Except as otherwise provided, no person shall
erect, construct, maintain or modify any building or structure or
any part thereof, including stairwells, or cause the same to be done
which fails to support adequate radio coverage for Town public safety
services, including but not limited to police, fire, and public works
departments. A certificate of occupancy may not be issued for any
building or structure which fails to comply with this requirement.
A. The frequency range which must be supported shall
be 806 to 816 MHz and 856 to 866 MHz, or as otherwise established
and required in writing by the Town as being necessary for public
safety purposes.
B. For purposes of this chapter, adequate radio coverage
shall include the following:
(1) A minimum signal level of DAQ 3 (Delivered Audio Quality
3) available in 95% of the area as agreed to be in the coverage acceptance
test plan by the Town and the radio system manufacturer prior to system
testing.
It shall be the responsibility of any owner
of a building or structure which currently holds a certificate of
occupancy, or allows the building or structure to be used for any
purpose other than construction, to be in compliance with this chapter
upon its effective date.
Any building or structure which fails to support
adequate radio coverage must have a plan acceptable to the Town Fire
Marshal within 90 days by the owner or his agent to address the inadequate
radio coverage. Review of the plan may be extended by the Town Manager
as Director of Public Safety. The owner of the building or structure
shall have the approved plan enacted within one year after approval
of the plan.
When an in-building radio system is installed,
the building owner shall test all active components of the system,
including but not limited to amplifier, the power supplies, and backup
batteries, a minimum of once every 12 months. Amplifiers shall be
tested to ensure that the gain is the same as it was upon initial
installation and acceptance. Backup batteries and power supplies shall
be tested under load for a period of one hour to verify that they
will operate during an actual power outage. All other active components
shall be checked to determine that they are operating within the manufacturer's
specifications for the intended purpose.
In addition to the annual test, the building
owner shall perform a radio coverage test a minimum of once every
five years to ensure that the radio system continues to meet the requirements
of the original acceptance. The procedure set forth above shall apply
to such tests.
All tests shall be conducted, documented, and
signed by a person in possession of a current FCC general radiotelephone
operator license. All test records shall be retained at the inspected
premises by the building owner and a copy submitted to the Town of
Wethersfield Town Manager within 30 days of when the test has been
conducted. In the event the test shall fail to comply with the minimum
requirements of this chapter, appropriate repairs shall be made and
additional tests conducted until tests meet the minimum requirements
of this chapter.
Town personnel, after providing reasonable notice
to the owner or his representative, shall have the right to enter
onto the property to conduct field testing to be certain that the
require level of radio coverage is present.
This chapter shall not apply to buildings less
than 5,000 square feet or two stories or less, or any three-family
or less multifamily detached residential building or structure less
than 5,000 square feet.
Failure to comply with this chapter shall be
grounds for the Chief Building Official to revoke any previously issued
certificate of occupancy for the building or structure. A written
appeal may be taken to the Town Manager regarding the revocation of
the certificate of occupancy within 30 days of the revocation.