[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Cumberland as indicated
in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 7-31-1972]
The Fire/EMS Department shall consist of a Chief, two Deputy
Chiefs and as many officers and men as the Chief deems necessary for
the effective operation of the Department.
The Chief shall be appointed by the Town Manager as stated in
Article III, Section 3(b), of the Council-Manager Charter of the Town
of Cumberland, Maine. The Chief shall appoint the Deputy Chiefs to
serve during his administration. The Captains shall be elected by
the members assigned to their respective stations at their annual
meeting for a period of one year. Lieutenants shall be appointed by
the Chief, Deputy Chiefs, and Captains as necessary.
A.
The Chief shall take charge and have the management of all fire-fighting
apparatus and equipment owned by the Town and shall be charged with
its proper care and maintenance.
B.
All Fire/EMS Department personnel shall obey the orders of the Chief.
C.
The Chief shall designate the order in which other officers take
charge when he is absent.
D.
The Chief shall submit a complete inventory of all fire apparatus
and equipment owned by the Town to the Town Manager annually.
E.
The Chief is authorized to enter into agreements with adjoining towns
for mutual aid. Such agreements must be approved by the Town Council.
The Town Manager shall appoint the Town Forest Fire Warden required
under the provisions of the general statutes from among the Fire/EMS
Chief and the officers of the various companies.
A.
The Chief shall, by publication of appropriate orders in a Portland
newspaper, prohibit or ban all outdoor burning of trash, leaves, grass
or other combustible materials for such period of time as he deems
necessary when in his opinion a condition of serious fire hazard exists
due to drought or other reasons. During the period of such prohibition
or ban, it shall be unlawful for any person or persons to burn, kindle,
ignite, or set fire to trash, lumber, leaves, straw, grass or other
combustible materials anywhere outdoors, except that during such period
of ban or prohibition the Chief may grant specific written permission
for such burning at such a time and in such a manner as he deems necessary
to assure safe control of the fire.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person not a member of a fire company
to enter any place where fire equipment or apparatus is stored or
handle any fire equipment or apparatus owned by the Town unless accompanied
by or having the special permission of an authorized officer of the
Fire/EMS Department or of the Town Council.
C.
It shall be unlawful for any person or persons to:
(1)
Drive
any vehicle or any conveyance over fire hose at any time except upon
specific order of the Chief or officer of the Fire/EMS Department
in command where the hose is being used.
(2)
Park
any vehicle in a manner that will obstruct the entrance to any fire
station, or to obstruct the entrance to any fire station in any other
manner.
(3)
Park
any vehicle or place any obstruction on a public way within 10 feet
of any fire hydrant or fireplug.
(4)
Use
any fire equipment or fire apparatus owned by the Town for any private
purpose, except with the approval of the Town Council.
(5)
Pass
a piece of fire apparatus on its way to a fire without specific order
from the Fire/EMS Department officers in charge of the apparatus.
(6)
Burn,
kindle, set fire to or ignite any combustible material of any sort
within the limits of any public way within the Town without the written
permission of the Fire/EMS Chief.
(7)
Burn,
kindle, or ignite or set fire to any household accumulation, paper,
cardboard or other light combustible material, on his own land or
elsewhere, except such burning shall be done in a screened receptacle
having a screened covering and under proper safeguards.
Any person or persons found guilty of a violation of this article
shall be fined not less than $5 nor more than $20 for each offense.
[Adopted 9-13-2004]
This article shall be known as the "Fire Protection Ordinance
of the Town of Cumberland, Maine" and shall be referred to herein
as "this article."
This article is adopted pursuant to home rule powers as provided
in Article VIII of the Maine Constitution and 30-A M.R.S.A. § 3001.
The purpose of this article is to protect the health, safety
and general welfare of the residents of Cumberland by establishing
fire protection measures for residential and commercial occupancies
to:
A.
Provide for the protection and enhancement of life safety against
fire and its by-products to persons occupying new buildings in the
Town of Cumberland by improving the chances of emergency escape.
B.
Ensure the reasonable protection and safety of firefighters against
building collapse and other effects of fires.
C.
Better facilitate the needs of a volunteer fire department response.
