729.01 PURPOSE AND SCOPE.

   (a)    The purpose of this chapter is to protect persons and property in the City, to prevent misuse of emergency services, and to ensure that the quality of equipment on direct tie-in lines to the City comports to standards as dictated by the Police Department.

   (b)    This chapter governs alarm systems, requires permits, establishes fees, provides penalties for civil and criminal punishment of violations and establishes a system of administration. (Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.02 DEFINITIONS.

   As used in this chapter:

   (a)   "Alarm agent" means any person who is employed by an alarm business, either directly or indirectly, whose duties include any of the following: selling, maintaining, leasing, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving or installing any alarm system in or on any structure in the City.

   (b)   "Alarm business" means any full-time or part-time business by a person of selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving or installing any alarm system, or causing the same to be sold, leased, maintained, serviced, repaired, altered, replaced, moved or installed, in or on any building, place or premises.

   (c)   "Alarm malfunction" means an activated alarm system, and a response by the Police Department and/or the Fire Department, resulting from a windstorm or other severe weather condition, power outage or any electrical or mechanical failure not resulting from improperly installed equipment.

   (d)   "Alarm system" means any assembly of equipment, mechanical or electrical, arranged to signal the occurrence of an unauthorized entry or other activity requiring urgent attention and to which the Police Department and/or the Fire Department is expected to respond, either as an automatic dialing device directly connected to the City Police Department and/or Fire Department or as an audible alarm outside the premises.

   (e)   "Audible alarm" means an alarm system that, when actuated, generates an audible sound outside the premises.

   (f)   "City" means the City of Beachwood. All official titles shall mean officials of the City unless otherwise stated.

   (g)   "False alarm" means an alarm signal necessitating a response by the Police Department and/or Fire Department where an emergency situation does not exist. The definition excludes alarms caused by the user acting under a sincere belief that a need exists to call the Police Department or the Fire Department.

   (h)   "Person" means any individual, partnership, corporation or other entity.

   (i)   "Alarm Vendor" means any company providing hardware or software to the City for the purpose of receiving and processing alarms.

      (Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.03 AUTOMATIC DIALING DEVICES.

   (a)   No person shall use or cause to be used any electrical or mechanical device or attachment to any telephone in any burglary, fire or other emergency alarm system which automatically selects or dials a telephone, or any telephone trunk line used by or assigned to the City for telephone service, which system then transmits over such line a recording of a report of an alarm concerning a burglary, fire or other police emergency.

   (b)   Any automatic dialing service connected to the City telephone or telephone trunk line shall be disconnected not later than January 1, 1986.

   (c)   The Police Department Dispatch Center shall not dispatch an emergency police or fire response to any automatic dialing service.

(Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.04 ALARM VENDOR.

   (a)   Upon approval by the Safety Director, the City may enter into an agreement with a private entity as the exclusive Alarm Vendor for the City to provide alarm processing hardware and software capable of receiving and processing of alarms directly received by the Police Department Emergency Dispatch Center.

   (b)   The Alarm Vendor shall provide to the Police Department a schedule of all costs involved to its customers, including but not limited to installation and annual fees.

   (c)   The Alarm Vendor shall supply to the Police Department a copy of all Beachwood residential and commercial contracts entered into during the period the Vendor serves as the exclusive vendor of the alarm receiving and processing equipment for the City.

   (d)   The Alarm Vendor shall assume all liability for the equipment installed by the Vendor at the Beachwood Police Department site, shall maintain all installed software and hardware, and may not remove any equipment without prior approval of the Safety Director.

(Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.05 ALARMS CONNECTED DIRECTLY TO POLICE STATION OR FIRE STATION.

   (a)    The Safety Director may, on such rules as the Director shall establish, issue a permit for a direct connection to a safety force alarm panel, within the capacity of the panel, to banks, savings and loan institutions and persons having a special need for such connection if the equipment is compatible, and if the installation is inspected and approved by the Police Department or the Fire Department.

   (b)   A one-time permit fee shall be charged to all users, except for property of public agencies, boards, commissions, authorities or officials.

   (c)   The City shall assume no liability for any act or omission in the use and operation of this service.  (Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.06 AUDIBLE ALARMS.

   (a)   Audible alarms installed in a residential district shall not have an intensity of sound that exceeds eighty-five decibels at ten feet from the outside of the structure.

   (b)   All audible alarms installed in a residential district shall be equipped with an automatic shut-off device so that the audible alarm does not sound longer than fifteen minutes after each activation of the alarm system.

