Village of Fox Point, WI Fire Prevention

AUTHORITY HAVING JURISDICTION (AHJ)

For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall be applicable:

APPROVED

As applied to automatic fire sprinkler systems, means the approval of equipment and installation by the North Shore Fire Department applying recognized national fire codes and industry testing standards as to manufacture and installation. All sprinkler installations shall be installed to the appropriate NFPA standard. The edition of that standard shall be the most current printed edition unless specifically identified otherwise. The Authority Having Jurisdiction shall provide all local approvals.

AREA

The entire space within the surrounding exterior walls not to include vent shafts or courts. For purposes of calculating egress, two-hour walls meeting the design of horizontal exits can be used to limit area.

As used in this chapter and in all NFPA documents, shall mean the Chief of the North Shore Fire Department or the chief's designee. The AHJ shall be responsible for the enforcement of the Fire Code as well as approving all sprinkler and fire alarm plans.

AUTOMATIC FIRE SPRINKLER EQUIPMENT

A system of piping connected to a water supply or other recognized suppression agent provided with approved automatic fire sprinklers and/or devices so arranged and located as to discharge water or other recognized suppression agent automatically to control or suppress a fire.

BASEMENT

That portion of a building or structure that is partially or completely below the level of exit discharge.

CLASSES OF CONSTRUCTION

The classes of construction referenced are set forth in the International Building Code.

	Type I	A or B
	Type II	A or B
	Type III	A or B
	Type IV	HT
	Type V	A or B

EXISTING OCCUPANCY

All buildings or portions of buildings occupied at the time this chapter is adopted.

SUBBASEMENT

Any level below a basement. This level is entirely below grade.

Occupancy definitions. The following are the occupancy classifications and their definitions that will be used to determine the building, structure or tenant use of any given space. The following are referenced from the International Building Code.

Assembly:

	Group A-1	Assembly uses with seating for the production or viewing of motion pictures or viewing performing arts.
	Group A-2	Assembly uses intended for the consumption of food or drink.
	Group A-3	Assembly uses intended for worship, recreation or amusement (uses not classified elsewhere in Group A).
	Group A-4	Assembly uses intended for viewing indoor sports events with spectator seating.
	Group A-5	Assembly uses intended for participation in or viewing outdoor.

Business:

Group B

The use of a building or portion thereof for office, professional or service type transactions.

Educational:

	Group E	The use of a building or structure for educational purposes by six or more persons at any one time through the 12th grade.
		Day care used for the education, supervision or personal care of more than five children over the age of 2 1/2 shall be part of this group.

(d)

Factory and industrial:

	Group F-1	Factory or industrial uses which pose a moderate hazard (all uses not fitting the F-2 category).
	Group F-2	Factory or industrial uses that involve the fabrication or manufacturing of noncombustible materials and the processing or packaging of the finished product does not pose a significant fire hazard.

(e)

High hazard:

	Group H-1	Buildings or structures that contain materials that pose a threat of detonation.
	Group H-2	Buildings or structures that contain materials that present a deflagration hazard or hazard from accelerated burning.
	Group H-3	Buildings or structures that contain materials that readily support combustion or present a physical hazard.
	Group H-4	Buildings or structures that contain materials that contain materials that are health hazards.
	Group H-5	Semiconductor fabrication facilities and comparable research and development.

(f)

Institutional:

	Group I-1	Buildings or structures or portions thereof housing more than 16 persons on a twenty-four-hour basis because of age, mental disease or other reasons live in a supervised residential care environment (persons in this group can respond to emergencies without physical assistance).
	Group I-2	Buildings or structures or portions thereof used for medical, surgical, psychiatric, nursing or custodial care on a twenty-four-hour basis of five or more persons not capable of self-preservation.
		A facility that provides child care on a twenty-four-hour basis to more than five children 2 1/2 years of age or less or part of this group.
	Group I-3	Buildings or structures or portions thereof that are inhabited by more than five persons who are under restraint or security. Persons in this group are usually incapable of self-preservation because of security measures.
	Group I-4	Buildings or structures or portions thereof occupied by persons of any age who receive custodial care for less than 24 hours by persons other than family in a place other than the home of the person being cared for.

