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Town Makes Residents Hand Over Their Keys
Fox news ^ | 6/14/2011 | Fox news

Posted on 06/14/2011 9:05:45 PM PDT by freedommom

Seven years ago the Cedar Falls City Council passed an ordinance requiring lock boxes on commercial buildings and larger apartment complexes. Hardly a soul made a peep about it.

On Monday the council voted 6-1 on a third and final reading to expand the ordinance to include more apartment buildings. In the days leading up to the vote, they received hundreds of phone calls and e-mails from people all over the country from people upset about the issue.

Some calls came in the middle of the night. Some writers threatened them and called them scumbags, or worse.

The issue had blown up on the Internet in recent days with message boards, primarily those tilting toward conservative and tea party viewpoints, spreading the story nationwide.

(Excerpt) Read more at nation.foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Government; Miscellaneous; Unclassified
KEYWORDS: keys; lockbox
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To: lastchance

“All buildings or parts of buildings served by an internal automatic fire detection or suppression system, having a connection to a central monitoring station facility, shall be provided with a key lock box approved prior to installation by the city fire department.”

Of all the hundreds of commercial buildings we did, not one did we install the fire sprinkler shutoff inside the building, always outside where it was accessable to the fire department.

If there were automatated access gates a fire department lock box was provided to the automated gates only.


21 posted on 06/14/2011 9:37:03 PM PDT by dalereed
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To: MtnClimber

First they do not have keys to individual dwelling units. Secondly if they are responding to an alarm and have every reason to believe there is a fire or personal emergency they do have right of entry. You can not argue the castle doctrine if you shoot a fireman or EMT who gains entry to your dwelling in a reported emergency.


22 posted on 06/14/2011 9:37:09 PM PDT by lastchance ("Nisi credideritis, non intelligetis" St. Augustine)
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To: MtnClimber

what do you stand in? ;)


23 posted on 06/14/2011 9:37:55 PM PDT by cableguymn
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To: dalereed

You are right that is typical. Were you in the fire suppression business?


24 posted on 06/14/2011 9:38:48 PM PDT by lastchance ("Nisi credideritis, non intelligetis" St. Augustine)
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To: quantim

“who the hell cares about Iowa in selecting a POTUS in the primary?”

Only a handfull that are destroying the country with their corn!


25 posted on 06/14/2011 9:41:07 PM PDT by dalereed
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To: lastchance
This is a fairly typical adoption of the code from Millington, Tennessee.

I see. Everyone else is doing it so it must be OK. See, it's even written up in nice, official looking format /s

26 posted on 06/14/2011 9:42:41 PM PDT by paul51 (11 September 2001 - Never forget)
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To: lastchance

Nope built the buildings, and subcontracted the sprinkler systems!


27 posted on 06/14/2011 9:42:54 PM PDT by dalereed
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To: doc1019

And my shotgun is not loaded with shot.


28 posted on 06/14/2011 9:44:59 PM PDT by doc1019 (Palin/West, unbeatable.)
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To: Cyber Liberty
Back when I lived in apartments, I always changed the locks when I moved in. Then, I changed them back when I left. I’m sure it would have cheesed them off if they had known about it.

I work in real estate at a investment and management firm (i.e. we're landlords).

It never really bothered me a bit if tenants change their locks (hell, I'd even recommend it), I only had a problem when the tenants forgot their keys...

FWIW. We try to avoid keeping a copy of the tenants keys, the reason being, if we keep them, and God forbid, someone were to break into our office, they would have keys to alot of apartments in alot of buildings (and those keys would be labeled).

29 posted on 06/14/2011 9:46:45 PM PDT by Sonny M ("oderint dum metuant")
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To: MtnClimber

No clue.

I imagine they’d knock first.

On the other hand, if the resident chooses not to respond...

The whole thing is extremely awkward.

Personally, I would never give my key to anyone.


30 posted on 06/14/2011 9:50:13 PM PDT by Jack Hammer
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To: freedommom
By all means we should allow this, after all firefighters and cops only care about everyone's safety. /s

Cops, firefighters stand by and watch as California man drowns

Did I forget to mention it's for the children? /s/s

31 posted on 06/14/2011 9:53:08 PM PDT by anonsquared
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To: paul51

Just how many cases of burglary or reports of unauthorized access have been reported due to the lock boxes? I mean surely it would be big news since these lock boxes are standard requirement of a nationally recoginzed code adopted by many States and Municipalities. But guess what? I sure as heck have never read of such a breach of security.


32 posted on 06/14/2011 10:09:13 PM PDT by lastchance ("Nisi credideritis, non intelligetis" St. Augustine)
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To: freedommom

I had a small fit when selling two homes because of the lock boxes the realtor’s wanted to put on the doors.

I felt very uncomfortable knowing someone could enter my home when I wasn’t home.

I had them removed. It wasn’t worth the stress I felt.

Now the apartment we stayed in while transferring had a gate that needed a card to swipe before it would open. We were told emergency people had cards to enter the complex.

I don’t know if it’s wise to have those lock boxes. Some people in trusted positions cannot be trusted.


33 posted on 06/14/2011 10:10:33 PM PDT by CornBred
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To: dalereed

I used to do commercial plan review for a local city.

I wonder if those who argue for the fire department bursting through the building with axes to gain access in case of an emergency because they think lock boxes render the building vulnerable to security breaches realize bad guys could also smash their way in with an axe.


34 posted on 06/14/2011 10:12:19 PM PDT by lastchance ("Nisi credideritis, non intelligetis" St. Augustine)
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To: freedommom

Do you have any idea how many thousand communities have had these Knox Box laws for decades?


35 posted on 06/14/2011 10:12:32 PM PDT by iowamark
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To: lastchance

Where are you from?


36 posted on 06/14/2011 10:16:12 PM PDT by lara
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To: lastchance

If there was an emergency then I expect that any castle doctrine PATRIOT would expect and help responders as long as they don’t expand their responsibilities.

If unexpected people break down my door in the middle of the night when I know I have no crimminal activity I will be trying to miss my dogs as I defend myself.

If police ask questions I will be sure to try to help. If they break into my home like a home invaader, I will try to send them to hell.And, if they can break into my home and I pay their salary. I should be able to break into their home on and charge them if the service is constitutional.


37 posted on 06/14/2011 10:16:17 PM PDT by MtnClimber (Osama and Obama both have friends that bombed the Pentagon.)
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To: B4Ranch; freedommom

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2733488/posts


38 posted on 06/14/2011 10:18:03 PM PDT by bronxville (Sarah will be the first American female president.)
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To: lastchance
Can I have the keys to your house? I promise I won't abuse them. I'll even agree to a bunch of reassuring rules and codes. I hope you will.. it's for your own good.

39 posted on 06/14/2011 10:27:03 PM PDT by I see my hands (Embrace misanthropy)
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To: MtnClimber

You do realize that having a Knox Box on the front of a building (which holds a key only to the doors of the complex, not the individual units) has nothing at all to do with the scenario you describe, right?


40 posted on 06/14/2011 10:30:19 PM PDT by absalom01 (You should do your duty in all things. You can never do more, you should never wish to do less.)
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