HomeMy WebLinkAbout97-17 - Adding Section 9.04.205 to Chapter 9.04 of Title 9 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code, Pertaining to Suppression and Control of Hazardous Vegetation•
ORDINANCE NO. 97 -17
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF NEWPORT BEACH ADDING SECTION 9.04.205 TO
CHAPTER 9.04 OF TITLE 9 OF THE NEWPORT BEACH
MUNICIPAL CODE, PERTAINING TO SUPPRESSION
AND CONTROL OF HAZARDOUS VEGETATION
The City Council of the City of Newport Beach does hereby ordain as follows:
SECTION 1: Section 9.04.205 is hereby added to the Newport Beach Municipal
Code to amend Appendix II -A, Section 16 of the 1994 Uniform Fire Code.
9.04.205 - Appendix II -A, Section 16 is hereby deleted and a new Section 16
shall be added to Appendix II -A to read as follows:
SECTION 16 SUPPRESSION AND CONTROL OF HAZARDOUS VEGETATION
• 16.1 Definitions.
1. Defensible Space An area, either natural or man -made, where plant
materials have been treated, cleared, or modified to slow the rate and intensity of an
advancing wildfire, and to create an area for firefighters to suppress the fire and save
the structure.
2. Fire Resistive Plant - A list of trees, bushes, shrubs and ground cover or
other plant materials that will slow the progress and intensity of a wildfire and not
contribute fuels to wildfires, which is maintained by the Fire and Marine Chief.
3. Properly Maintained - Trees, bushes, shrubs, ground cover or other plant
materials which is maintained in compliance with the requirements of this Section.
16.2 Specific Requirements.
1. Each person who has any ownership or possessory interest in, or control
of, a parcel of land with a habitable structure located within one hundred feet (100') of a
hazardous fire area shall comply with the standards in this Section to maintain a
• defensible space to protect structures adjacent to hazardous fire areas.
Ord 97 -17
2. All habitable structures including any attachments to that structure located
• within one hundred feet (100') of hazardous fire area shall create and maintain a
defensible space as required by this Section. This requirement applies only to those
sides of the structure which face the hazardous fire area.
3. Nothing contained in this Section shall be deemed to preclude the Fire
Marshal from requiring more than the minimum specific requirements set forth in this
Section when the Fire Marshal determines that conditions exist which necessitate
greater fire protection measures.
16.3 Responsibility. Persons owning, leasing, controlling, operating, or
maintaining structures requiring defensible spaces are responsible for modifying or
removing vegetation which is not properly maintained.
16.4 Access. Every property located within one hundred feet (100') of a
hazardous fire area is required to a maintain three foot (3') wide clear path for ingress
and egress on each side of any structure.
16.5 Maintenance Of Defensible Space
• 1. Trees.
All trees located within one hundred feet (100') of any portion of a structure
facing a hazardous fire area shall comply with the! following guidelines:
1.1 Existing trees are not required to have a separation of tree canopies but
must be maintained free of all dead or dying wood and foliage.
1.2 Any new trees shall be selected from the fire resistive plant list, and the
trees shall be planted such that mature canopies will have a minimum separation of ten
feet (10'), measured branch tip to branch tip.
1.3 Trees shall be maintained free of dead wood and foliage, and all dead
trees must be removed.
1.4 Where shrubs or bushes are located within the dripline of a tree, the
lowest tree branch shall be at least three (3) times as high as the shrub or bush. This
process will remove the potential for fires to spread from lower shrubs and bushes to
higher trees and structures.
• 1.5 Trees with canopies extending to within five feet (5') of any structure shall
be pruned to maintain a minimum clearance of five feet (5').
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Ord 97 -17
2. Shrubs and Bushes.
• All shrubs and bushes located within one hundred feet (100') of any portion of a
structure facing a hazardous fire area shall comply with the following guidelines:
2.1 Shrubs and bushes shall be maintained free of dead wood and foliage,
and all dead shrubs and bushes must be removed.
2.2 All shrubs and bushes not on the fire resistive plant list shall have a
minimum separation of ten feet (10') measured branch tip to branch tip.
2.3 One to three shrubs and bushes together in a small group can be
considered a single bush if properly maintained.
