[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Johnson City 12-19-2006 by L.L. No. 6-2006.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Administration of Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code — See Ch. 114.
Unsafe buildings — See Ch. 118.
Storage of flammable gases — See Ch. 154.
Outdoor woodburning furnaces — See Ch. 184.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also repealed former Ch. 148, Fire Prevention and Building Construction, consisting of Art. I, Building Construction, adopted 8-20-1973 as Art. I of Ch. 6 of the 1973 Code, and Art. II, Fire Prevention, adopted 8-20-1973 as Ch. 8 of the 1973 Code, as amended.
A. 
Authorized subject to certain conditions. Pursuant to the provisions of § 209 of the General Municipal Law, the Village is authorized and permitted to go to the aid of any city, village, town, fire district or territory outside the Village of Johnson City within the County of Broome and counties adjacent to the County of Broome, and permission is hereby given to the Chief and other employees of the Fire Department of the Village employed by it to use the fire trucks and other apparatus and equipment owned by the Village for such purposes. Such authorization and permission for the extension of such aid shall, however, be subject to the following conditions and regulations:
(1) 
All calls for such aid in connection with fires occurring in any such outside city, village, town, fire district or territory shall be refused if, at the time of such calls or any of them, said apparatus and equipment shall be engaged in any service within said Village.
(2) 
All calls for outside assistance shall be refused unless at the time of such call such apparatus and equipment can be safely used for the purpose of responding to such calls without impairing or endangering the same and unless the highways and weather conditions are favorable. Such facts shall be determined by the Chief or Acting Chief of the Fire Department or by such other person or persons as the Board of Trustees shall designate and appoint for such purpose.
(3) 
Any such call for assistance from any outside city, village, town, fire district or territory shall not be responded to and shall be refused unless such calls are made by such person or persons as shall have been duly designated, pursuant to resolution duly adopted by the governing body of such city, village, town, fire district or territory, and the name and address of such designee filed with the Clerk of the Village of Johnson City.
(4) 
Any such call shall not be responded to and shall be refused unless the city, village, town, fire district or territory by which such call shall be made shall have, by suitable resolution duly adopted by its governing body, consented and agreed to abide by the terms, regulations, conditions and provisions herein provided and shall have agreed to pay to the Village of Johnson City any and all loss or damage to said fire apparatus or equipment of said Village together with the expenses incurred in the operation of the same in connection with any and all of such calls for aid and assume responsibility for compensation for such firemen employed by said Village as shall receive injuries while performing their duties as such, while going to a fire, while working at a fire or returning therefrom.
B. 
Claims for services. The Board of Trustees shall from time to time fix the value of services rendered to outside cities, villages, towns, fire districts or territories in responding to calls for assistance and for any loss or damage to the fire apparatus or equipment of the Village used in connection with any such call or calls, together with the expenses incurred with the operation of the same in connection with such call or calls, and shall submit to any such city, village, town, fire district or territory as shall have made and received response to any such call a written claim or claims for compensation therefor within 60 days after the same shall be determined pursuant to the statute in such case made and provided.
It is the intent of this section to protect the general health, welfare and safety of the people of the Village of Johnson City by prohibiting open fires, which are dangerous to life and property.
A. 
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
GARBAGE
The animal and vegetable waste resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and serving of food.
OPEN FIRE
Any outdoor fire or outdoor smoke-producing process from which air contaminants are emitted directly into the outdoor atmosphere.
REFUSE
All waste material, including but not limited to garbage, rubbish, incinerator residue, street sweepings, dead animals and offal.
RUBBISH
Solid or liquid waste material, including but not limited to paper and paper products; rags; trees or leaves, needles and branches therefrom; vines; lawn and garden debris; furniture; cans; crockery; plastic; cartons; chemicals; paint; grease; sludge; oils and other petroleum products; lumber; sawdust; demolition materials; tires; and automobiles and other vehicles and parts for junk, salvage or disposal.
B. 
Prohibited burning. The following fires are prohibited in Johnson City:
(1) 
The burning of garbage, refuse and rubbish in any manner is prohibited.
(2) 
All open fires are prohibited in Johnson City, with the exception of those in conformity with the provisions of § 148-2C of this chapter.
(3) 
Open burning for outdoor cooking is prohibited in or on multiple-dwelling structures.
C. 
