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A. An alarm subscriber and alarm business shall file a joint application for an addendum to the alarm subscriber permit for authorization to install a vision obscuring device or alarm system. The application for the addendum shall be submitted to the Police Department not less than ten business days prior to the installation of the vision obscuring device or alarm system. The alarm subscriber and the alarm business shall each possess a valid permit issued under this Article prior to submitting the application for a vision obscuring addendum. The application for a vision obscuring addendum shall be made on a form approved by the Police Department and shall be accompanied by a non-refundable three hundred forty dollar fee. The application shall include a floor plan of the premises indicating the location of all vision obscuring devices and alarm systems, discharge nozzles, electrical connections, and emergency knox-box with shut-off switch. The application shall contain the names and telephone numbers of a primary person and no fewer than two alternatives who will be notified by the monitoring business and who will act as the responsible party upon activation of the device or alarm system. The application shall be approved by the Director of the Police Department and Director of the Fire Departments or their designees provided that post-installation inspections of each device and alarm system verify the applicants’ compliance with all requirements of this Article and other applicable codes and ordinances, including but not limited to electrical inspections and green tag requirements and all inspections, permits, and approvals required by the Planning and Development Department. The approved addendum shall be kept on the premises protected by the vision obscuring device or alarm system and shall be made available for inspection by any law enforcement officer or agent of the Fire Department upon demand. The addendum is valid for one year from date of issuance. The addendum is not transferable from one subscriber to another subscriber or from one address to another address. Any new or additional installation of a vision obscuring device or alarm system will require an additional addendum.

B. The installation of a vision obscuring device or alarm system shall meet all of the following standards.

1. The premises upon which the device or system is installed shall be protected by an automatic fire sprinkler system complying with the current edition of the NFPA 13 Standard as referenced in the Fire Code. Additional separate permits shall be obtained should an automatic fire sprinkler system need to be installed. The operation of the device or system shall not prevent under any circumstances the remote transmission of the building’s waterflow alarm or the remote transmission of the building’s waterflow alarm to the alarm monitoring station.

2. All vision obscuring device or alarm system equipment that is installed shall be UL (Underwriters Laboratory) listed to Standard 1037, or UL Standard 864, whichever is applicable. All installations shall meet the requirements of the NFPA 72 Standards set forth in the Fire Code when interfacing with a fire alarm system or a combined fire and burglar alarm system. The installer of a vision obscuring device or alarm system shall certify in writing that the device or system has been installed in accordance with all applicable codes and standards. The certification shall specify which codes and standards apply.

3. The device or alarm system shall be monitored on a twenty-four-hour basis by a central monitoring station that is UL listed under the Underwriters Laboratories Inc. A copy of the certificate of such listing shall be submitted to the Police Department.

4. The installation plans shall be reviewed by and a final inspection conducted by the Police and Fire Departments.

5. The premises upon which a device or alarm system is installed shall be posted with signs no smaller than eight and one-half-inch by eleven-inch advising emergency response personnel that the premises is equipped with a vision obscuring device or alarm system. The signs shall be securely fastened to all exterior sides of the building and at all entryways. The signs shall be made of a durable, weatherproof material and of a design approved by the Police and Fire Departments.

6. A knox-box or knox-key with a "vision obscuring system" shut-off switch shall be installed on the premises at a location approved by the Fire Department.

7. An approved mechanical means of evacuating the vision obscuring substance shall be provided for all premises that are three thousand square feet or more in size or any premises upon which is installed more than two vision obscuring devices or alarm systems.

8. Each device shall be connected to a single, dedicated zone on the alarm system control panel to indicate the discharge of the device.

9. Each vision obscuring device shall be programmed to discharge only after the activation of at least two zones or devices on the alarm system.

10. A waiver and notification shall be signed by the alarm subscriber and alarm business, acknowledging that the discharge of a vision obscuring device or alarm system may delay Police and Fire Department emergency operations, and may result in property damage. If the alarm subscriber is a tenant, the property owner, alarm subscriber and the alarm business, will sign the waiver and notification. The waiver and notification will be on a form prescribed by Fire Department.

11. The vision obscuring device or alarm system shall be operational only when the premises is not occupied by any person.

C. After installation of a vision obscuring device or alarm system the alarm subscriber and the alarm business shall perform all of the following duties.

1. Maintain each device and alarm system in good working order and take reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of false activations.

2. Respond or cause the responsible party to respond to the location of an activated device or alarm system within fifteen minutes of notification by the monitoring business. In the event the monitoring business cannot contact a responsible party, the monitoring company shall contact a representative from the alarm business, who shall promptly respond to the location of the activated device or alarm system.

3. Instruct all persons who are authorized to place the device or alarm system into operation in the proper use and operation of the device or system and the appropriate procedures to cancel an activation through the monitoring business.

D. A vision obscuring addendum may be renewed upon submission of a joint renewal application from the alarm subscriber and alarm business not less than twenty days prior to expiration of the addendum, which shall include an inspection report that is prepared by the alarm business that maintains the device or alarm and specifies the service dates and maintenance performed during the preceding year and a non-refundable eighty dollar renewal fee. The renewal application shall be on a form prescribed by the Police Department. The Director of the Police Department or his designee shall approve the renewal application provided that a Director of the Police Department and Director of the Fire Department inspection verifies the applicants’ compliance with the installation standards set forth in this section, the applicants have paid all assessments imposed against them pursuant to Section 10-85, and the original installation of the device or alarm system has not been altered in the prior year without the written approval of the Director of the Police Department and Director of the Fire Department or their designees. (Ord. No. G-4378, § 10, 2001; Ord. No. G-5444, § 3, 2009; Ord. No. G-5590, § 1, 2011)