[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of
Trustees of the Village of Greenwood Lake 11-25-1985 by L.L. No. 3-1985.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to establish standards and controls of
the various types of intrusion, holdup and other emergency signals from police
alarm devices that require police response, investigation and safeguarding of
property at the location of an event reported by a signal which is transmitted
by telephone or radio, or which is otherwise relayed to the police by an alarm
device requiring investigation or other action by any person acting in response
to a signal actuated by an alarm device, including such devices already in use
within the Village of Greenwood Lake.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:
ALARM AGENT -- Any person who is employed
by any business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity that is licensed
hereunder to conduct the business of owning, operating, maintaining,
installing, leasing or selling police alarm devices and whose duties include
any of the following: selling, maintaining, leasing, servicing, repairing,
altering, replacing, moving or installing, in or on any building, place or
premises, any police alarm device as defined in this chapter within the Village
of Greenwood Lake.
ALARM INSTALLATION -- Any police
alarm device or aggregation of police alarm devices installed on or within a
single building or on or within more than one building or area adjacently
located on a common site at a specific location.
BUSINESS LICENSEE -- Any business,
firm, corporation or other commercial entity which is in the business of
owning, operating, maintaining, installing, leasing or selling a police alarm
device or devices, or system of police alarm devices, which business, firm,
corporation or other commercial entity is, as owner, operator, provider of
maintenance service, installer, lessor or seller of said device, devices or
system of devices, subject to the license requirements of this chapter.
CENTRAL ALARM STATION -- Any facility
operated by a private firm that owns or leases a system of police alarm
devices, which facility is manned by operators who receive, record or validate
alarm signals and relay information about such validated signals to the police
when appropriate.
DIAL ALARM -- Any police alarm device
which is a telephone device or telephone attachment that automatically or
electronically selects a telephone line connected to a central alarm station or
police headquarters and reproduces a prerecorded message to report a criminal
act or other emergency requiring police response.
DIRECT ALARM -- Any police alarm
device connected directly by leased telephone wires from a specific location to
police headquarters.
EMERGENCY ALARM -- Any police alarm
device designed to be actuated by a fire, criminal act or other emergency at a
specific location or by a victim of a holdup, robbery or other emergency or
criminal act at a specific location.
FALSE EMERGENCY ALARM -- Any signal
actuated by an emergency alarm to which the Police Department responds, which
is not the result of a fire, holdup, robbery or other crime or emergency.
INTRUSION -- Any entry into an area
or building equipped with one or more police alarm devices by any person or
object whose entry actuates a police alarm device.
LICENSING AUTHORITY -- Police Chief
of the Village of Greenwood Lake through the Village Board.
POLICE ALARM DEVICE -- Any device
which, when actuated by a criminal act or other emergency requiring police
response, transmits a prerecorded message or other signal by telephone, radio
or other means to a central alarm station or directly to the police or produces
an audible or visible signal designed to notify persons within audible or
visible alarm range of the signal.
POLICE HEADQUARTERS -- Police
headquarters and other enclosures housing privately- or publicly-owned
equipment serving the Police Department.
A. It shall be unlawful to operate, maintain,
install, lease or sell a police alarm device without a license. It shall be
unlawful for any person, business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity
to operate, maintain, install, lease or sell a police alarm device or devices
or system of police alarm devices, as defined by the terms of this chapter,
without first obtaining a license as hereinafter provided.
B. Authority to grant licenses and permits.
(1) The
licensing authority is hereby authorized to grant a revocable license upon
approval of the Village Board of Trustees to any business, firm, corporation or
other commercial entity, authorizing said business, firm, corporation or other
commercial entity to do business in the Village of Greenwood Lake by performing
any or all of the following functions: to own, operate, maintain, install,
lease or sell a police alarm device or devices or system of police alarm
devices.
(2) The
licensing authority is hereby authorized to grant a revocable license upon
approval of the Village Board to any alarm agent.
(3) The
licensing authority is hereby authorized to grant a revocable permit to any
owner of property located within the Village of Greenwood Lake or the lessee
thereof to operate, maintain, install and modify a police alarm device.