Permitted burning. Burning in an open fire, provided that it is not contrary to any other federal, state, county or local law, ordinance, rule or regulation, will be permitted as follows:
(1) 
Bonfires. Bonfires shall be permitted only for a publicly-sponsored celebration or event, or for an organization-sponsored event, or for a public or private school-sponsored event, and shall be subject to meeting all requirements of the bonfire permit application obtained from and filed with the Fire Marshal's office, prior to any bonfire being lit and taking place. No fire shall be ignited prior to an on-site inspection of the location where the bonfire is to take place and shall be subject to any and all conditions or restrictions the Fire Marshal's office may impose for the safety of life and property, nor shall any fire be ignited prior to the issuance of a bonfire permit issued by the Fire Marshal's office. The Fire Department shall be notified prior to igniting any said bonfire permitted by the Fire Marshal's office.
(2) 
Outdoor cooking. Open burning will be permitted for outdoor cooking when the fire is limited to the minimal size necessary and contained in a device or cooking utensil commonly referred to as a "grill" or "hibachi" and designed for outdoor cooking purposes. All applicable and/or reasonable safety precautions shall be taken when using said devices or utensils.
(3) 
Recreational fires or campfires. Small recreational fires or campfires shall be permitted only when all of the following are adhered to:
(a) 
When the fire is contained to a device designed to hold a small fire, such as an outdoor fireplace, or commercially manufactured steel or ceramic portable fireplace, and used according to the manufacturer's directions.
(b) 
Said fire is solely for a recreational purpose.
(c) 
Said fire is placed no closer than 25 feet to any structure.
(d) 
Said fire is properly attended and controlled at all times by a responsible party with appropriate fire extinguishing equipment readily available.
(e) 
Said fire shall not present a safety hazard to life or property, nor create a nuisance.
D. 
Control of fires within the Village. If, in the opinion of the Fire Marshal or the Fire Chief, weather conditions are such that the starting or the continuation of burning is a risk to life, health or property within the Village, he or she shall have the right to declare that any and all burning shall cease immediately until further notice.
E. 
Enforcement. The Fire Marshal and such firefighting personnel as he or she shall designate are hereby vested with authority to enforce the provisions of this section. The Fire Department is hereby authorized to extinguish any open burning fire being conducted in violation of any of the provisions of this section.
F. 
Penalties for offenses.
(1) 
Any violation by a person, firm or corporation of any provision of this section shall be deemed a violation pursuant to the Penal Law of the State of New York, punishable by a fine not exceeding $250 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 15 days, or both.
(2) 
Any person who takes part in or assists in any violation of this section shall also be subject to the penalties provided herein.
(3) 
Each day (twenty-four-hour period) that a violation of this section is committed or permitted to exist shall be deemed to constitute a distinct and separate violation.
No person shall throw, drop or place any lighted match, cigar, cigarette or any burning fragment or part thereof or any burning contents of any pipe in, upon or through any grating in any sidewalk or any window of any building or any vehicle or into any accumulation of combustible material adjacent to any building in the Village.
No person shall store or keep or permit to be kept or to remain in any building or in any cellar or basement of any building in the Village any accumulation of empty boxes, barrels, paper, rubbish or combustible material which, in the judgment of the Chief of the Fire Department, presents or increases a fire hazard.
No person shall deposit or keep or cause or permit to be deposited or kept in the Village any hay, straw, excelsior, empty boxes, barrels, wastepaper or other combustible material in any street, avenue, lane, alley, yard or place adjacent to any building or within 10 feet of any place where fire exists or ashes are stored unless such combustible materials are kept in a closed and separate receptacle.
No person shall deposit or keep or cause or permit to be deposited or kept any ashes in or within 10 feet of any building or part of a building constructed in whole or in part of wood in the Village except in a securely closed container made of metal or other incombustible material.
No person shall keep or store or permit to be kept or stored any excelsior, paper, shavings or other material of a combustible nature, commonly used for packing, in any building in the Village unless the same shall be kept in a covered metal container.
No person shall keep or permit to be kept in any building in the Village any oily waste or oily rags unless at all times when not in use such oily waste or oily rags shall be kept in a separate metal can with a self-closing cover and riveted joints, standing on metal legs which raise the bottom of the container at least four inches above the floor.
All public areas, all bedroom areas and all storage areas of nursing homes constructed within the Village of Johnson City shall be equipped with a sprinkler system or smoke detector device.