D.
Ensure that sound engineering practices are utilized when installing
fire protection systems.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction.
The organization, office, or individual responsible for approving
equipment, materials, an installation, or a procedure.
Any building designed for the following occupancy use(s):
business, educational, industrial, health care, public assembly, day
care, lodging/rooming, mercantile, apartment, hotel, detention, board
and care, storage or any combination thereof as defined by the National
Fire Protection Association Life Safety Code.
A drafting source for Fire/EMS Department apparatus connected
to either an underground storage tank or a body of water. Each hydrant
shall be equipped with a male four-and-five-tenths-inch national standard
thread (NST) fire department connection with a reducing male two-and-five-tenths-inch
NST connection with cap and chain. This connection shall be located
within six feet from pavement for support of fire apparatus. The center
of the cap shall be 30 inches from the final grade. There must be
six feet of level ground around the hydrant. Protective posts shall
be approved by the Fire/EMS Department. All vertical pipe components
and the hydrant shall not be plastic. The design of the hydrant, associated
components and piping shall be approved by a licensed engineer. The
Public Services Director and the Fire/EMS Chief, or their designees,
shall approve access roads, protection from vehicular traffic, signage,
gates, painting of the hydrant, and any other associated items. Access
roads must be maintained year round and will be the responsibility
of the developer.
A room or group of rooms designed and equipped exclusively
for use as living quarters for a family, including provisions for
living, sleeping, cooking and eating. The term shall include, but
not be limited to, manufactured housing, modular/mobile homes, apartment
units, duplexes and multiplexes and condominium units. The term shall
not include trailers or recreational vehicles used for overnight or
temporary lodging only.
A body of water containing at a minimum 120,000 gallons of
usable water for fire protection. A hydrologic study shall be performed
by a licensed engineer to certify the availability of the 120,000
gallons of water during all conditions, including drought and freezing
temperatures. Ponds to be considered shall have been in place prior
to October 6, 2003.
A Town of Cumberland Planning Board approved subdivision
with five or more residential occupancies.
A Town of Cumberland Planning Board approved subdivision
with four or fewer dwelling units.
An approved automatic fire alarm system, with battery backup,
shall be capable of detecting the presence of elevated heat temperatures,
smoke conditions or sprinkler system water flow within a building
and have the capability of calling an approved fire alarm monitoring
company. The system shall meet all of the requirements as outlined
in the National Fire Alarm Code.
Water system maintained by the Portland Water District, including
water mains and fire hydrants.
An approved automatic fire protection sprinkler system shall
be capable of immediately supplying water to a fire without human
intervention. The system shall meet all of the requirements as outlined
in the applicable National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standard.
These standards shall include NFPA 13, NFPA 13R or NFPA 13D. The system
design is required by state law to be permitted by the State Fire
Marshal's office prior to installation.
A subdivision shall be defined by 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4401
and as amended from time to time. For the purposes of this article,
"subdivision" shall mean only those approved by the Planning Board
after March 6, 1959. In addition, any lots shown on a subdivision
plan but not subject to Planning Board review shall not be considered
a lot in a subdivision.
A tank or network of tanks located in the ground serving
the sole purpose of supplying at a minimum 30,000 gallons of water
for fire protection purposes.
All applications shall contain a fire protection water supply
plan with profiles designed and stamped by a State of Maine registered
professional engineer. A State of Maine registered professional engineer
shall also approve the installation of all components of the tank(s)
and hydrant system. This plan shall show the fire pond or existing
water body, spring, well point, or pumping facility; overflow system;
security fence; access road; dry hydrant(s); associated piping and
materials; easements; and other elements of the proposed water supply
system or other means of providing fire protection as approved by
the Fire/EMS Chief. In addition, the engineer shall provide a written
narrative describing the materials and methods used in the water supply
system, and supportive documentation for the proper sizing of the
system shall accompany the plan.
This article shall apply to all new commercial buildings in
excess of 4,000 square feet and all new residential dwelling units
in major subdivisions (including manufactured housing) within the
Town of Cumberland. No new dwelling unit or commercial property that
fails to meet the requirements of this article shall be constructed
or placed within the Town of Cumberland. The Planning Board, after
review by the Fire/EMS Department, may impose additional requirements
for projects with multifamily dwelling units or single-family dwellings
separated by less than 100 feet.
