation
exists requiring a response within the City of Jamestown when, in
fact, an emergency situation does not exist. An avoidable alarm also
includes the knowing or intentional activation of an alarm to an emergency
agency when the activator knows an emergency situation does not exist.
Avoidable alarms shall not include alarms activated by violent conditions
of nature such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes or other similar
causes beyond the control of the user of an alarm system. Activation
of an alarm system under any circumstances when the activator reasonably
believes that an emergency situation exists shall not be deemed an
avoidable alarm. Anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding,
the defective installation of an alarm system, the failure to repair
or cause to be repaired an alarm system or the use of defective equipment
in connection with an alarm system shall not constitute extraordinary
circumstances beyond the reasonable control of the alarm user.
The Police Department and Fire Department of the City of
Jamestown.
A signaling system which when activated causes an audible
signaling device to be activated outside the premises within which
the system is installed.
The address which an alarm user designates on the application
for a permit and the address to which notices are to be sent.
Any person, firm, partnership, corporation, association,
company or organization of any kind.
A business which offers the service of receiving emergency
signals, monitoring said signals and relaying them to an emergency
agency.
An alarm sounding and/or recording within the premises protected
by the alarm which is not intended to alert persons outside the premises
on which the alarm system is located of a possible hazard and not
intended to alert an emergency agency, the control center being under
the supervision of the proprietor of the protected premises. If the
proprietary system includes a signal line connected directly to or
by means of an automatic device through an emergency agency or to
a private answering point or to a local alarm system, it shall be
deemed an alarm system as such is defined in this chapter.
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply
to proprietary systems. Permits shall be required for all alarm systems
located at buildings at federal, state or local governmental agencies
or authorities or at public or private schools; provided, however,
that such alarm systems shall be exempt from the permit fees, but
subject to the fines and penalties herein provided for avoidable alarms
and, where applicable, to the master box fire alarm fee of the Fire
Department.
No person shall own, use, lease, operate or
maintain an alarm system within the City of Jamestown, nor shall any
person cause an alarm system to be connected directly to the 911 Emergency
Operations Center of the City of Jamestown, unless such person shall
have first obtained from the City a permit for such alarm as herein
provided.
A.Â
In order to obtain an alarm user permit, any person
who operates an alarm system shall submit an application for such
permit to the Jamestown City Clerk/Treasurer in the form designated
by the City of Jamestown, which application shall contain the following:
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
(1)Â
The name, home address and telephone number of the
person applying.
(2)Â
The address of the premises upon which the alarm system
is or will be located.
(3)Â
The address to which notice is required under this
chapter shall be sent.
(4)Â
The type of alarm system for which a permit is sought.
(5)Â
The name of the alarm business or businesses selling,
installing, monitoring, inspecting, responding to and/or maintaining
the alarm system, if applicable.
(6)Â
The name, address and telephone number of one or more
persons who can be reached at any time and who are authorized by the
owner of the premises in which the system is installed to open the
premises and secure the alarm.
(7)Â
Any other information relating to the alarm system
or user as the City of Jamestown may from time to time require.
B.Â
The information required on the permit application
shall be treated as confidential and shall not be made available to
members of the general public. The Jamestown City Council Council
finds that the release of such information would constitute an unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy and could possibly endanger the life
or safety of persons and premises wherein an alarm system is located.
Accordingly, the information on a permit application shall be used
by the City of Jamestown for public safety purposes only and shall
be used for no other purpose whatsoever.
A.Â
Except as provided in § 89-3 of this chapter, every application for an alarm user permit for alarm systems connected directly to the 911 Emergency Operations Center of the City of Jamestown shall be accompanied by a permit fee as provided in Chapter 175, Licenses and Permits. In addition to such permit fee, alarm users connected to the master box fire alarm system of the Fire Department shall pay an additional fee as provided in Chapter 175, Licenses and Permits, which shall be separate from the permit fee herein provided. Applications for alarm user permits for all other alarm systems shall be accompanied by a permit fee as provided in Chapter 175, Licenses and Permits. With the exception of the master box fire alarm fee, anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding, no permit fee shall be required for applications submitted by any alarm user on or before January 31, 1991, nor for applications submitted after said date if the application is submitted prior to the installation of an alarm system.
[Amended 8-10-1992 by L.L. No. 2-1992]
B.Â
Upon receipt of a properly executed permit application
and permit fee, the Jamestown City Clerk/Treasurer shall issue an
alarm user permit to the applicant.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
C.Â
The alarm user permit shall not be transferable and
shall be kept on the premises where the alarm system is located and
made available for inspection by emergency agency officers.
