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General requirements shall be as follows.
(a) Exterior premises shall be well-drained and maintained free of high grass, poisonous plants and pest harborages and breeding sites.
(b) Exterior premises shall be free from cisterns and cesspools, and from unprotected wells, grease traps, utility equipment, nuisances and any other object or condition which may be hazardous to children.
(c) Outdoor play areas shall be surrounded by a fence. The fence shall be so constructed as not to have openings, holes or gaps larger than four inches in any dimension except for doors and gates; and if a picket or iron fence is erected or maintained, the horizontal dimension shall not exceed four inches. The fence shall have at least two exits. An entrance to the building may count as one exit, but one exit must be away from the building. Such fence shall comply with provisions of the zoning ordinance and other applicable city codes and ordinances.
(d) Playground equipment constructed with protruding nails, screws, sharp edges, splinters (rough, unsanded wood or other materials) and toxic paints (e.g., lead-based paints) is strictly prohibited.
(e) All playground equipment shall be securely assembled and, where applicable, securely anchored with unexposed anchors. Such equipment shall be installed, situated and maintained so as to prevent accidents and collisions.
(f) Swimming and wading pools more than 24 inches deep shall be enclosed by a fence no less than six feet in height which has a self-closing, self-locking gate. When a swimming or wading pool is not in use, it must be kept out of the reach of children.
(g) A minimum free residual chlorine of 1.0 part per million units of water shall be maintained in every swimming pool and wading pool when in use. No water in any swimming pool or wading pool when in use shall be permitted to show an acid reaction to a standard pH test.
(h) All pool chemicals and equipment shall be stored in a place and manner which are at all times inaccessible to children.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992)
General requirements shall be as follows.
(a) No owner, employee or volunteer who has a communicable disease, as defined by the Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Act, or who is in a contagious state, or who is afflicted with boils, infected wounds, sores or acute diarrhea shall be permitted to care for children, come into contact with children, prepare food or be allowed to work in any capacity where he or she can transmit the communicable disease or infect other individuals in the facility.
(b) Owners, employees and volunteers shall wear clean clothing and maintain a state of personal cleanliness while at the facility.
(c) Owners, employees and volunteers shall thoroughly wash their hands with soap and warm water before starting work, during work as often as necessary to keep them clean, after smoking, eating, drinking or using the toilet.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992)
General requirements shall be as follows.
(a) All day care centers in which food is prepared for human consumption shall comply with the pertinent food service regulations set forth in the city code and in the Rules on Food Service Sanitation (1977), as amended, set forth by the Texas department of health, and a copy of which is on file with the city secretary. While day care centers in which food is prepared on site must comply with all applicable food service regulations, such centers need not obtain food service establishment permits, nor temporary food service establishment permits. Further, employees of such day care centers need not obtain food handler’s certificates, nor must the day care manager obtain a food manager’s certificate.
(b) Food service establishment permits or temporary food service establishment permits shall not be required in day care centers which do not prepare food on site, which have children bring their own lunches, which serve only prepackaged single-service snacks, or which prepare no food other than infant formula.
(c) All off-site food services used by a day care center must be permitted as a food service facility by an appropriate health department or authority in the jurisdiction wherein the food is prepared. Furthermore, facilities receiving food from such food service entities must have adequate and appropriate provisions for the holding and serving of food and for the washing of utensils in accordance with the requirements of the city code.
(d) (1) At all day care centers where food is prepared for human consumption, residential type refrigerators, freezers and ranges shall not be used for food preparation or storage in the food preparation area. Only equipment that meets or exceeds the standards established by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) will be approved for use, except that, in areas other than food preparation areas, residential type refrigerators may be used for storage of infant formula, juices and medications requiring refrigeration. Day care centers in operation upon adoption of this ordinance which were equipped with residential type equipment may continue to use such equipment until such time as replacement of such equipment becomes necessary due to obsolescence or malfunction. All replacement equipment must meet or exceed the standards established by the NSF.
(2) Day care centers which do not prepare food on site, which serve only prepackaged single-service snacks, or which prepare no food other than infant formula may use a residential type refrigerator for the purpose of storing infant formula, prepackaged snacks or medications requiring refrigeration.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992)
General requirements shall be as follows.
(a) Animals kept on or brought to day care center premises shall be in compliance with Chapter 6 of this Code, including that each animal over four months of age has a registered microchip or license in compliance with § 6-19; and that each animal over six months of age is spayed, neutered or subject to an intact pet permit in compliance with § 6-22; and shall be vaccinated against rabies if required by the city code. Documentation of such vaccinations and microchipping or licensing shall be kept on file at the facility.
(b) The day care center and premises shall be kept free of stray animals.
(c) Animals and their living spaces at a day care center shall be kept clean.
