HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC RES 90-05RESOLUTION NO. 90-5
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF TUSTIN, SETTING FORTII
FINDINGS WITH RESPECT TO LOCAL
CONDITIONS WITHIN THE CITY OF TUSTIN
WItICH MAKE CERTAIN MODIFICATIONS AND
CHANGES TO THE UNIFORM FIRE CODE
REASONABLY NECESSARY FOR HOUSING
OCCUPANCIES
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WHEREAS, Health and Safety Code Section 17958
provides that the City of Tustin ("city") shall adopt
Ordinances and regulations imposing the same or modified
or changed requirements as are contained in the
regulations adopted by the State pursuant to Health and
Safety Code Section 17922; and
WHEREAS, the State of California is mandated by
Health and Safety Code Section 17922 to impose the same
requirements as are contained in the most recent edition
of the Uniform Building and Housing Codes of the
International Conference of Building Officials, the
Uniform Plumbing Code of the International Association
of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials, and the National
Electrical Code of the National Fire Protection
Association (hereinafter referred to collectively as
,'Codes"; and
WHEREAS, Health and Safety Code Section 17958.5(a)
permits the City to make modifications or changes to the
Codes, which are reasonably necessary because of local
climatic, geographic or topographic conditions; and
WHEREAS, Health and Safety Code Section 17958.7
requires that the City Council, before making any
modifications or changes to the Codes, shall make an
express finding that such changes or modifications are
reasonably necessary because of local climatic,
geographic or topographic conditions; and
WHEREAS, the Community Development Department and
Orange County Fire Services have recommended that
changes and modifications be made to the Uniform Fire
Code and have advised that certain said changes and
modifications to the Uniform Fire Code, 1988 Edition are
reasonably necessary due to local conditions in the City
of Tustin and have further advised that the remainder of
said changes and modifications are of an administrative
or procedural nature, or concern themselves with
subjects not covered by the Codes or are reasonably
necessary to safeguard life and property within the City
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Resolution No. 90-5
January 15, 1990
Page 2
of Tustin.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City'Council
of the City of Tustin as follows:
Section i The following changes and
modifications to the 1988 Edition of the Uniform Fire
Code as recommended by the Community Development
Department and Orange County Fire Services are hereby
found to be reasonably necessary due to the following
local conditions for housing set forth following the
description of amendments.
A. Section 10.306(g), and 10.306(h), 10.316 are
amended relating to automatic fire extinguishing systems
in new buildings with an area greater than 6,000 square
feet or more than 2 stories in height and to require an
approved automatic fire sprinkler system for certain
residential occupancies.
B. Section 10.309(b) is amended and relates to
standpipes and requires a hose outlet or access doorway
within 150 feet of all parts of a commercial building so
that a sprinkler system can be shut off earlier
resulting in less water damage.
C. Section 10.315 is amended to make fire access
requirements applicable to high rise structures, with
specified exceptions, over 55 feet in height, rather
than the 75 feet threshold of the Uniform Building Code.
This modification was originally recommended by the
Orange County Fire Chiefs Association and adopted by
many jurisdictions in the County. The amendment was
also adopted by Las Vegas after the MGM Grand Hotel
fire. Other modifications to Section 10.315 are to
conform to minimum standards for high rise buildings set
forth in Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations.
D. Section 11.111 is amended to require spark
arrestors on chimneys, flues, or stovepipes burning
solid fuel.
E. Section 14.104 is amended to require smoke
detectors in every existing dwelling unit used for
sleeping purposes.
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Resolution No. 90-5
January 15, 1990
Page 3
Climatic Condition: Hot, dry Santa Ana
winds are common to all areas within the
City of Tustin and Orange County. These
winds area constitute a contributing
factor which can cause small fires which
spreads quickly, and creates the need for
an increased level of fire protection.
This added protection will supplement
normal fire department response available
in high density occupancies, and provide
immediate protection for life and safety
of multiple occupancy occupants during
fire occurrences.
Climatic Condition: Orange County and
the City of Tustin is located in a semi-
arid Mediterranean type climate which
predisposes all fuels, including wood
shingles to rapid ignition and spread of
fire. Therefore, there exists a need for
additional fire protection measures;
Geographic Condition: Orange County and
the city of Tustin are located in Seismic
Zone 4. There are earthquake faults that
run along both the northeastern and
southwestern boundaries of Orange County.