An alarm user permit shall expire on December
31 next following its date of issuance.
A.Â
Subject to the provisions of this chapter and upon the payment of the appropriate renewal fee as provided in Subsection B hereof, an alarm user permit may be renewed by the alarm user.
B.Â
The annual permit renewal fee shall be based upon
the number of avoidable alarms recorded for each alarm user as follows:
[Amended 1-25-1993; 12-21-2005; 11-23-2009; 11-27-2012]
(1)Â
For all
alarm users with zero to two avoidable alarms during the preceding
permit year, no renewal fee shall be charged. The provisions herein
shall not be deemed to exempt alarm users connected to the master
box fire alarm system of the Jamestown Fire Department with zero avoidable
alarms from the annual master box fire alarm fee of $225.
(2)Â
For all
alarm users with three avoidable alarms during the preceding year,
a base permit renewal fee of $75 shall be charged.
(3)Â
For all
alarm users with more than three avoidable alarms during the preceding
year, a base permit fee of $75, plus an additional excessive use fee
for each avoidable alarm in excess of three shall be charged as follows:
for the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh avoidable alarms, $75 each;
for the eighth, ninth and 10th avoidable alarms, $125 each; for the
11th, 12th and 13th avoidable alarms, $150 each; and for every avoidable
alarm after the 13th, $175 each. At the time of renewal, an alarm
user shall receive credit for any amounts paid during the permit year
to reinstate a revoked permit.
C.Â
No renewal of a permit shall be granted unless the
appropriate renewal fee is submitted with the application.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
The Jamestown City Clerk/Treasurer shall notify
an alarm user, in writing, by means of first-class mail sent to the
notice address listed on the permit application when an alarm user
has had seven avoidable alarms during the permit year. The notice
shall inform the alarm user that additional avoidable alarms will
subject the alarm user to the excessive-use fee as specified in this
chapter for each additional avoidable alarm. At the end of the permit
year, the City Clerk/Treasurer shall notify each alarm user having
more than seven avoidable alarms of the number of avoidable alarms
incurred during the preceding year and the amount to be charged for
the renewal of the alarm user permit. Notice shall be in writing and
shall be sent by first-class mail to the notice address listed on
the application.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
An alarm user permit shall be revoked whenever 10 or more avoidable alarms are recorded for a system in any one permit year. Notice of such revocation shall be sent by the Jamestown City Clerk/Treasurer via first-class mail to the notice address listed on the permit application at least 15 days prior to the effective date of permit revocation. An alarm user may reinstate a revoked permit by the payment of the excessive-use fee for each avoidable alarm in excess of three (the excessive-use fee shall be as specified in § 89-8B of this chapter) and by submission of proof that modifications have been made to the alarm system or other steps have been effected so as to reduce the number of avoidable alarms. An alarm user permit shall not be revoked under this section if said alarm system is required by federal, state or local law; provided, however, that all other provisions of this chapter shall apply to such systems, and the user thereof shall remain responsible for the payment of all authorized fees.
[Amended 3-19-1992 by L.L. No. 1-1992; 12-11-1995 by L.L. No. 6-1995; 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No.
1-2020]
Whenever an emergency agency responds to an
avoidable alarm as herein provided, said agency shall file with the
Jamestown City Clerk/Treasurer an avoidable alarm report, which report
shall contain the following information:
A.Â
All local alarm systems as defined by the provisions of § 89-2 of this chapter shall become deactivated and silenced automatically after a period of time not to exceed 15 minutes of activation.
B.Â
Any person utilizing the local alarm system within the City of Jamestown by virtue of such utilization of a local alarm shall be deemed to have given consent to the police and/or fire officials of the City of Jamestown to disable an audible alarm signal that has not been silenced prior to the expiration of the fifteen-minute period referred to in Subsection A of this section, and neither the City of Jamestown nor its officers and employees, including but not limited to such police and fire officials, shall be liable for any damages which may result from the disabling of an audible alarm signal as herein provided.
[Amended 11-23-2009]
In addition to any other fees or penalties provided for in this chapter, a violation of § 89-4 of this chapter shall be deemed an offense and shall be punishable by a mandatory fine of not less than $100 nor more than $250; provided, however, that no person shall be charged with such offense until the expiration of 15 days after the date of written notice mailed to such person by certified mail that he is required to obtain an alarm user permit, and further provided that no charge shall be filed against a person so notified if he obtains a permit during said fifteen-day period. A person found guilty of violating § 89-4 of this chapter shall not be excused from obtaining the required permit.
The provisions and requirements of this chapter
shall apply to all persons who are alarm users on the effective date
of this chapter and to all persons who subsequently become alarm users.
