§ 93.01 DEFINITIONS.

   For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.

   ALARM BUSINESS. The business by any individual, partnership, corporation or other entity of selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving or installing any alarm system or causing to be sold, leased, maintained, serviced, repaired, altered, replaced, moved or installed any alarm system in or on any building, structure or facility.

   ALARM SYSTEM. Any assembly of equipment, mechanical, electrical, electronic audio or visual that can arrange to signal the occurrence of any activity requiring urgent attention and to which the Police or Fire Department would be expected to respond.

   ALARM USER. The person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind in control of any building, structure or facility who purchases, leases, contracts for or otherwise obtains an alarm system or for the servicing or maintenance of an alarm system and thereafter contracts with or hires an alarm business to monitor and/or service the alarm device.

   ANSWERING SERVICE. A telephone answering business providing among its services the service of receiving on a continuous basis, through trained employees, emergency signals from alarm systems and thereafter immediately relaying the message by live voice to the communication center of the city’s Police Department.

   AUTOMATIC DIAL PROTECTION DEVICE. An electrically operated instrument composed of sensory apparatus and related hardware which automatically sends over regular telephone lines a prerecorded voice alarm upon receipt of a stimulus from the sensory apparatus that has detected a force or condition characteristic of an unauthorized intrusion or an emergency message indicating a need for emergency response by the Police or Fire Departments.

   BURGLARY ALARM SYSTEM. An alarm system signaling an entry or attempted entry into an area protected by the system.

   CENTRAL STATION PROTECTIVE SYSTEM. A system or group of systems operated by a person, firm or corporation which the operations of electrical protection circuits and devices are transmitted to, recorded in and maintained and supervised from a central station having operators in attendance at all times.

   COORDINATOR. The Chief of Police or the individual(s) designated by the Chief of Police to enforce the provisions of this chapter.

   FALSE ALARM. An alarm signal eliciting an urgent response by the Police or Fire Department when a situation requiring an urgent response does not, in fact, exist, but does not include an alarm signal caused by violent conditions of nature or other extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject to control by the alarm business or alarm user. The burden of proving that the alarm was not a FALSE ALARM shall be on the alarm business or alarm user.

   LOCAL ALARM SYSTEM. An alarm system which when activated causes an audible and/or visual signaling device to be activated and is intended to be seen and/or heard by others outside of the protected premises.

   NOTICE. Written notice given by personal service upon the addressee or given by U.S. mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the person to be notified at the person’s last known address. Service of the notice shall be effective upon completion of personal service or upon placing of the same in the custody of the United States Postal Service.

   PERMIT YEAR. A 12-month period from October 1 through September 30.

   POLICE CHIEF. The Chief of Police of the city or the Chief’s designee.

   PRIMARY TRUNK LINE. The “911” telephone line leading into the communications center of the city Police Department, used for the purpose of handling emergency calls on a person-to-person basis and which line is identified as the emergency number listed in the telephone directory issued by the telephone company serving the city.

   PROPRIETARY SYSTEM. An alarm system sounding and/or recording alarm and supervisory signals to a control center located within the protected premises, the control center being under the supervision of the proprietor of the premises. If a PROPRIETARY SYSTEM includes a signal line connected directly or by means of an automatic dialing device to the police communications system, a central station protective system or answering service, it thereby becomes an alarm system, as defined in this section.

   RESIDENTIAL EMERGENCY ALARM or PANIC ALARMS. An alarm system installed or maintained in a residence for the purpose of summoning police assistance to an actual or attempted burglary, robbery or medical emergency requiring an urgent or emergency response by fire, medical or police personnel and equipment.

   ROBBERY ALARM SYSTEM SECONDARY. An alarm system signaling a robbery or attempted robbery.

   SECONDARY TRUNK LINE. The [phone] and [phone] rotary telephone line leading into the city’s Police Department that is identified by a specific listing in the telephone directory for the handling of administrative and other calls on a person-to-person basis.

(Prior Code, § 93.01) (Ord. 98-07, passed 3-16-1998; Ord. 10-40, passed 1-4-2011)