(d) Turtles and psittacine birds shall not be kept at or brought to day care center premises. No “prohibited animals,” as that term is defined by the city code, shall be kept at or brought to day care center premises.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992; Ord. 23295-06-2018, § 3, passed 6-26-2018, eff. 7-6-2018)
(a) Every owner, employee and volunteer who cares for, controls or supervises children at a day care center, except for persons whose exclusive responsibilities do not include the care, control or supervision of children, such as janitorial and transportation duties, and who do not in fact care for, control or supervise children, shall obtain a child care worker certificate issued by the department. If a child care worker applies for a certificate and class but the worker is unable to schedule a class before starting his or her job due to a lack of space in a class, the worker may obtain a 30-day extension and work without a certificate for those 30 days.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any owner or operator to permit any person to care for, control or supervise children at the day care center without the person first obtaining and holding a valid child care worker certificate issued by the department or without obtaining a 30-day extension.
(c) Every applicant for a child care worker certificate:
(1) Shall submit an application on a form specified by the department which shall state the name, residence address, date of birth and such other information as may specified;
(2) Shall, each year, whether the application is an original application or a renewal application, submit to the department a record of the applicant’s tuberculosis examination completed no earlier than 12 months before the applicant begins work at a day care center or applies for a renewal application, and shall maintain a copy of the record of the tuberculosis examination at the day care center;
(3) Shall attend an orientation class provided by the department at a site specified by the department before a child care worker certificate, either original or renewal, will be issued to the person; and
(4) Shall pay the child care worker certificate fee.
(d) A child care worker certificate shall be valid for two years from the date of its issuance unless revoked as provided hereunder. Application by a certificate holder for a new certificate shall be made prior to impending expiration of the certificate in the manner described above in § 16-435(c).
(e) The director is authorized to revoke a child care worker certificate upon a finding that the holder failed to report a communicable disease in the holder to the health department. A proposed request for revocation of a certificate shall be made to the director by the department’s consumer health administrator of the regulatory authority after investigation and an opportunity for a hearing with the certificate holder.
(f) A nonrefundable fee for a child care worker certificate shall be paid to the department by an applicant in an amount established by city council.
(g) A copy of the current child care worker certificate shall be maintained at the day care center for each of its owners, employees and volunteers who cares for, controls or supervises children at the facility, and for whom a certificate is required by this section. Certificate records shall be available for review upon the request of the director or his or her designee.
(h) No child care worker certificate issued by the director shall be used for any purpose other than the purpose for which it was issued, nor be transferred or assigned to, or in any manner used by, any person other than the person to whom it was issued by the director.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992; Ord. 13749, § 1, passed 3-23-1999)
(a) Prior to the construction, alteration, repair, conversion, improvement or enlargement of any building or structure to be used as a day care center, the owner of the day care center shall make application for and obtain a building permit as required by the city building code.
(b) A “letter of intent” to operate a day care center shall be submitted to the department at the same time the plans and specifications are submitted for review to the Fort Worth department of planning and development. The department of planning and development shall receive a copy of the “letter of intent.” Any change or modification to the original “letter of intent” shall cause the owner to submit a revised “letter of intent” to the department with a copy to the department of planning and development. The “letter of intent,” whether original or revised, shall include the following information:
(1) Proposed hours and days of operation of the day care center;
(2) Proposed number of children and age groups to be served by the center;
(3) Identification or designation of the type of day care center to be operated at the site;
(4) If food preparation or service, as defined by the city code, will be provided at the facility, a sample menu for one month; and
(5) If food preparation or service, as defined by the city code, will not be provided at the facility, a statement from the owner that no such food preparation or service will take place at the facility; if the owner subsequently desires to add food preparation or service, as defined the city code, to the facility, then the owner shall comply with all applicable requirements of said code, excluding paying for and obtaining a food service establishment permit for the facility.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to exempt the owner of a day care center or permit applicant from complying with all other applicable permits, inspection or review by any other city department.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992; Ord. 17522, § 5, passed 4-24-2007)
(a) For purposes of this section,
CHANGE OF OWNERSHIP OF THE BUSINESS OF ANY DAY CARE CENTER is defined as the sale, transfer or exchange of any legal or equitable interest in the business of operating a day care center to another person. It shall not be considered a “change of ownership of the business of any day care center” for purposes of complying with the requirements of this section if the owner of the business changes only the type of business entity holding ownership and the owner remains a controlling partner or officer in the new entity.
(b) Whenever a change in the ownership of the business of any day care center occurs, the existing certificate of inspection shall be automatically revoked, and the new owner:
(1) Shall submit to the director a scale drawing of the floor plan of the facility indicating, but not limited, to the following proposed room usage, equipment schedule, room finish schedule, plumbing schedule and outdoor play area and play equipment;
(2) Shall pay the applicable floor plan review fee; and
(3) Shall obtain a new certificate of inspection.