This article shall not apply to the following:
A.
The repair, replacement, reconstruction or alteration of any existing
building or structure, provided that the number of dwellings units
is not increased, regardless of the need for a variance.
B.
Minor subdivisions and any new residential units that are not located
within a major subdivision (five or more dwelling units).
A.
All new commercial properties in excess of 4,000 square feet and
all new residential dwelling units in major subdivisions shall meet
one of the requirements set forth in the following three subsections:
(1)
An extension of the public water system with hydrants supplied at
a distance not greater than 1,000 feet from each other and from the
added building(s).
(2)
An approved automatic sprinkler system.
(3)
A dry hydrant connected to one of the following may be allowed. Subdivisions
protected as provided by this subsection shall be designed with two
entrances (maintained year round) to facilitate Fire/EMS Department
tanker shuttle operations.
B.
Additional requirements. The Cumberland Fire/EMS Department may recommend
and the Planning Board may approve additional requirements for multifamily
dwelling units or major subdivisions in which the dwelling units are
separated by less than 100 feet. Additional requirements may include
automatic fire protection sprinkler systems, additional fire hydrants,
building construction designs intended to reduce the spread of fire,
or other accepted engineering methods.
C.
Distances shall be measured by the path of a fire apparatus from
the water source to the dwelling unit or commercial property, including
the driveway.
This article shall not repeal, annul, or otherwise impair or
remove the necessity of compliance with any federal, state or other
local laws, codes or ordinances. Where this article imposes a greater
restriction upon the use of land, buildings, or structures, the provisions
of this article shall prevail.
This article shall be reviewed by the Town Council in September 2007 to assess the efficacy of this article and shall be reviewed by the Planning Board periodically (but not less frequently than once every three years). Based on its review the Planning Board may recommend amending this article as provided in § 96-17, Amendments.
An amendment to this article may be initiated by one of the
following:
A.
A violation of this article shall be deemed to exist when any person,
partnership, or corporate entity engages in any construction activity
directly related to the erection or placement of a commercial property
in excess of 4,000 square feet or a residential dwelling unit in a
major subdivision without first having an approved fire protection
plan obtained from the Fire/EMS Chief or his/her designee.
B.
If a new commercial property in excess of 4,000 square feet or a
new residential dwelling unit in a major subdivision has been constructed
without an approved fire protection plan, it shall be deemed a violation
for any person, firm, or corporate entity to sell, lease, rent or
occupy such new commercial property in excess of 4,000 square feet
or new residential dwelling unit in a major subdivision until such
approval has been duly issued.
When a violation of any provision of this article shall be found,
the Code Enforcement Officer shall send a written notice of the violation
to the responsible party or parties and shall notify the Town Council
of the violation. If the notice does not result in the correction
of the violation, the Town Council may institute any and all actions
and proceedings, either legal or equitable, including seeking injunctive
relief, the imposition of fines, removal of the structure, or other
action that may be appropriate or necessary, to enforce the provisions
of this article. The remedies set forth herein are intended to be
cumulative and not exclusive of each other. The Town Council is authorized
to enter into administrative consent orders to eliminate violations
with or without court action. Such agreement shall not allow an illegal
structure or use to continue.
A.
Any person owning or controlling the use of any new commercial property
in excess of 4,000 square feet or any new residential dwelling unit
in a major subdivision being constructed or occupied in violation
of this article shall be liable to be fined not less than $100 nor
more than $2,500 for each day such a violation (i.e., construction
activity or unlawful occupancy) continues after notification by the
Code Enforcement Officer.
The Board of Adjustment and Appeals, in accordance with Chapter 315, Zoning, § 315-77, may, upon written application of an aggrieved party and after public notice, hear appeals from determinations of the Code Enforcement Officer in the administration of this article. Following such hearing, the Board of Adjustment and Appeals may reverse the decision of the Code Enforcement Officer only upon a finding that the decision is clearly contrary to the specific provisions of this article.