   (c)   Any City official may shut off an audible alarm which does not shut itself off after fifteen minutes by damaging the equipment if necessary. Any damage shall be an abatement of a nuisance for which the City and its employees and agents shall have no liability.

(Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.07 FALSE ALARMS.

   (a)   False alarms charges may be made as follows, unless waived, in writing, for good cause by the Safety Director or the Chief of Police acting on his or her behalf.  “Annually” means per calendar year.

   Business users.  A charge of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) shall be made for the first three false alarms annually and a charge of fifty dollars ($50.00) shall be made for each false alarm thereafter annually.

   (b)    Business false alarm charges shall apply only when there is a response by the Police Department or the Fire Department and where such response could have been avoided by the use of ordinary business practices by the customer and by the installation and maintenance of proper alarm equipment and back-up power supplies.  Alarms designated by the Police Department as “Unknown Cause” shall be deemed to be false alarms.  Alarms caused by extreme weather conditions only, will not be considered false alarms for billing purposes by the Police Department.  Any charge for a false alarm remaining unpaid thirty days after the date of the mailing of the invoice shall be cause for cancellation of the alarm and the permit therefor by the Safety Director.  Four or more false alarms annually shall also be grounds for cancellation of the permit by the Safety Director.

   (c)   If there is a response by the Police Department or the Fire Department to a false alarm resulting from improper equipment, installation and/or servicing by the alarm business and/or agent, the alarm business may be charged a civil penalty of one hundred dollars ($100.00) per false alarm by the Safety Director.

(Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)

729.08 EQUIPMENT STANDARDS; MAINTENANCE; INSTRUCTIONS; INSPECTIONS; REVOCATION OF PERMITS.

   (a)   All equipment used in installations for which a permit is required under this chapter shall meet the applicable standards of Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., the National Fire Protection Association and/or another recognized industry standard. The applicant may be required to submit evidence of the reliability and suitability of the equipment to be installed before a permit is issued or thereafter.

   (b)   The sensory mechanism used in connection with such devices must be adjusted to suppress false indications of fire or intrusion so that the devices will not be actuated by impulses due to transient pressure change in water pipes, short flashes of light, wind noises such as the rattling or vibrating of doors or windows, vehicular noise adjacent to the installation or other forces unrelated to genuine alarms.

   (c)   All components comprising such a device must be maintained by the owner, lessee and/or user in good repair to ensure reliability of operations.

   (d)   Each alarm equipment supplier that sells or leases an automatic protection device which is installed on any premises in the City shall furnish instructions for the operation and maintenance of such device to the purchaser or lessee.

   (e)   At the time of installation, each alarm equipment supplier shall furnish to the person for whom an alarm system has been installed, written information as to how service can be obtained at anytime, including the telephone number to call for service. Such user shall be responsible for having the device repaired as quickly as possible after learning, either from his or her own sources or from notification by the City, that the device is not working properly.

   (f)   Any City official may, at reasonable times and upon prior notice, where possible, enter upon any premises within the City to inspect the installation and operation of an automatic protection device or signaling device, the purpose of which device is to report an emergency to the police and/or fire station. Such official may apply to any court of competent jurisdiction for a warrant to enter under circumstances where the owner or person in charge refuses or neglects entrance, or is absent, to inspect the equipment. Where there is insufficient time to reasonably obtain a search warrant under urgent circumstances, the safety forces may enter the property to abate a nuisance or conduct a required investigation.

   (g)   All equipment referred to in this chapter shall be maintained in good operating condition. Any City official may require that repairs be made whenever the official has determined that such are necessary to ensure proper operation.

   (h)   For a violation of any of the provisions of this chapter, for an incomplete or untruthful application, for failure to properly maintain an installation or for four or more false alarms in any twelve-month period, the Safety Director may serve written notice upon a permit holder, at the permittee's application address, of intent to revoke his or her permit. Such notice shall be given not less than seven days prior to revocation. Such notice shall state the right of the permit holder to appeal to the Safety Director in writing within seven days of the order. If an appeal is filed, the Safety Director shall hold a quasi-judicial hearing on the issues and any interested party may be present, represented by an attorney and permitted to bring witnesses and to examine and cross-examine any witness. The Safety Director shall render a decision on the basis of the facts presented. The decision shall be final. If no appeal is filed, the permit shall be cancelled. Upon cancellation, the Chief of Police and/or the Fire Chief shall take whatever steps are necessary to disconnect the alarm. Any service of notice shall be complete by leaving it at the place where the equipment is located or with a person living or working at such place or by delivery to a place indicated on the permit or any application.

(Ord.  1999-143.  Passed 9-27-99.)