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1986-15315011 NO _&Zff.: AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS, AMENDING CHAPTER 10 (FIRE PROTECTION) OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS BY THE ADDITION OF ARTICLE V THERETO TO BE ENTITLED "ALARM SYSTEMS", REQUIRING THE INSTALLATION OF SMOKE DETECTORS IN CERTAIN DWELLING UNITS, PROVIDING FOR A PENALTY IN THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF $1,000 00 FOR VIOLATIONS THEREOF, AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS SECTION I That Chapter 10 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton, Texas is hereby amended by the addition of a new Article V which said Article reads as follows ARTICLE V ALARM SYSTEMS Sec 10-62 Definitions (1) Bedroom means any room which is designed with the intent that it be used for sleeping purposes (2) Corridor means a passage which connects parts of the welling unit (3) Dwelling Unit means a home, mobile home, duplex unit, apartment unit, condominium unit, or any dwelling unit in a multiunit residential structure It also means one or more rooms which are subject to a single rental agreement and which are rented to a tenant or tenants for use by persons as a permanent residence (4) Landlord means the owner, lessor, or sublessor of a dwelling unit A managing agent or leasing agent, whether residing or officing on-site or off-site, shall be considered the agent of the landlord for purposes of notice and other communications required or allowed under this section Otherwise, a manager or agent of the landlord shall be considered a landlord under this section only if the manager or agent purports to be the owner, lessor, or sublessor in the rental agreement (S) Smoke Detector means a device which is (1) designed to detect visible or invisible products of combus- tion, (2) designed with an alarm audible to the bedrooms it services, (3) powered by either battery, alternating current, or other power source, (4) tested and listed for use as a smoke detector by Underwriters Laboratories, Inc , Factory Mutual Research Corporation, or United States Testing Company, Inc , and (S) in good working order (6) Tenant means any person who is entitled to occupy a welling unit to the exclusion of others and who is obligated to pay rent for the dwelling unit under a written or oral rental agreement (7) Test of Smoke Detector means the performance of the act or acts which the manufacturer of a smoke detector recommends for that particular model of smoke detector as a simple test of whether or not the smoke detector is in good working order (8) Units Constructed After September 1 1981 means any unit or w is a building permit was issued after September 1, 1981, or, if no building permit is issued, any unit which is occupied as a residence for the first time after September 1, 1981 (9) Units Constructed on or before Se tember 1 1981 means any unit or w is a u11 ing permit was issued on or before September 1, 1981, or which was occupied as a residence for the first time on or before that date Sec 10-63 Duty to Install Smoke Detectors in Certain Dwelling Units (a) New units constructed after September 1, 1981, at least one smoke detector shall be installed by the landlord outside of each separate bedroom in the immediate vicinity of the bedroom, except that (1) where the dwelling unit is designed with the intent that a single multipurpose room be used for dining, living, and sleeping purposes, the smoke detector shall be located inside the room rather than outside, (2) where the bedrooms are served by the same corridor, at least one smoke detector shall be installed in the corridor in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms, and (3) where one or more bedrooms are located on a level above the cooking and living area, the smoke detector for the bedrooms shall be placed at the center of the ceiling directly above the top of the stairway (b) A smoke detector required by this section shall be installed prior to commencement of possession of the dwelling unit by the tenant in accordance with manufacturer's recommended procedures, subject to the following (1) a smoke detector shall be installed on a ceiling or wall, (2) if installed on a ceiling, the smoke alarm shall be installed no closer than six inches to a wall, (3) if installed on a wall, the smoke detector shall be installed no closer than 6 inches to the ceiling and no farther than 12 inches from the ceiling, (4) a smoke detector may be located elsewhere if permitted by the Building Code, and PAGE 2 (5) if a smoke detector is electrically operated rather than battery operated, the power system and installation procedures for the smoke detector shall comply with the Building Code (b) Existin Units For all dwelling units constructed on or a fore September 1, 1981, at least one smoke detector shall be installed by the landlord in accordance with Subsection (a) A smoke detector required by this subsection shall be installed in accordance with the location and installation procedure requirements of Subsection (a) Sec 10-64 Duty to Inspect and Repair (a) Upon commencement of a tenant's possession of a dwelling unit containing a smoke detector, the landlord shall have a duty to test the smoke detector to verify that it is in good working order Upon installation of a smoke detector by a landlord after commencement of the tenant's possession of a dwelling unit, the landlord shall have a duty to test the smoke detector at that time to verify that it is in good working order (b) During the term of the rental agreement or any renewal or extension thereof, the landlord shall have a duty to inspect and repair a smoke detector only if the tenant has given notice to the landlord of malfunction or made a request to the landlord for inspection or repair The notice of the landlord need not be in writing unless written notice is required in the written rental agreement The landlord shall comply with the tenant's request for inspection and repair within a reasonable time, considering the availability of material, labor, and utilities (c) A landlord shall not have a duty to inspect or repair a smoke detector if the damage or malfunction is caused by the tenant or the tenant's family, guests, or invitees during the term of the rental agreement or any renewal or extension period of the rental agreement Provided, however, a landlord shall have a duty to repair or replace a smoke detector covered by this subsection if the tenant pays in advance for the reasonable cost of the repair or replacement, including labor, materials, taxes, and overhead (d) A landlord shall have satisfied his duty to inspect or repair a damaged or malfunctioning smoke detector if, after a test of the smoke detector if, after a test of the smoke detector, the test indicates that the smoke detector is in good working order Sec 10-65 (a) A person commits an offense if as landlord of a dwelling unit he (1) fails to install a smoke detector in compliance with Section 10-63, or PAGE 3 (2) fails to test or repair a smoke detector in compliance with Section 10-64 SECTION II Any person who shall violate a provision of this ordinance, or fails to comply therewith or with any of the requirements thereof, or of a permit or certificate issued thereunder, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding One Thousand Dollars ($1,000 00) Each such person shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each and every day or portion thereof during which any violation of this ordinance is committed, or continued, and upon conviction of any such violations such person shall be punished within the limits above SECTION III That this ordinance shall become effective fourteen (14) days from the date of its passage, and the City Secretary is hereby directed to cause the caption of this ordinance to be published twice in the Denton Record-Chronicle, the official newspaper of the City of Denton, Texas, within ten (10) days of the date of its passage PASSED AND APPROVED this the 64 day of , 1986 y RAY STE S, MAYOR ATTEST dll&e? 100~f LO1TE LLE , C SECRETATM- CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM DEBRA ADAMI DRAYOVITCH, CITY ATTORNEY CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS BY L"2 L CITY OF ENTON, TEXAS PAGE 4