MONROE - The city will consider revising its ordinance regarding safety requirements for campfires and fire pits.
The revisions were broached Monday at a meeting of the Judiciary and Ordinance Review Committee, when Alderwoman Brooke Bauman said a resident had complained that a homemade fire pit was not permissible under the current code.
The ordinance currently makes no distinction between the terms "campfire" and "fire pit," Bauman said, despite the fact that the terms are not interchangeable. Furthermore, the ordinance requires that any outdoor campfire must be confined by a device approved by the safety certification company Underwriters Laboratories LLC.
Because of these requirements, no homemade fire pit can meet the city code's guidelines.
Monroe Fire Chief Daryl Rausch said if law enforcement were to approve fire pits on a case-by-case basis, it would increase the department's workload, but it would also make enforcement of non-compliant installations easier. Rausch said many pre-fabricated fire pits have not been approved by Underwriters Laboratories, but their use is rarely penalized.
Rausch said that the fire department has received 36 complaints regarding fire pits in the past three years. The majority of the complaints were regarding ember fallout, which Rausch said is why the code requires all fire installations to have movable covers and spark arrestors.
The meeting concluded with Rausch and the city attorney charged with drawing up a list of requirements for homemade fire installations. The new requirements will be reviewed at a later meeting.
The revisions were broached Monday at a meeting of the Judiciary and Ordinance Review Committee, when Alderwoman Brooke Bauman said a resident had complained that a homemade fire pit was not permissible under the current code.
The ordinance currently makes no distinction between the terms "campfire" and "fire pit," Bauman said, despite the fact that the terms are not interchangeable. Furthermore, the ordinance requires that any outdoor campfire must be confined by a device approved by the safety certification company Underwriters Laboratories LLC.
Because of these requirements, no homemade fire pit can meet the city code's guidelines.
Monroe Fire Chief Daryl Rausch said if law enforcement were to approve fire pits on a case-by-case basis, it would increase the department's workload, but it would also make enforcement of non-compliant installations easier. Rausch said many pre-fabricated fire pits have not been approved by Underwriters Laboratories, but their use is rarely penalized.
Rausch said that the fire department has received 36 complaints regarding fire pits in the past three years. The majority of the complaints were regarding ember fallout, which Rausch said is why the code requires all fire installations to have movable covers and spark arrestors.
The meeting concluded with Rausch and the city attorney charged with drawing up a list of requirements for homemade fire installations. The new requirements will be reviewed at a later meeting.