(g)

Mercantile:

Group M

Buildings or structures or portions thereof for the display and sale of merchandise (involves stocks of goods, wares or merchandise incidental to such purposes and accessible to the public).

(h)

Residential:

	Group R-1	Residential occupancies where the occupants are primarily transient (less than 30 days).
	Group R-2	Residential occupancies containing more than 2 dwelling units where occupants are permanent in nature.
	Group R-3	Residential occupancies are permanent in nature where buildings do not contain more than 2 dwelling units or adult or child-care facilities that provide accommodations for five or fewer persons of any age for less than 24 hours.
	Group R-4	Residential occupancy buildings for residential care/assisted living for more than five but not more than 16 persons.

(i)

Storage:

	Group S-1	Moderate hazard storage.
	Group S-2	Low-hazard storage of noncombustible items (can be on combustible surface).

(j)

Utility and miscellaneous:

Group U

Covers all buildings and structures not covered in any other occupancy chapter.

Where required. An approved automatic fire sprinkler system shall be installed and maintained per the requirements of the Life Safety Code, NFPA 101. Where conflicts arise between this section and any other code section, the most restrictive requirements shall apply. Nothing in this section shall apply to one and two-family dwellings.

Special structures and high-rise buildings:

Open structures (occasional occupants): provide automatic, manual or other protection that is appropriate for the hazard.

Towers (occasional occupants): provide automatic, manual or other protection that is appropriate for the hazard.

Water-surrounded structures (occasional occupants): provide automatic, manual or other protection that is appropriate for the hazard.

(d)

Piers: protection dependent on use of pier.

(e)

Vehicles and vessels: where immobile, check specific occupancy use chapter for requirements.

(f)

Underground and windowless structures: approved automatic sprinkler system (occupant load of 50 or more).

(g)

High-rise buildings: protected throughout by an approved automatic sprinkler system.

(h)

Permanent membrane structures: portable fire extinguishers.

(i)

Temporary membrane structures: portable fire extinguishers.

(j)

Tents: portable fire extinguishers.

Assembly. Throughout buildings with assembly occupant load of 300 or more. Throughout the story containing the assembly occupancy. Throughout all stories below the story containing the assembly use. In cases where the assembly use is located below the level of exit discharge, then all intervening stories including the level of exit discharge.

Educational: all levels below the level of exit discharge.

(4)

Day care: check size for special requirements.

(5)

Health care: buildings containing health care occupancies throughout.

(6)

Ambulatory health care: check occupancy chapter.

(7)

Detention and correction occurrences:

Use Condition I: check occupancy chapter.

Use Condition II: throughout.

Use Condition III: throughout.

(d)

Use Condition IV: throughout.

(e)

Use Condition V: throughout.

(8)

Lodging or rooming house: throughout.

(9)

Hotels and dormitories: throughout.

(10)

Apartment building: throughout.

(11)

Residential board and care occupancies: throughout.

(12)

Mercantile occupancies: throughout, if:

All mercantile occupancies three or more stories in height.

All mercantile occupancies exceeding 12,000 square feet in gross area.

Stories below the level of exit discharge where such stories have an area exceeding 2,500 square feet us for the sale, storage, or handling of combustible goods and merchandise.

(13)

Business occupancies: check occupancy chapter.

(14)

Industrial occupancies:

General industrial (check size and use).

Special purpose (check special processes or equipment for additional protection requirements).

High hazard: throughout.

(15)

Storage occupancies. Special provisions for certain types of storage uses.

Hazardous properties or special concerns. Throughout every building which by reason of its construction or the highly combustible nature of its occupancy involves a severe hazard to the life of its occupants or, in the judgment of the authority having jurisdiction, constitutes a fire hazard which by its very nature may more directly affect adjoining properties.

