2013-28327 Reso RESOLUTION NO. 2013-28327
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, ACCEPTING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE
FINANCE AND CITYWIDE PROJECTS COMMITTEE TO CREATE NEW
PROCEDURES AND A FINE SCHEDULE FOR FALSE FIRE ALARMS
GENERATED IN THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH AND DIRECTING THE
ADMINISTRATION TO PRESENT THE RECOMMENDED AMENDMENTS TO
THE CITY COMMISSION FOR CONSIDERATION.
WHEREAS, the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee discussed the Fire
Department's recommendation to amend the Code of the City of Miami Beach, Chapter
50, entitled "Fire Prevention and Protection" to include procedures and fines pertaining
to false fire alarms in the City of Miami Beach; and
WHEREAS, the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee considered the Fire
Department's recommendation during its meeting of April 25, 2013; and
WHEREAS, the Fire Department presented that the goal of the new fine
schedule is to reduce the number of false alarms generated by poorly-maintained fire
alarm systems in commercial buildings; and
WHEREAS, the false fire alarm fines will not apply to single-family homes; and
WHEREAS, the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee voted in favor of the
proposed new fine schedule and directed the Administration to make the necessary
amendments to Chapter 50, and present the recommended amendments to the City
Commission for consideration.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the Mayor and City Commission
hereby accept and approve the recommendations of the Finance and Citywide Projects
Committee with regard to creating new procedures and a fine schedule for false fire
alarms generated in the City, and direct the Administration to present the recommended
amendments to the City Commission for consideration.
PASSED and ADOPTED this day of SP rM ber , 2013.
Matti Herrera Bower
MAYOR
ATTEST- N\
RAW Grana o
� � INCORP ORATkD=
CITY CLERK r APPROVED AS TO
FORM & LANGUAGE
0� `' &FOR EXECUTION
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for ey ate
COMMISSION ITEM SUMMARY
Condensed Title:
A Resolution to Accept the recommendations of the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee to create
enforcement procedures and fines for false fire alarms generated from commercial buildings in the City of
Miami Beach.
Key Intended Outcome Supported:
Ensure Compliance with code within reasonable time frame
Supporting Data(Surveys, Environmental Scan, etc.):
N/A
Item Summa /Recommendation:
There is a need to establish an enforcement procedure and fine schedule for building owners having a high
frequency of false fire alarms. The City of Miami Beach has provisions for fines of police related false
alarms, but currently nothing in place for fire alarms. The other cities in the county already have an
ordinance providing for a fine when there is a false fire alarm. The fire department has received over 700
false alarms during the last fiscal year,which translates to the fire department utilizing resources when no
emergency existed. In addition, the constant false alarms create dangerous conditions in the buildings
because occupants no longer take proper action in the event of a real alarm.
Members of the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee modified the fire department's proposed fine
schedule and the new fines will be incorporated in the ordinance.
Advisory Board Recommendation:
rT The Finance and Citywide Projects Committee discussed this item during the meeting on April 25, 2013.
he Committee voted to move the recommendation by the Fire Department.
Financial Information:
Source of Amount Account
Funds: 1
2
3
OBPI Total
Financial Impact Summary:
City Clerk's Office Legislative Tracking:
Javier Otero, Fire Chief
Sign-Offs:
Department Director Assistant City Manager City Manager
L6 M /-k�
U:\ ode\Fire Pa-se Alarms summary.doc
AGENDA ITEM C 7 V
MIAMIBEACH DATE
NAIAMI BEACH
City of Miami Beach, 1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, Florida 33139,www.miamibeachfl.gov
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Me bers of the ity Commission
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager
DATE: September 11, 2013
SUBJECT: A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, ACCEPTING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF
THE FINANCE AND CITYWIDE PROJECTS COMMITTEE TO CREATE NEW
PROCEDURES AND A FINE SCHEDULE FOR FALSE FIRE ALARMS
GENERATED IN THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH AND DIRECTING THE
ADMINISTRATION TO PRESENT THE RECOMMENDED AMENDMENTS TO
THE CITY COMMISSION FOR CONSIDERATION.
BACKGROUND
The Miami Beach Fire Department responds to all fire alarms initiated electronically by
any building fire alarm system. The initial response consists of an engine company or
ladder company and up to including a full alarm assignment. Many of these fire alarms
are determined to be false fire alarms where there was no fire and no emergency. This
is attributed mainly to poorly maintained fire alarm systems that generate a false alarm
signal. When the fire department responds to a false fire alarm, resources are utilized
when no emergency exists. This scenario can cause a delay to an actual fire emergency
occurring somewhere else in the city.
A false fire alarm is defined as a signal from a fire alarm system that elicits a response
by the Fire Department when no actual or threatened fire-related emergency exists.
Currently, the City of Miami Beach Code does not include provisions for enforcing false
fire alarms with a citation and fines. The current process is to write a notice of violation
to the building owner to repair the fire alarm system. Many times, more false alarms are
generated before the system can be repaired. The current enforcement process is not
encouraging building owners to take more immediate action and comprehensive
evaluation of the fire alarm systems.
More importantly, the constant fire alarms in a building have created an unhealthy and
dangerous attitude from the occupants. The occupants assume that the alarm signal is
going to be "false" and are refusing to evacuate the building. In the event of a real fire
alarm, this behavior can lead to devastating consequences of occupant injury or death.
In order to promote compliance and improve overall safety, the Fire Department staff is
recommending establishing a fine schedule for false fire alarms, as is in place in Miami-
Dade County and neighboring cities.
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ANALYSIS
The fire department has analyzed the fire response calls during the last fiscal year
(10/1/2011 to 9/30/2012) and identified eighty (80) buildings that reported 10 or more
false alarms.
PROPOSED NEW CITATIONS WITH FINES
The Fire Department would like to establish an enforcement process that includes a fine
ranging from ($250 to $1,000) in order to encourage the repeat offenders to achieve
compliance as at faster pace than current procedures. The fines will not start until the
third false alarm in a calendar year, which gives the building owner two opportunities to
correct any deficiencies in the system.
FINANCE AND CITYWIDE PROJECTS COMMITTEE
This item was discussed in the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee on April 25,
2013. The Fire Chief presented the current situation and consequences of so many
false fire alarms in the City. The Committee members voted to approve the
recommendation of the fire department with some minor changes in the fine schedule.
CONCLUSION
The new fines and enforcement process will help achieve compliance and promote
safety of the occupants. As mentioned above, the constant false alarms have created
an unsafe environment in these buildings where occupants are not taking appropriate
action in the event of a real fire alarm. This behavior must be corrected before we have
devastating results of occupant injury or death.
JLM/JO/SFM
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