(c) The requirements of § 16-437(b) are in addition to building permit or any applicable inspections or reviews by any other city department.
(d) In the event of a change of ownership of the business of any day care center, it shall be unlawful for a new owner to operate or cause to be operated a day care center without first complying with all the requirements of § 16-437(b).
(e) Whenever a change in the ownership of the business of any day care center occurs, the new owner of the business shall pay a nonrefundable fee for review of the floor plan to the department in an amount established by city council.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992)
It shall be unlawful for any person to operate or cause to be operated a day care center in the City of Fort Worth without first obtaining a building code permit, certificate of occupancy, certificate of inspection or any other certificate or permit which may be required by any applicable article or chapter of the city code of the City of Fort Worth. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate or cause to be operated a food service establishment or temporary food service establishment at a day care center without adhering to all rules for operation of such food service establishment, although said facility need not obtain a separate permit for said use from the city public health department. An owner of a day care center shall also comply with all applicable city code requirements before a permit is issued.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992)
The director shall have the authority and responsibility to enforce the provisions of this article and applicable state statutes regarding day care centers.
(a) The director or his or her representative shall have the authority to inspect or visit all day care centers at all reasonable times and as he or she determines necessary to ascertain if they are being maintained and operated in conformity with this article or if any conditions exist at a facility which require correction. An inspection shall be made at least once each year to ensure that the facilities, grounds and equipment are maintained in compliance with this article and in a safe sanitary and healthy condition for the welfare of the occupants and patrons of the day care center.
(b) (1) The director or his or her representative shall have the authority to give written notice to the owner of a day care center of any violation of this article and/or requirement to comply with the provisions of this article.
(2) If a day care center is found to be in operation without a certificate of inspection, the director shall have the authority to give written notice to the owner of said facility to cease child caring activities immediately, irrespective of how the facility is maintained or operated. The director may permit the day care center to remain in operation with the proviso that the facility obtain a certificate of inspection within a reasonable time, but said reasonable time may not exceed 30 days.
(c) The director or his or her representative shall have the authority after giving written notice to suspend the certificate of inspection if he or she ascertains any violation causing immediate danger to a child regarding: construction of the facility and on-premises buildings, rest rooms, sanitation of the facility, preparation, storage and handling of food, storage of chemicals or any harmful solution, infectious diseases and hazards in outdoor play areas. Suspension of the certificate of inspection shall require the operator to cease all child-caring immediately and to bring the day care center into compliance with the directives from the department within a prescribed time period. Failure to rectify designated problems at the day care center within the prescribed time period shall lead to revocation of the certificate.
(d) The director shall have the authority to revoke any certificate if he or she ascertains that an owner or operator has failed or refused to comply with the minimum requirements set forth in this chapter for a day care center, providing that the following procedure is adhered to.
(1) The director, in writing by certified mail or by personal service, shall notify the owner of the manner in which the owner or the day care center fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter, and shall specify a reasonable time by which the owner shall remedy said failure.
(2) If the owner fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter within the time specified, the director shall give notice in writing to the owner of the day care center that the certificate issued for the operation of the day care center is revoked. This action of revocation is in addition to any criminal enforcement of this article.
(3) The notice of revocation or a denial of a certificate shall become final after the expiration of ten days from the date of service upon the owner or operator of the day care center in question, unless on or before the expiration of ten calendar days the owner or his or her duly authorized agent shall file with the office of the city manager a written letter of appeal briefly stating therein the basis for such appeal. A hearing shall be held on a date no more than 15 days after receipt of the letter of appeal unless extended by mutual agreement of the parties. The owner appellant shall be given at least five days’ notice of the date, time and place of the hearing. The city manager shall give the appellant, and any other affected party, a reasonable opportunity to be heard, in order to show cause why the determination of the regulatory authority should not be upheld. In all such cases the burden of proof shall be upon the appellant to show that there was no substantial evidence to support the action taken by the regulatory authority. The city manager shall make his or her determination and shall notify the appellant of his or her determination. The decision of the city manager is final.
(e) The director shall have the authority to revoke any certificate, if he or she determines, after affording the owner of a certificate an opportunity to be heard, that:
(1) The certificate is used or was used by a person other than the person to whom the certificate was issued;
(2) The certificate is used for a location other than that for which it was issued;
(3) Any of the conditions or limitations set forth in the certificate have been violated; and
(4) There has been any false statement or misrepresentation as to a material fact in the plans, specifications or documentation on which the certificate was based.
(f) Any suspension or revocation of a certificate of inspection by the city shall be reported to the Texas department of human services. The city shall also report a day care center operating without a valid certificate of inspection to the Texas department of human services.
(g) Any person aggrieved by a finding, determination, notice or action taken under the provision of codes or ordinances other than health shall follow the appeal process designated in the applicable code or ordinance.
(Ord. 11209, § 3, passed 11-24-1992)
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