How installed. All required fire extinguishing and fire alarm systems shall be installed in accordance with current editions of the National Fire Protection Association, hereinafter referred to as "NFPA" Fire Protection Code or Codes, or other standards, which substantially meet or exceed NFPA standards as approved by the Fire Chief.

Maintenance. The owner or occupant of a building or structure containing any required automatic sprinkler system shall maintain that system in an operative condition at all times which includes periods where the building may not be occupied. The occupant of the building shall notify the Fire Chief immediately in case the sprinkler protection is rendered out of service for any reason. All sprinkler systems shall be tested to meet the requirements of NFPA 25. A person(s) or company holding testers credentials issued by the State of Wisconsin shall perform the tests.

§ 781-12 Fire extinguisher systems.

Automatic fire extinguisher cooking systems.

APPROVED AUTOMATIC FIRE EXTINGUISHING SYSTEM

Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall be applicable:

ACCEPTED

All provisions of this section have been complied with and have been approved in writing by the Fire Department.

A package unit as listed by the Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (or other nationally recognized testing laboratory), fire protection equipment list in effect at the date of installation, for the extinguishing of fires in hoods, filters and ducts used for the ventilation of cooking equipment, or a system individually designed to the appropriate applicable standard.

COOKING EQUIPMENT

Ranges, ovens, broilers, deep fryers, grills and other cooking appliances or devices designed for use in preparing food.

DUCT SYSTEMS

Metal enclosures or pipes attached to the hood and leading to the outside for the purpose of venting and dissipating cooking vapors and residues.

ESTABLISHMENT

A building or portion of a building, room, public or private, where food is prepared for consumption by customers either on or off the premises, patients, members or inmates of such building. Included in this definition are schools, churches, hospitals, nursing homes, lodges, hotels, motels, cafeterias, restaurants, food kitchens and places of detention.

HOOD

The portion of the cooking equipment usually installed above the cooking equipment and designed for the primary collection of cooking vapors and residues, constructed of materials listed and approved for that use.

PACKAGE UNIT

A complete automatic fire extinguishing system as designed by the manufacturer, listed by a testing organization and installed in compliance with the manufacturer's instructions and recommendations. Systems designed for individual installation by competent authority and approved by the Fire Department shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section.

Where required.

A hood and duct system shall be installed in any restaurant, and over all other equipment used for frying, cooking and similar preparation of food in all establishments, shall be equipped with or have immediately available, an approved automatic fire extinguishing system designed for manual and automatic operation, or with a system approved by the Fire Department which will safeguard the premises, occupants and frequenters thereof.

All establishments affected by the requirements of Subsection A(2)(a) hereof shall comply with the requirements of this subsection. All new installations shall comply before the Building Inspector shall grant a certificate of occupancy.

Installation requirements.

All equipment shall conform to the appropriate NFPA standard. The equipment shall be either a "package unit" as listed in the Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., Fire Protection Equipment List, for the extinguishment of fires in hoods, filters, and ducts used for ventilation of restaurant cooking equipment or a system individually designed ("engineered systems") to the applicable NFPA standard for the type of extinguishing equipment. A manual actuation control which is accessible to kitchen personnel shall be provided. The control shall be located near the hood not more than five feet above the floor, readily accessible and not obstructed by cabinets or any other objects, permanent or temporary that would affect a persons ability to see the device. Instructions on operation of the manual control system shall be posted. A visual indicating device shall be provided and so located that at any time it can readily be determined if the system's extinguishing agent has discharged. An automatic fuel shutoff device shall be provided on all gas-fired appliances.

No fuel shutoff device is required for electric appliances except electrically operated deep fat fryers. The installation shall conform to NFPA No. 96, Ventilation of Cooking Equipment. Package units shall be installed in conformance with the limitations in the Underwriters' Laboratories, Fire Protection Equipment List as established by tests for the various unit sizes and nozzle arrangements. In the ventilating system, all areas that are enclosed or partly enclosed shall be protected, including areas behind filters, duct work, including in some cases fresh air intakes, and enclosed air intakes ahead of filters. All hood systems shall be engineered regardless of size.

