BRENHAM CITY COUNCIL TO CONSIDER UPDATED RULES FOR FALSE FIRE ALARMS
Changes to a City of Brenham ordinance regarding false fire alarms will be brought before the Brenham City Council on Thursday.
Following discussion from a workshop on November 17th, the council will vote on whether to amend the fire protection and prevention section of city ordinance to institute updated rules for false alarms. Specifically, the changes would increase the amount the city charges for repeat false alarms and reduce the amount of false alarms allowed before the fees begin.
Currently, any person, firm or corporation that has a fire alarm is not charged a fee for the first 12 false alarms responded to by the Brenham Fire Department within a calendar year. After that, the property owner is charged $30 for each false alarm.
If the new fee structure is approved, only three false alarms would be allowed within a calendar year. The city would then assess fees of $50 for the fourth through sixth false alarms, $75 for the seventh through ninth false alarms, and $100 for any false alarms after that.
Fire Marshal Steven Loving said at the November 17th meeting that instances where the system performed correctly but still sent out a false alarm, such as when cooking, would not be billed by the city.
The proposed changes in the ordinance include exceptions for false alarms, including:
- Alarms caused by actions of a communications service provider.
- Alarms caused by power outage of more than 4 hours, severe weather, or other natural disaster.
- Alarms activated after the fire alarm business has, in good faith, provided advanced notice to the 911 dispatch center that the fire alarm system would be undergoing installation or modifications and maintenance that could trigger a false alarm signal.
- Multiple fire alarms within a 24-hour period that could be considered as one alarm with resulting corrective action being taken by the owner or alarm system service provider.
In related action, the council will look to amend the section of city ordinance pertaining to offenses and miscellaneous provisions. The adjustments move wording on fire alarms from this section to fire protection and prevention. They also remove old language that no longer applies to the city’s current policies and procedures.
Also on Thursday, the council will:
- Hold executive session discussion regarding Aviators Plus, LLC v. City of Brenham, Texas; Cause No. 37896, 21st Judicial District Court, Washington County; and legal issues concerning the city’s raw water intake structure at Lake Somerville and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
- Consider accepting a bid for the lease of 46 acres of land at the Brenham Municipal Airport. The lease is located at the north end of the runway and will be for hay production and/or livestock grazing.
- Hold a public hearing and possibly act on an amendment to the State Plan of Operation between the city and the State of Texas related to the Law Enforcement Support Office (LESO) program. Administered by DPS, the program allows police departments to apply to receive surplus military equipment from the federal government. The amendment would allow the city to continue participating in the program and using equipment previously received, including a Mine Resistant Ambush Protection (MRAP) vehicle for the Brenham Police Department.
- Consider the release of gas pipeline easements affecting the Brenham Market Square development property. The easements were for gas services that were for houses located on the Market Square property, but the houses no longer exist and the gas services have been abandoned.
- Act on recommendations for appointments and reappointments to various city boards and commissions.
The council will meet Thursday at 1 p.m. at Brenham City Hall.