(4) All
presently existing police alarm devices and systems of fire or police alarm
devices and present owners and lessees of premises having such devices or
systems must comply with all provisions of this chapter by such date as shall
be fixed by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees.
§ 35-4. Application for license and
permit.
Applications for licenses and permits shall be made as follows:
A. All businesses, firms, corporations or other
commercial entities which are in the business of owning, operating,
maintaining, installing, leasing or selling a police alarm device or devices or
system of police alarm devices, who desire to conduct business in the Village
of Greenwood Lake, shall apply to the licensing authority for a business
license on a form to be supplied by the licensing authority. The application
shall contain specific provisions relating to the quality, efficiency and effectiveness
of the device or system of devices owned or to be operated, maintained,
installed, leased or sold by the business licensee, testing procedures involved
and any other information the licensing authority shall determine to be
reasonably necessary to effectuate the purpose of this chapter. Such business
license shall be issued for a one-year period, on a calendar year basis or a
part thereof, and no license shall extend beyond December 31 of each year.
Notwithstanding this provision, a person having a business license may conduct
such business through January 31 of the year following the expiration of his
business license.
B. Any person who is to be an alarm agent in the
Village of Greenwood Lake, before acting as such alarm agent, shall apply for
and receive a revocable alarm agent license. The application shall be made to
the licensing authority on a form to be supplied by the licensing authority.
The application shall contain specific provisions relating to the police alarm
device or devices, holdup alarms, dial alarms or alarm installations which are
to be sold, leased, installed, operated or maintained by the alarm agency, the
skill and competency of the applicant as an alarm agency and such other
information the licensing authority determines to be reasonably necessary to
effectuate the purpose of this chapter. Such license shall be issued for a
one-year period, on a calendar year basis or a part thereof, and no license
shall extend beyond December 31 of each year. Notwithstanding this provision, a
person having an alarm agent license may act as such alarm agent through
January 31 of the year following the expiration of this license.
C. Any property owner or lessee of property in the
Village of Greenwood Lake having on his or its premises a fire or police alarm
device or system of fire or police alarm devices shall apply to the licensing
authority, on a form to be supplied by the licensing authority, for a permit to
own or to otherwise have such a device on his or its premises. The application
shall contain provisions relating to the device or system of devices installed
or to be installed on the premises. Applications for permits for police alarm
devices existing in premises on the effective date of this chapter must be made
to the licensing authority by such date as shall be fixed by resolution by the
Village Board of Trustees. No such devices may be installed on the premises of
the owner or lessee after the effective date of this chapter prior to the
licensing authority having issued a permit to such owner or lessee, and no
presently existing fire or police alarm device shall be modified after the
effective date of this chapter prior to the licensing authority having issued a
permit to such owner or lessee. Such permit need not be obtained on an annual
basis, but shall be obtained each time a device or system is to be installed or
modified.
License fees for a business license, alarm agent license and owners or
lessee permits shall be such as shall be fixed from time to time by resolution
of the Village Board of Trustees.
§ 35-6. Denial, suspension or revocation
of license.
A license issued under this chapter may be suspended or revoked by the
licensing authority after notice and hearing by the licensing authority for the
violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or of any regulation or
regulations promulgated by the licensing authority pursuant to this chapter and
any license or identification card issued hereunder shall be surrendered
immediately to the licensing authority upon such suspension or revocation. No
part of a license fee shall be refunded when a license is suspended or revoked.
Any applicant whose application for a license or permit has been denied or any
business license alarm agent, owner or lessee whose license has been suspended
or revoked by the licensing authority may appeal such denial, suspension or
revocation in writing to the Board of Trustees within 30 days after the date of
denial or of the notice of suspension or revocation and may appear before such
Board of Trustees at a time and place to be determined by the Board of Trustees
in support of his or its contention that the license should not have been
denied, suspended or revoked. The decision of the Board of Trustees shall be
final.
