[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Greenville 10-23-1991
by L.L. No. 2-1991. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Unsafe buildings — See Ch. 85.
A Bureau of Fire Prevention in and for the Town of Greenville, Orange
County, New York, outside any incorporated villages, is hereby established.
A.
The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall consist of six members,
as follows: a Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention who shall be the Fire
Inspector of the Town of Greenville; two Assistant Chiefs who shall be the
Building Inspectors and a representative of the Greenville Township Fire Department
who shall hold the rank of Captain or higher and be an active volunteer fireman
with at least five years' active service; a Fire Commissioner; a member
of the Town Board; and a member of the public at large.
B.
In the absence of the Chief, an Assistant Chief shall
be designated by him to be Acting Chief.
The Town Board shall appoint the Fire Inspector who will be responsible
to inspect all buildings, structures and/or premises which fall under the
New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
A.
Meetings shall be held biannually or at the call of the
Chief of the Bureau at his pleasure or upon the request of four members of
the Bureau. Four members shall constitute a quorum for transaction of business.
B.
The Fire Inspector and/or any other inspector shall attend
the Bureau of Fire Prevention meetings and may act as the complainant on all
violations presented by the Bureau. A salary as the Town Board deems commensurate
with the services to be rendered in accordance with Town Law shall be provided.
C.
The Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention shall preside
at all meetings of the Bureau and shall sign and be responsible for all violations
and orders and the prosecution thereof and shall act as witness where appropriate
in any proceedings. He shall also be charged with administering the budget
of the Bureau of Fire Prevention.
A.
The Fire Inspector and/or other inspectors may issue
a warning ticket to any person, firm or corporation when they have reasonable
cause to believe that such person, firm or corporation has committed, acquiesced
or allowed a violation to exist on his or its property or has committed a
violation of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
Such warning notice shall advise the person, firm or corporation of the type
of existing violation or violations, the date such inspection was made and
that such violation is to be corrected forthwith. If uncorrected, an appearance
ticket will be issued for said violation.
B.
The Fire Inspector or other inspectors may issue appearance
tickets to any person, firm or corporation when they have reasonable cause
to believe that such person, firm or corporation has committed a violation
of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code. Such appearance
ticket shall direct the ticketed person, firm or corporation to appear in
the Justice Court of the Town of Greenville at a designated future time not
later than 30 days from the date of issuance of the violation charged. The
appearance ticket shall designate the violation alleged to have been committed
and shall further provide that upon the failure of the designated person,
firm or corporation to appear, a warrant will be issued for his or its arrest.
Nothing in this provision shall require the Fire Inspector or any other inspector,
as a prerequisite, to issue a warning notice before issuing an appearance
ticket. The Criminal Procedure Law of the State of New York shall govern all
proceedings under this section.
A.
The general duties of the Bureau of Fire Prevention are
as follows:
(1)
The prevention of fires.
(2)
The regulation of the storage and use of explosives and
flammables.
(3)
The regulation of the installation and maintenance of
automatic and other private fire alarm systems.
(4)
The regulation of the maintenance of fire escapes.
(5)
The regulation of the maintenance and adequacy of exits
in case of fire in factories, schools, hotels, lodging houses, hospitals,
churches, halls, theaters and all other places in which numbers of persons
are employed, live or congregate from time to time for any purpose.
(6)
The designation of a schedule of routine inspections
that will be conducted on B-1 and B-2, C-1, C-2, C-3, C-4, C-5, C-6 and C-7
occupancies and all C-5 public assemblies at least annually.
(7)
The requirement that the Fire Inspector review all plans
for new and additional construction projects to make sure that they conform
with the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
(8)
The enforcement of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention
and Building Code.
(9)
The establishment of a Fire Prevention Code for the Town
of Greenville and its subsequent amendment and updating.
(10)
The investigation of the cause, origin and circumstances
of fire.
(11)
The issuance of permits for solid-fuel-burning devices,
and ensuring that installation of any solid-fuel-burning device is in compliance
and that said installation is also to be in compliance with applicable laws.
(12)
The provision of inspections under conditions, including
but not limited to:
(13)
The issuance of any and all special permits that are
deemed necessary.
(14)
The making of an annual recommendation to Town Board
for fee schedules to be enacted annually by Town Board.
B.
The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall also have the power
to propose regulations covering the aforesaid items, which regulations shall
be presented to the Town Board of the Town of Greenville for approval, and
it shall have such other powers and perform such other duties as are set forth
in other sections of this chapter as may be conferred from time to time by
local law.
The Chief or Assistant Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention or any
other inspector specifically designated thereto shall inspect, as required
by law or as may be necessary, any building or premises as follows, except
the interior of private single- and double-family dwellings, including but
not limited to buildings housing hazardous manufacturing processes, storage
or installation of gases, chemicals, oils and explosive and flammable materials,
as well as such other hazards or appliances as may be deemed necessary:
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B-1, Multiple dwelling, permanent occupancy
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B-2, Multiple dwelling, transient occupancy
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B-3, Senior citizen housing
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B-4, Adult care home
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C-1, Business
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C-2, Mercantile
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C-3, Industrial
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C-4, Storage
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C-5, Assembly
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C-6, Institutional
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C-7, Miscellaneous
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A.