Plans. A dimensional drawing or sketch showing the hood and ducts and the extinguishing system shall be prepared together with a form showing the size of the hood and ducts, the area of the protected surface, the model, size and number of package units, the size and length of piping, the number and type of fittings and the number of nozzles and distance of nozzles above the cooking surface, if protected.

(4)

Maintenance requirements. All extinguishing systems shall be inspected and maintained at least semiannually by a factory authorized representative, and the unit shall have a certification tag of the inspection which shall be attached to the extinguishing agent.

§ 781-13 Pre- and postconstruction requirements.

Access for firefighting.

Access for use of heavy firefighting equipment shall be provided to the immediate job site at the start of construction and maintained until all construction is completed.

Free access from the street to fire hydrants, and to outside connections for standpipes, sprinklers or other fire extinguishing equipment, whether permanent or temporary, shall be provided and maintained at all times. No material or construction shall be placed within 10 feet of such hydrants or connections, nor between it and the center line of the street.

During building operations, free access to permanent, temporary, or portable first aid fire equipment shall be maintained at all times.

(4)

In all buildings over 50 feet in height, at least one stairway shall be provided in usable condition at all times. This stairway shall be extended upward as each floor is installed.

(5)

Arrangements shall be made so that fire fighters will have access to the premises when called to a fire.

Supervision and watch service.

A capable person having the necessary authority shall be placed in charge of fire protection. That person's responsibilities shall include maintenance and location of fire protective equipment, general supervision of safeguards and location of salamanders or portable heating equipment, and the establishment and maintenance of safe cutting and welding operations.

No owner or occupant of any building or any person or corporation engaged, either as a contractor, worker or in any other capacity, in any work upon any building, shall maintain a fire in any building within this Village in a stove, salamander, or other similar contrivance without having some person at all times present in such building to attend such fire unless a fireproof substance is at all times maintained immediately under such stove, salamander or other similar contrivance and unless the same is connected with the outside of said building by means of a noncombustible pipe or chimney in such manner that all of the smoke and gases arising from such fire are conducted directly to outside of said buildings.

Cutting and welding operations. A permit system to be administered by the Fire Department shall be used for cutting and welding operations on the job site under the supervision of the construction superintendent or the person in charge of fire protection. This permit system shall be applicable to subcontractors' personnel as well as the contractors. A permit shall not be issued until:

It has been determined that cutting and welding can be safely conducted at the desired location;

Combustibles have been moved away or safely covered; and

A fire watchman with extinguisher is posted for the duration of the work, and for 30 minutes thereafter, to see that sparks or drops of hot metal do not start fires.

Fire stopping.

Concealed spaces. In the construction of new buildings or structures involving structural or substantial alterations amounting to more than 50% of the assessed valuation of the building or structure, any concealed space in which materials having a flame-spread rating greater than Class A are exposed, shall be effectively fire-stopped as hereinafter provided with materials approved by the Fire Department.

Every interior and exterior wall and partition shall be fire-stopped at each floor level, at the top story ceiling level and at the level of support for roofs.

Every unoccupied attic space shall be subdivided by fire stops into areas not to exceed 3,000 square feet.

Any concealed space between the ceiling and the floor or the roof above shall be fire-stopped for the full length of the space along the line of support for the floor or roof structural members and if necessary, to be determined by the Fire Department, at other locations, to form areas not to exceed 1,000 square feet for any space between the ceiling and the floor, and 3,000 square feet for any space between the ceiling and the roof.

§ 781-14 Waste material.

No owner or owners, agent or occupants of any buildings situated within the Village shall allow any wastepaper, hay, straw, rags, or other waste material of combustible nature to accumulate or to remain in any building or on any premises more than 24 hours unless stored as provided in Subsection D of this section.

The Chief of the Fire Department may order the immediate removal of such accumulated combustible waste material from any building or premises when in his opinion such storage would create a fire hazard. Ashes, when kept in basements in buildings under this section, shall be placed in fireproof tins, areas or containers.

