§ 58-2. [Fire Hydrant inspections.]
(a)
Whenever used in this section or in any resolution adopted pursuant hereto, the following words shall have the following meanings unless some other meaning is plainly indicated:
(1)
Audit Visit means spot or selected inspection of Hydrant maintenance and operation by the Department when accompanied by the Responsible Person or his representative.
(2)
Authorized Firm means a firm licensed in compliance with the American Water Works Association (AWWA) to do inspections, testing, and repair of Hydrants as authorized by the Department representative.
(3)
Board means the Board of County Commissioners of Sarasota County, Florida.
(4)
Department means the Sarasota County Fire Department.
(5)
Hydrant means any fire Hydrant attached to a water distribution system either public or private.
(6)
Program means a Program as established by subsection (b) of this section for the periodic inspection, testing, and annual maintenance of fire Hydrants within the Service Area to ensure that they are in good working condition.
(7)
Responsible Person means the natural person, partnership, corporation, municipality, or other entity which owns a fire Hydrant located within the Service Area.
(8)
Service Area means the entire area within the municipal boundaries of the City of Sarasota and the unincorporated area of Sarasota County, except that area receiving service from the Englewood Water District, subject to subsection (c) of this section.
(b)
There is hereby established a Hydrant inspection, testing, and maintenance Program for the Service Area which Program shall provide the following services:
(1)
Inspection and testing of all Hydrants in the Service Area shall be performed annually by the Responsible Person and reported on forms established by the Department. The first annual inspections shall be completed within one year of the effective date of this section and [inspections shall be] performed annually thereafter.
(2)
Maintenance of Hydrants to ensure that Hydrants are in good working order as defined in American Water Works Association (AWWA) Manual M-17, Chapter 5 (Maintenance), and any future revisions, shall be conducted by the Responsible Person annually. Hydrant bodies shall be painted with the equivalent of Scott Paint, #550 Enamel, Sarasota County Fire Hydrant Green. Annual flow testing of all Hydrants shall be conducted in accordance with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 291, Recommended Practices for Fire Flow Testing and Marking of Hydrants; or a computer-generated model which accurately identifies specific fire Hydrant flow rates may be substituted for the manual flow testing procedure specified in NFPA 291. The computer-generated model shall be approved by the Department prior to implementation and use. The bonnet of all fire Hydrants shall be painted with the capacity indicating color scheme in accordance with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 291. Fire Hydrants not constructed with a distinct bonnet shall have the caps painted in the same manner as stated above. Additional markings on the Hydrants such as main size, Hydrant identification number, etc., shall be approved by the Department prior to installation. All fire Hydrants shall be accessible to fire apparatus at all times for connection of the fire hose and operation of the Hydrant.
(3)
Establishment, by the Department, of reporting and notice forms for inspection, testing, and maintenance to conduct the Program.
(4)
The Responsible Person shall, within two hours of discovery, notify the Department of each Hydrant placed out-of-service and the date and time placed back in service. This shall be accomplished by contacting the Department representative or the Fire Department Communications Center via telephone. Also, the Responsible Person will, immediately upon discovery, install a visible out-of-service indicator, approved by the Department, on the Hydrant until placed back in service.
(5)
Notification by the Department to the Responsible Person five working days in advance of Audit Visits. During the Audit Visit the Department may perform flow and pressure tests of the water supply.
(6)
Maintenance, inspection, and testing of fire Hydrants are the responsibility of the Responsible Person.
(7)
The Responsible Person shall notify the Department, via approved form, within 30 days of new Hydrant installation.
(8)
The Responsible Person shall notify the Department, via approved forms, of all existing master meters within 180 days of the adoption of this section. The Responsible Person shall notify the Department, via approved forms, within 30 days of a new master meter installation within their Service Area.
(c)
Throughout the Service Area, the implementation and administration of the Program shall be performed by the Department pursuant to the terms of this section. For that area of Sarasota County receiving service from the Englewood Water District, the County and the Englewood Water District shall negotiate an interlocal agreement regarding Hydrant inspection, testing, and maintenance.
(d)
The Board shall determine the level of personnel staffing necessary to carry out the Department Program, and the funding necessary therefor, and shall adopt the amount necessary to fund the Program, which amount shall be included in the Department's budget and collected through general assessments of the Department.
(e)
Upon discovery of noncompliance with subsections (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this section or of a deficiency regarding the condition of any Hydrant, the Department shall notify the Responsible Person of the location of the Hydrant(s), and the specific deficiency, by a telephone call, followed with a certified letter, return receipt requested. The Responsible Person shall be given five working days from the date of delivery of such notification to either correct or respond to such deficiency with a corrective schedule. If corrective action has not been taken or scheduled within the designated time period above, and upon notification to the Responsible Person, the Department shall arrange for the corrective action to be taken by the Authorized Firm.
(f)
The Responsible Person shall have 30 days from the date of submission of charges and fees to remit payment thereof.
(g)
(1)
After the deficiency has been corrected, the Authorized Firm shall certify to the Department the expenses incurred in correcting the condition. The Responsible Person shall be liable for all of the costs incurred by the Department in correcting the deficiency, including all incidental costs such as the cost for certified mail. The Board of County Commissioners has established a resolution including a schedule of fees in order to recover the costs expended by the Department in addition to the value of the services performed by the Authorized Firm.
(2)
The Department shall notify the Responsible Person by certified mail of the total costs incurred to correct the deficiency. Such costs shall be payable to the Sarasota County Fire Department within 30 days of the date of receipt of notice thereof, after which a special assessment lien will be made and recorded in the public records against any property in the County owned by the Responsible Person. Such lien shall accrue interest, at the legal rate, from the time of recording thereof until paid.
(3)
Such lien shall be in favor of Sarasota County and may be satisfied at any time by payment thereof, including accrued interest. Upon such payment, the Clerk of the Circuit Court shall, by appropriate means, evidence the satisfaction of and cancellation of such lien upon the public records. Such liens shall be of equal dignity with special assessments made for other purposes.
(h)
It is declared to be the legislative intent that if any subsection, sentence, clause or provision of this section is held invalid, the remainder of this section shall not be affected.
(i)
This section shall be automatically repealed on January 31, 2004, unless otherwise amended or ratified by the Board.
(Ord. No. 88-095, §§ 1—7, 1-24-1989; Ord. No. 97-005, §§ 1—10, 2-4-1997)