In the event that any Assistant Chief or any inspector
shall find in any building or upon any premises combustible or explosive material
or dangerous accumulation of rubbish or accumulation of wastepaper, boxes
or any flammable materials or any other condition which is so situated as
likely to cause fire or explosion or so situated as to endanger property,
passageways, doors or windows or liable to interfere with operations of the
Fire Department or access of occupants in case of fire, said Chief and/or
inspector shall forthwith make a report, in writing, which report shall be
maintained by the Chief of the Bureau, and shall notify the occupants orally.
B.
The Chief of the Bureau or any other inspector shall
immediately inspect or cause an inspection to be made based upon such report,
and upon such inspection, such orders as may be necessary for the enforcement
of the laws or ordinances covering the same for safeguarding of life and property
shall be made requiring the hazardous and dangerous conditions found to be
forthwith removed or remedied.
C.
The service of such orders as mentioned in Subsection B shall be made upon the occupant of the premises to whom it is directed, either by delivering a copy of the same to such occupant personally or by delivering the same to and leaving it with any person in charge of the premises or, in case no person is found upon the premises, by affixing a copy thereof in a conspicuous place on the door to the entrance to said premises. Whenever it may be necessary to serve such an order upon the owner of the premises. Such order may be served either by delivery to and leaving with said person a copy of said order or, if such owner is absent from the jurisdiction of the officer making the order, by mailing such copy to the owner's last known address by registered mail, return receipt requested.
A.
Any such order shall be complied with by the owner or
occupant of such premises or building within the time fixed in said order.
Any order made by the Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention and Assistant
Chief, Chief Inspector or any inspector of the Bureau may be appealed from
by the owner or occupant within 48 hours to the Bureau of Fire Prevention
of the Town of Greenville by filing his appeal with the reason therefor with
the Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention. The Bureau of Fire Prevention
shall within five days after the filing of such appeal review such order and
file its decision thereon, and unless such order is revoked or modified, it
shall remain in full force and be complied with within the time fixed in the
order, which time shall be construed to run from the date of the filing of
the decision of the Bureau of Fire Prevention; provided, however, that any
such owner or occupant may within five days after the service of any such
order or within five days after the filing of the decision of the Bureau of
Fire Prevention for an appeal from such order, file a petition with the court
of competent jurisdiction praying for a review of such order.
B.
Such parties appealing to the court shall file with said
court within two days of the filing of the petition, a bond in an amount to
be fixed by the court and to be approved by the court, conditioned to pay
all costs of such appeal in case such appellant fails to sustain his appeal
or the same is dismissed for any reason.
The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall investigate the cause, origin and
circumstances of every fire occurring in its jurisdiction in which a person
has been injured or by which property to a value of not less than $75 has
been destroyed or damaged and, so far as possible, shall determine whether
the fire is the result of carelessness or design. Such investigation shall
be started immediately upon the occurrence of such fire by the Chief of the
Bureau of Fire Prevention or an inspector specially designated, and if it
appears to the officer making such an investigation that such fire is of a
suspicious origin, the Chief of the Bureau shall be immediately notified of
the facts, and he shall notify the proper authorities designated by law to
pursue the investigation of such matters. The Chief of the Bureau of Fire
Prevention shall immediately take charge of the physical evidence and shall
further cooperate with the authorities in the collection of evidence and the
prosecution of the case. Every fire in the jurisdiction of the Fire Prevention
Bureau shall be reported, in writing, to the Chief of the Bureau within two
days after the occurrence of the same by the Fire Chief of the Greenville
Township Fire Department. Such report shall be on a form prescribed by the
Chief of the Bureau and shall contain such information as may be requested
by the Bureau of Fire Prevention.
The Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention shall have the authority,
after a fire has occurred to a structure, building or other object, to have
such structure, building or object upon investigation secured or demolished,
and all expenses and costs incurred by the Town in connection with the securing
or demolition of such structure, building or other object shall be assessed
and levied against the owner of the land on which said structure stands in
the next tax levy on property in the Town of Greenville.
The Attorney for the Town of Greenville, upon request of the Bureau
of Fire Prevention, shall assist the inspectors in the investigation of any
fire.
The annual report of the Bureau of Fire Prevention shall be made on
or before the 15th day of January, in each year, and transmitted to the Supervisor.
Such report shall contain all the proceedings held by the Bureau of Fire Prevention
under this chapter with such statistics as the Chief of the Bureau may wish
to include. In addition, the Bureau of Fire Prevention shall also recommend
any amendments to the Fire Prevention Code of the Town of Greenville or any
other ordinance or code dealing with fire prevention and fire protection which
in its judgment shall be desired.
Any person or persons, firms or corporations violating any of the provisions
of this chapter or neglecting to comply with any order issued pursuant to
any section thereof shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 for each offense
and imprisonment not to exceed one year. Each day that the violation is permitted
to exist beyond the period fixed in the order so issued shall be deemed a
separate offense.
All commercial occupancies, such as but not limited to shopping centers,
retail stores, factories, schools, hotels, motels, churches, restaurants,
meeting halls, theaters, warehouses, trucking terminals, apartment complexes,
etc., shall report yearly to the office of the Fire Inspector the name and
address of their insurance carrier (company) and the name and address of their
insurance agent and their insurance policy.