Every person who violates the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for every 24 hours such violations shall continue and shall be subject to a separate penalty for each and every offense.

Combustible cuttings, disposal of waste, cloth, paper, or other waste combustible cuttings shall be cleared up and removed from the building at the close of each day's work, and shall be stored in a separate fireproof storage building, or in a metal container with cover or in a metal-lined box with cover or in a fireproof vault or room.

§ 781-15 Oily waste and materials.

Oily waste and oily rags, when not in actual use, during the day, shall be kept in approved, standard, self-closing metal waste cans, set firmly on three-inch legs. One such waste can shall be installed for every 2,500 square feet of floor area, on each floor, where oily waste or oily rags are used. The contents of all such waste cans shall be destroyed, burned or removed from the building at the close of each day's work.

Sweeping compounds within buildings shall be kept and stored in covered metal drums or containers.

Sweepings shall be immediately burned or deposited in approved metal receptacles.

Oily or greasy clothing shall not be allowed to remain on wooden floors or work benches, nor placed in wooden lockers, or hung against wooden walls or partitions. All such items shall be stored in a properly listed storage locker or container.

It shall be unlawful for any owner or occupant of any building or premises to store or permit the storage in any building or on any premises any loose or baled hay, straw, hemp, flax, tow, shavings, sawdust or any other combustible materials of like nature.

§ 781-16 Burning materials.

[Amended 8-11-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02A; 6-12-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-03]

Prohibition; exceptions. Open burning, outdoor burning and refuse burning are prohibited, subject to the exceptions in this § 781-16.

[Amended 6-14-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-03]

Grilling exception. Fires using charcoal, wood, propane or natural gas in cooking or grilling appliances are allowed if located in approved locations as follows: No hibachi, gas-fired grill, charcoal grill, electric grill or other similar device used for cooking shall be used or kindled above grade level on any balcony or under any overhanging portion or within 10 feet of any structure, any combustible material, combustible wall or partition, exterior window opening, exit access or exit.

Community event exception. Fires using wood or other natural materials may be allowed by the Village Manager on public property in the Village, for recreational purposes during a community event that is open to the public. The Village Manager, in the Manager's discretion, is authorized to determine whether to allow such fires, in consideration of all facts and circumstances which may include the location, the number of participants expected, weather conditions, impacts upon surrounding areas and precautions taken. The Village Manager may impose limitations or conditions upon the approval of any fire approved pursuant to this section.

[Added 10-14-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-06]

Permanent gas-fire feature exception. Permanent outdoor gas-fire features may be utilized for open burning upon compliance with all applicable codes and standards. Fuel for this type of fire shall only be those designated for the appliance. The appliance shall have an enclosure that is permanently anchored to the exterior of the fire feature. Fire features shall not be located closer than 10 feet from the nearest building, accessory structure, fence, deck or any other combustible surface and shall be used on a noncombustible, safe and level surface. No combustible materials shall be allowed within five feet of the appliance. Features must be located a minimum of 10 feet from building air intakes or other openings. Any open burning of this type shall be constantly attended and supervised by competent persons of at least 18 years of age; this includes the time from ignition until the fire is extinguished. These persons shall have readily available for use such fire-extinguishing equipment as may be necessary for the total control and extinguishment of the fire. The igniter shall be secured to prevent unauthorized persons from igniting the burner. A visible emergency shut-off shall be provided within reach.

Prescribed burning allowed with a permit. A prescribed burn is the controlled burning of invasive weeds, grasses, and brush that is planned and conducted by a professional environmental consulting or engineering firm demonstrating adequate proof of insurance, for the purpose of restoring native prairie plant species and improving wildlife habitat.

[Added 6-14-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-03[1]]

Adequate proof of insurance for the professional environmental consulting or engineering firm conducting the prescribed burn shall be shown through certificate of insurance and shall be at least $1,000,000 in commercial liability and general liability coverage for injury to both property and person, and any other coverage as required by the North Shore Fire Department.