Posted on 10/25/2003 6:16:55 PM PDT by SWO
Most apartment and condo dwellers in Virginia can kiss goodbye to preparing sizzling steaks or burgers on their balcony or patio grills.
As of Oct. 1, it's illegal to use an open-flame grill on wooden balconies or on patios within 10 feet of a combustible building, meaning just about any structure not made of brick.
Anyone violating the state's new fire prevention code can be charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by a year in jail and a possible $2,500 fine.
In addition to the open flame ban, owners of propane grills that use tanks with a capacity greater than 2.5 pounds of water cannot use their grills on prohibited balconies or within 10 feet of combustible buildings.
The new rules are intended to prevent fires, said Glenn Dean, safety engineer with the state fire marshal's office.
``The idea is that you're trying to eliminate the amount of fuel that can leak or migrate,'' Dean said.
Embers that fly out of a charcoal grill onto a wooden deck can burst into flames, Dean said. Fumes from a leaky propane tank can waft into a neighbor's apartment and be ignited by a lit candle or cigarette.
``I think it's ridiculous,'' said Diana Sepulveda, who lives in a condo in the Riverwalk section of Chesapeake.
She and her husband have a small grill they use on their patio.
``If you're constantly watching your grill while you're grilling and not leaving it unattended, there should not be an issue,'' Sepulveda said. ``It's taking away from people's privacy and their culpability of living in their own home, whether it's an apartment or condo.'' Sepulveda's home is one of more than 142,000 multi-family units in Hampton Roads, according to the 2000 Census.
Not everyone is affected. Single- and two-family dwellings are exempt. So are buildings constructed with non-combustible materials such as brick. Buildings with sprinklers that protect decks aren't included. And any grill connected to a natural gas line also is legal.
Dean said Tuesday he did not have statistics on fires caused by grills in apartments or other multi-unit buildings.
But the anecdotal evidence is there, he said.
Jessica Younce said her tenants at Chase Arbor Apartments in Virginia Beach already are mostly in compliance with the code.
A November 2000 fire caused by an unattended balcony grill in the complex off Independence Boulevard destroyed 20 apartments.
``Since then, we've made it a policy that only people on the first floor can grill,'' said Younce, the apartment manager. ``Basically, you cannot grill on the second- or third-floor balcony.''
New residents seem to understand the policy and few complain when they learn about the fire three years ago, she said.
Local fire marshals said they aren't initiating a crackdown.
``Are we hunting down grills on balconies? Absolutely not,'' said Chief William Hibner, Chesapeake's fire marshal. ``Does that make it right to continue using them? No.''
Local fire marshals said Tuesday that they don't expect residents to get rid of their barbecues because some people invest large sums in high-tech grill gadgetry.
But they do expect people to dispose of propane tanks if they can't be used and stored according to the code, said Capt. Rick Kephart, Virginia Beach deputy fire marshal.
Hibner and Kephart both said that they and other fire marshals throughout the state try to take an educational approach to code enforcement. If people refuse to comply after learning about code violations, they are given a written notice that they must make changes. Future violations can result in a court summons, they said. ``We have found that an overwhelming majority of folks, when they are educated, they comply with no problem,'' Hibner said.
Hibner decided early on to start notifying apartment managers and others with an interest in the kinds of buildings affected.
``Everyone that we can find, we've actually sent a letter to them explaining the new code,'' Hibner said. ``We knew that was going to have a substantial impact. I knew we wanted to get the word out.''
Hibner said his office has received a few calls from people who wanted clarification of the code.
Virginia Beach fire inspectors started spreading the word last year, when they learned that the new code could be adopted, Kephart said. But the Virginia Beach fire marshal's office won't be sending letters out to every complex in the city.
Kephart said he talks to one or two residents about the issue each week. The fire marshal's office has received e-mails and talked to residents in person.
``People are concerned about their traditional Saturday night grills,'' Kephart said.
``It's been a major impact to the citizens,'' Kephart said. ``The biggest thing is to understand the intent of it.''
``People tend to forget about the Chase Arbors and things like that,'' Kephart said. ``People say it's not going to happen to me because I'm going to be safe with mine, but it's that kind of attitude that causes it.''
Reach Cindy Clayton at cindy.clayton@pilotonline.com or 222-5201.
Luckily we have also banned grilling with large capacity propane tanks. Pretty soon we can impose either a one barbeque a month limit, or licensing. And to top it off the nice folks in Virginia Beach apparently couldn’t wait so they started enforcing the law early.
"Virginia Beach fire inspectors started spreading the word last year, when they learned that the new code could be adopted, "
One more law "For the Children".
FMCDH
The article is not clear on how this code was passed. Certainly not by the GOP controlled House of Delegates, I would hope. Is it a Mark Warner-Executive Branch directive??
Hmmm ... I see a solution - grill out away from the building, at least 11 feet away from it (like out on the grass between buildings)!
... along with bowling trophies, treasured pictures, thousands in cash and probably more than one nice hunting rifle -
- wouldn't you hate that it if that happened to you?
Control of all to the standards set by the lowest common denominator, we understand.
There was only one nitwit who charred the support beam for the balcony but the manager was told that she couldn't just tell him that he couldn't have a grill while the rest of us used ours so we all are grill-less on our patios.
We do have a small area where we can grill that is away from the building.
Because the same people who are calling the fire marshall a nazi will call the all the property managers nazis. That's too much work.
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