Every business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity conducting
the business of owning, operating, installing, leasing or selling fire or
police alarm devices within the Village of Greenwood Lake shall maintain
complete and accurate records of all installations of alarm systems in the
Village of Greenwood Lake and shall produce such records for inspection by the
licensing authority upon demand.
A. Limitation. No fire or police alarm device
shall be connected to or use any telephone line connected to police
headquarters except those lines authorized by the licensing authority. The
owner and licensee of any such police alarm device which is connected either
directly or indirectly to police headquarters by a telephone line which has not
been authorized for use for such purpose as aforesaid, on and after such date
as shall be fixed by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees, shall be in
violation of this chapter and be subject to the penalty provisions hereof.
B. Intentional false alarm. It shall be a
violation of this chapter to intentionally cause a false holdup alarm, and any
person who does intentionally cause a false holdup alarm shall be subject to the
penalty provisions hereof.
C. Charges for false emergency alarms. Any owner
or lessee of property having a police alarm device or system of police alarm
devices on his or its premises on the effective date of this chapter, and any
user or services or equipment furnished by a licensee under this chapter shall
pay to the village a charge for each and every false emergency alarm to which
the Police Department responds, in each calendar year, in such amounts as shall
be determined by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees. Such charges
shall be paid to the Village Treasurer. Failure to pay any such charges shall
subject such owner, lessee or user to the penalty provisions of this chapter
which are as follows: the fines for each calendar year shall be for the first
two alarms, no charge; for the third false alarm, $10; for the fourth to fifth
alarm, $25; for each additional false alarm, $50.
D. Installation and maintenance. The installation
and maintenance of fire or police alarm devices permitted by this chapter,
including the connection to police headquarters, shall be made at no cost to
the village. The owner or lessee shall be responsible for the maintenance and
service of his or its fire or police alarm device equipment and shall be
responsible for all malfunctions of his or its equipment.
E. Change of location. If the location of police
headquarters should be changed at any time, the village shall not be
responsible for any expense incurred by the owner or lessee or business
licensee or alarm agent for moving alarm systems or reconnecting such systems
to the relocated police headquarters.
F. Removal of unlawful equipment. In addition to
any other remedy provided by law, the licensing authority, whenever it shall
have knowledge of the use of any fire or police alarm device, cabinet or
attachment, or telephone terminal which is not operated or maintained in
accordance with the provisions of this chapter or which is contrary to
regulations promulgated pursuant to this chapter and after notice and hearing by
the licensing authority, may order the removal of the same from police
headquarters, and it shall be unlawful to disobey such order.
G. Any false emergency alarm to which the Police
Department responds brought about through a telephone answering service shall
be attributable to the owner or lessee of the property activating such alarm.
Dial alarm devices using telephone switchboards for prerecorded voice
messages are prohibited.
A. No person shall use, or cause or permit to be
used, any alarm device that automatically selects a telephone trunk line of the
Police Department of the Village of Greenwood Lake and then reproduces any
prerecorded voice messages to report any crime, fire or other emergency. In the
event that prior to the effective date of this chapter such an alarm device
causes more than three false alarms to occur, it may be directed by the
licensing authority that such device be disconnected.
B. The use of any dial alarm device which relays
a digital coded signal to the central alarm monitoring facility at police
headquarters is permitted under this chapter.
C. No alarm system shall be connected to the
Police Department for which an application by permit is not on file with the
Village Clerk and which has not been approved by the Police Chief.
§ 35-10. Automatic cutoff system.
Requirement of cutoff system. No person shall install or maintain in any
building, structure or establishment in the Village of Greenwood Lake an
external audible alarm of any type which does not also contain an automatic
cutoff system or feature automatically cutting off the source of power to the
alarm after it has sounded for a period of no longer than 15 minutes.
§ 35-11. Penalties for offenses.
Except as stated in § 35-8C herein, any person, firm or corporation who
does not pay any charge or fee established in this chapter or who violates any
provision of this chapter shall be subject to a fine not in excess of $250 for
each offense. A separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each day during
which a violation occurs or is committed, and such violation may constitute
disorderly conduct, in which event such person shall be a disorderly person, as
defined in the Penal Law of the State of New York.