2.4. All shrubs and bushes which are listed on the fire resistive plant list need
not be separated if properly maintained.
3. Ground Cover.
All ground cover located within one hundred feet (100') of any portion of a
structure facing a hazardous fire area shall comply with the following guidelines:
• 3.1 Ground cover vegetation less than inches 18 inches (18 ") in height above
the ground that is irrigated, and maintained is permitted.
•
3.2 Non - planted areas may be covered with a minimum of five inches (5 ") of
chipped biomass or its equivalent.
3.3 Non - irrigated ground cover vegetation not on the approved fire resistant
plant list shall be maintained no higher than three inches (3") in height.
3.4 All ground cover vegetation that is either dead and /or dying shall be
removed.
4. Firewood.
Firewood and combustible material for consumption on the premises shall not be
stored in unenclosed spaces beneath buildings or structures, or on decks or under
eaves, canopies of other projections or overhangs. Storage of firewood and
combustible material in the defensible space must be located a minimum of fifteen feet
(15') from structures and separated from the driplines of trees by a minimum of fifteen
feet (15').
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Ord 97 -17
5. Roof.
• 5.1. Remove leaves, needles, twigs, and other combustible material from roofs
and rain gutters.
5.2 Portions of trees which extend within ten feet (10') of the outlet of a
chimney shall be removed.
5.3 All chimneys attached to any appliance or fireplace that burns solid fuel
shall be equipped with an approved spark arrester screen. The spark arrester screen
shall be made from a material that is both heat and corrosion resistant, and the
openings shall not permit the passage of spheres having a diameter larger that one half
inch (112 ").
16.6 NOTIFICATION AND ABATEMENT PROCEDURE
1. Commencement of Abatement Proceedings. Whenever the Fire
Marshal or a designee finds that the owner of at property has failed to properly abate
hazards within the defensible space as required by this Section, the Fire Marshal is
ordered to take appropriate corrective actions based upon those findings.
• 2. Notice of Non - Compliance. All defensible space not maintained as
required in this Section constitutes a fire hazard. If such condition exists, the Fire
Marshal shall give notice to the owner of record to abate the hazard within thirty (30)
days.
The notice shall state that the owner is required to abate the fire hazard
and that if the hazard is not abated the City may take further action which can include:
(2.1) the City, or its contractor, may enter upon the parcel of land and
remove or otherwise eliminate or abate the hazard,
(2.2) that upon completion of such work the cost thereof, including
administrative costs, can be billed to the property owner and
(2.3) that upon City Council confirmation of the costs, a lien may be
attached to the parcel to be collected on the next regular property
tax bill levied against the parcel.
3. Notice of Intent to Abate. After the thirty (30) day period, if the
Owner has failed to abate the hazard as directed, the Fire Marshal shall give the owner
• Notice of Intent to Abate the fire hazard not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the date
of the proposed abatement.
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4. Service Of Notice. The Fire Marshal shall notify the property owner of
• affected properties by mail. All notices required by this Section shall be mailed via first
class to the parcel address and via certified mail to the property owner as shown on the
latest equalized tax assessment roll.
Failure of any property owner, or any concerned party to receive a notice,
shall not affect the validity of any proceeding taken, if the procedure for service of
notice has been followed.
5. Appeal. The property owner may appeal the Fire Marshal's decision
requiring the maintenance of a defensible space or any required notice under this
Section by sending a written appeal to the Fire and Marine Chief within fifteen (15) days
of the date the notice was mailed.
6. Abatement Hearing Procedure. Ali hearings under this Section shall be
held before the Fire and Marine Chief, who shall hear all facts and testimony he deems
pertinent. The facts and testimony may include testimony on the condition of the
property and circumstances related to the fire hazard. The owner of the land may
appear in person or present a sworn written statement in time for consideration at the
hearing. The Fire and Marine Chief may impose such conditions and take such other
action as it deems appropriate to carry out the purpose of the provisions of this Section.
The decision of the Fire and Marine Chief shall be final and shall be served on the
• property owner within forty eight (48) hours, of conclusion of the hearing.
7. Procedure. If any order of the Fire and Marine Chief or the Fire Marshal
made pursuant to this Section is not complied with within the period designated, the
City may then cause such work to be done to the extent necessary to eliminate the fire
hazard and other substandard fire conditions that are determined to exist.