The Newport-Inglewood Fault Zone (NIFZ)
which runs through Orange County was the
source of the destructive 1933 Long Beach
earthquake (6.3 magnitude, hypocenter off
Newport Beach coast) , which took 120
lives, with areas damaged from Laguna
Beach to Marina del Rey and inland to
Whittier, and poses one of the greatest
hazards to lives and property in the
nation. Regional planning for
reoccurrence is recommended by the State
of California, Department of
Conservation. There was also an
earthquake in December, 1989, with the
epicenter located near the City of
Irvine. The fault on which this quake
occurred was unknown prior to this
activity. The October 17, 1989 Santa
Cruz earthquake resulted in only one
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Resolution No. 90-5
January 15, 1990
Page 4
major San Francisco fire in the Marina
district, but when combined with the 34
other fires and over 500 responses, the
department was taxed to its full
capabilities. The Marina fire was
difficult to contain because mains
supplying water to the district burst
during the earthquake. If more fires had
been ignited by the earthquake, it would
have been difficult for the fire
department to contain them. Experts
predict a major earthquake in our area
with the next 50 years. This situation
creates the need for both additional fire
protection measures and automatic on-
site fire protection for building
occupants since a multitude of fires may
result from breakage of gas and electric
lines as a result of an earthquake. As
noted by "Planning Scenario on a Major
Earthquake on the Newport-Inglewood Fault
Zone, 1988, State Department of
Conservation," page 59, "unfortunately,
barely meeting the minimum earthquake
standards of building codes places a
building on the verge of being legally
unsafe";
Geoqraphv and ToDoqraDhv: Traffic and
circulation congestion presently existing
in the City of Tustin often places fire
department response time to fire
occurrences at risk. This condition will
be exacerbated by any major disaster,
including any earthquake wherein damage
to the highway system will occur. This
condition makes the need for additional
on-site protection for property occupants
necessary.
Geography and ToDographv: Placement of
multiple occupancy buildings, location of
arterial roads, and fire department
staffing constraints due to recent
revenue limiting state legislation have
made it difficult for the fire department
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Resolution No. 90-5
January 15, 1990
Page 5
to locate additional fire stations and
provide manpower sufficient to
concentrate fire companies and personnel
to control fires in high density
apartment or condominium buildings.
Orange County Fire Department equipment
does not allow easy access to areas of
buildings greater than 55 feet above the
level of Fire Department vehicle access.
These conditions create the need for
built-in on-site fire protection systems
to protect occupants and property until
fire fighting apparatus and personnel
arrive on the scene, as otherwise
required for high rises.
Other public and safety concerns:
a. Smoke proof stairwell enclosures.
The stairwells in the 1980 MGM Grand
Hotel fire in Las Vegas (deathtoll 88,
600 injured) and the Dupont Hotel fire
were filled with smoke which trapped the
occupants in the buildings. The
stairwell enclosures in the First
Interstate Bank fire in Los Angeles were
filled with smoke which required the
firefighters to use their airpacks as
they climbed the stairs to locate and
attack the fire. It is not possible for
the firefighters to carry enough air
bottles for their airpacks to even reach
a fire on a floor above approximately the
sixth floor, let alone be able to work on
the fire after it is located.
An emergency evacuation facility on the
roof of high rise is currently required
in the City of Long Beach and many other
larger jurisdictions. Statistics show
that many people evacuate to the roof
area of a high rise building in the event
of a fire, especially if they are on a
floor above the fire. Obstructions on
the roof can block aerial access to the
roof for evacuation or delivering
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Resolution No. 90-5
January 15, 1990
Page 6
firefighting personnel and equipment.
The Mexico City earthquake demonstrated
that a high rise building located in an
area subject to liquefaction may actually
sink into the ground which will block all
of the normal egress into the building.
This, along with the possibility of
roadway damage, gridlock, and/or falling
debris, would make aerial access to the
roof area an essential operation for
firefighting and rescue operations. This
has been demonstrated in many high rise
fires such as the MGM Grand Hotel fire
(30 helicopters used within first hour;
300-400 victims rescued), the First
Interstate Bank fire (29.5 hours flown),
the Dupont Hotel fire in Puerto Rico and
a nine-story high rise fire in Los
Angeles on December 5, 1989.
Section 2 Additional amendments have been made
to the Uniform Fire Code. On the recommendation of the
Community Development Department and Orange County Fire
Services, such amendments are hereby found to be either
administrative or procedural in nature or concern
themselves with subjects not related to housing. The
changes made include provisions making the Uniform Fire
Code compatible with other Codes enforced by the city
and fee schedules.
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Resolution No. 90-5
January 15, 1990
Page 7
Section 3 The city Clerk shall file a copy of
this Resolution with the Department of Housing and
Community Development of the State of California.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of Tustin this
15th day of January, 1990.
MARY WY~'N,
City Cl~k
City of Tustin
RESOLUTION CERTIFICATION
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF ORANGE ) SS
CITY OF TUSTIN )
RESOLUTION NO. 90-5
~RY E. WYNN, City Clerk and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council of
the City of Tustin, California, does hereby certify that the whole
number of the members of the City Council of the City of Tustin is
four; that the above and foregoing Resolution No. 90-5 was duly and
regularly introduced, passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the
city Council held on the 15th day of January, 1990, by the following
vote:
COUNCILMEMBER AYES: Edgar, Kennedy, Prescott
COUNCILMEMBER NOES: Kelly
COUNCILMEMBER ABSTAINED: None
COUNCILMEMBER ABSENT: None
Valerie Whiteman, Acting Chief Deputy City Clerk
for Mary E. Wynn, City Clerk