§ 10-31. Protection of property outside of city—Application; agreement.

(a)

Any person within a radius of ten (10) highway miles of any fire station of the city is granted the privilege of applying to the city council for limited firefighting equipment protection. The city council may at its discretion approve or reject any such application.

(b)

If the city council approves an application, the firefighting facilities of the city shall then be available to such applicant, but shall be available only upon the following conditions:

(1)

An agreement shall be signed by the applicant which agreement shall state that the city agrees to furnish only limited firefighting equipment, and the applicant shall agree that any portion or all of this equipment may be recalled at any time by the city when, in the judgment of the chief of the fire department, such equipment is necessary for fire protection within the city. Such agreement shall further provide that the city does not undertake to guarantee any firefighting results, and offers only such reasonable equipment as is consistent with conditions prevailing at the time, and the applicant shall agree that no claims of any kind or nature shall ever be made against the city resulting from use and/or operation of the equipment.

(2)

The applicant shall furnish to the city a performance bond from any reputable bonding company approved by the city collector and city attorney in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) where the appraised evaluation of the property covered by the application (which shall include real property "building" and personal property located therein) is one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) or less as reflected by the county tax records; or in the amount of two thousand and five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) where such evaluation is over one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00).

(3)

The applicant shall pay in advance to the city collector an annual ready-to-serve fee based on the appraised valuation of the real and personal property covered by each application as is reflected by the county tax records according to the following schedule of rates:

Appraised property evaluation     Rate

0 to $125,000.00\$100.00

$125,000.00 to $250,000.00\200.00

$250,000.00 to $500,000.00\500.00

Over $500,000.00\1,000.00

The annual fee shall be due no later than the 30th day of January of each year.

(4)

The sole purpose of these provisions is to offer service to separate properties subject to fire damage, and the grouping of one (1) or more properties shall not be allowed for the purpose thereof.

(5)

In addition to the above fee the applicant shall pay a usage fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00) per hour or fraction thereof for each firefighting company which responds to an alarm on the premises of the applicant, whether the alarm is false or comes as a result of a fire. Only one (1) firefighting company shall respond to an alarm on the premises of any applicant unless the applicant or his agent requests additional companies. The city shall not be bound to dispatch any equipment unless the equipment is available and is not needed at the time for fighting fire within the city limits.

(6)

No application shall be considered unless and until a fire hydrant has been installed within five hundred (500) feet of the applicant's building, provided water is available.

(7)

It is the responsibility of the applicant to remit to the city collector the appropriate fee when due, together with the most recent appraisal of the Jefferson County assessor verifying the valuation of the property. An applicant which fails to remit the proper fee by due date will be assessed a penalty equal to fifty (50) percent of the amount due. In the event an applicant shall fail to remit the proper amount together with any penalty within ninety (90) days after receiving notice by first class mail from the city collector that same is past due, all agreements between the applicant and the city for fire protection shall be void.

(Code 1967, § 13-12; Ord. No. 5989, §§ 1, 2, 2-4-02)

State law reference

Firefighting beyond corporate limits, A.C.A. § 14-53-102.