8. Emergency Procedures. When in the opinion of the Fire Marshal or his
designee, a substandard property is an immediate hazard to life and property, and the
Fire Marshal or his designee makes written findings to the effect that abatement of such
a fire hazard requires immediate action, the Fire Marshal may then cause such work to
be done to the extent necessary to eliminate the hazard. At least twenty four (24) hours
prior the abatement, the Fire Marshal or his designee shall attempt to contact the
property owner to inform the owner of the work to be done and request their assistance
or immediate voluntary removal of the hazard. At the time or shortly thereafter the work
is performed, the Fire Marshal or his designee shall post a notice and mail to the
property owner the nature of the work performed. Any individual aggrieved by the action
of the City under this section, may appeal the determination of the action to the Fire and
Marine Chief as set forth in this section except that the appeal shall be filed within ten
(10) days from the date of mailing the notice of work performed.
• 9. Costs. The costs involved in the abatement of fire hazards under this
Section shall become a special assessment against the property. In addition to the
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Ord 97 -17
above costs, an administrative processing fee established by resolution of the Council
• of the City of Newport Beach, shall be assessed against each parcel for Fire and
Marine Department and other city incurred costs associated with abatement. An
additional inspection fee shall be established by resolution of the Council of the City of
Newport Beach for charges related to inspection services for vegetation hazard
identification. The schedule for such fees shall be maintained on file in the City Clerk's
office. The Fire and Marine Chief shall review the fees at least once annually, and shall
recommend changes to the Council when the cost for the services make it appropriate.
The Fire and Marine Chief or his designee shall notify, in writing, all
parties concerned of the amount of the costs resulting from such work. If the total
assessment determined as provided for in this section is not paid within 30 days after
mailing of such notice, the property owner shall be billed. If unpaid, such charges shall
be placed as a special assessment on the tax bill for the property pursuant to Section
38773.5 of the Government Code.
10. Other Abatement Procedures. The provisions of this ordinance shall not
in any manner limit or restrict the City from enforcing City ordinances or abating public
nuisances in any other manner provided by law.
SECTION 2: That if any, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase of this
• Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall
not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The
City Council hereby declares that it would have a passed this Ordinance and each
section, subsection, clause or phrase hereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or
more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, johrases be declared unconstitutional.
SECTION 3: The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage
of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the
official newspaper within fifteen (15) days after its adoption.
This Ordinance was introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the
City of Newport Beach held on the lath day of April , 1997, and
adopted the 28th day of April , 1997, by the following vote, to -wit:
AYES, COUNCILMEMBERS O'NEIL, THOMSON,
EDWARDS, GLOVER, NOYES, MAYOR DEBAY
•
N
u
•
L
NOES, COUNCILMEMBERS NONE
ABSENT, COUNCILMEMBERS HEDGES
MAYOR
C
ATTEST:
Ord 97 -17
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STATE OF CALIFORNIA }
COUNTY OF ORANGE } ss.
CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH }
I, LAVONNE M. HARKLESS, City Clerk of the City of Newport Beach, California, do
hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council is seven; that the foregoing
ordinance, being Ordinance No. 97 -17 was duly and regularly introduced before and adopted by the
City Council of said City at a regular meeting of said Council, duly and regularly held on the 28th
day of April, 1997, and that the same was so passed and adopted by the following vote, to wit:
Ayes: O'Neil, Thomson, Edwards, Glover, Noyes, and Mayor Debay
Noes: None
Absent: Hedges
Abstain: None
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed the
official seal of said City this 29th day of April, 1997.
(Seal)
City Clerk of the City of
Newport Beach, California
CERTIFICATE OF PUIBLICATION
STATE OF CALIFORNIA I
COUNTY OF ORANGE ) ss.
CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH I
I, LAVONNE M. HARKLESS, City Clerk of the City of Newport Beach, California, do hereby
certify that Ordinance No. 97 -17 has been duly and regularly published according to law and the
order of the City Council of said City and that same was so published in The Daily Pilot, a daily
newspaper of general circulation on the following date, to wit: May 5, 1997.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 13th day of
y 11997. II �// /
QNUfht,�� fT , PI ALL
City Clerk of the City of
Newport Beach, California