ORD-41-82 PERTAINING TO ROOF COVERINGS IN BRUSH COVERED LANDORDINANCE NO. 41-
82 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF ORANGE ADOPTED AS AN
URGENCY MEASURE AMENDING CERTAIN SECTIONS
OF CHAPTER 15.36 OF THE ORANGE
MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO ROOF COVERINGS
IN BRUSH COVERED
LAND.WHEREAS, the Gypsum Canyon fire of October 9, 1982, swept
into the City across brush covered land aided and abetted by
strong Santa Ana winds;
and WHEREAS, that fire caused great destruction of
residential structures in the northeastern portion of the City;
and WHEREAS, it is most fortunate there were no lives lost,
in spite of the great risk of such harm which existedj
and iEREAS, it is reasonable to assume that the brush
covered lands which provide the fuel for fire, the winds which
transport fire and the hilly topography which restrict the ability to
fight fire are going to continue to exist;
and WHEREAS, it is also apparent that where the October 9th
fire occurred will continue to be, because of its natural
scenic beauty, a prime area of residential development;
and WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that action is
needed immediately to mitigate the risk of harm to lives and
propertYi
and WHEREAS, the City Council has further determined that the
pro-tection of the public health, safety and welfare
reasonably require that an urgency ordinance be adopted to require at
least Class IIBIt roof coverings for new construction and
reconstruction of residential structures in those areas in and adjacent to
brush covered land. This requirement shall also apply to repair
of existing roof coverings consistent with Section 104 of the
Uniform Building
Code.NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Orange
does ordain as
follows:SECTION
I:Section 15.36.050 of the Orange Municipal Code is
hereby a~mended to read as
follows:15.36.050 Special provisions For Structures In Brush
Covered
Areas.A. Buildings or structures hereafter constructed or
moved within 500 feet of brush covered land shall comply with
Section 1604(b) added to the Uniform Building Code adopted by the
City.B. For the purpose of this Section, IIbrush covered
landll means one of the following as determined by the Fire Officials
of the
City:1. Land covered with natural vegetation such as brush
or chaparral, trees, scrub oak, smaac, sage, buckwheat,
greasewood,or similar noncultivated vegetative
growth;2. Land covered with growth as indicated in subsection
1 in combination with the annual growth of grass and
weeds.Subsections C and D shall remain unchanged by this
amendment.t.:-
J]U -iJlIil WlJW~ 'M nr..~ .-SECTION
II:Section
15.36.070 of the Orange Municipal Code is hereby deleted
in its entirety and renumber Section 15.36.080 to read 15.
36.070.SECTION
III:Section
15.36.090 of the Orange Municipal Code is hereby renumbered
as 15.36.080 and is hereby amended to read as follows:15.
36.080 Requirements Of Fire District No.3. A. Section 1604
of the Uniform Building Code, 1976 Edition, Volume 1,heretofore
adopted by tbe City of Orange is hereby amended to remove
Section 1604(a) to read as follows:Any
building or structure complying with the requirements
of this code may be erected, con-structed,
moved within or into Fire District No.
3."B.
Section 1604(b) is added to the Uniform Building Code to read
as follows:Buildings
or structures hereafter constructed or
moved into Fire District No.. 3which are located
within the described distances of brush
covered land as the term 'brush covered land'
is defined and as those distances are set
forth in Section 15.36.050 shall comply with
the following requirements:1.
Roof Covering. Roof covering shall be Fire
Retardant as specified in one of the following:
a)
As listed in Section 3203(e).b)
Listed as Class A or B by Underwriters Laboratories.
2.
Tile Roofs. Tile Roofs shall be fire stopped
at the eave ends to preclude entry of fl~
ae or embers under the tile.3.
Protection of openings. Openings into attics,
floors or other enclosed areas shall be covered
with corrosion-resistant wire mesh not
greater than one-fourth (1/4) inch in any
dimension except where such openings are equipped with sash
or
doors.4. Chimneys. Every chimney shall terminate in
a substantially constructed spark deterrent. Such
spark deterrent shall be designed in such a manner that
it will not 'restrict the capacity of the chimney flue
and shall meet the approval of the Fire Official of the
City of
Orange."SECTION
IV:This Ordinance shall become effective immediately and the
pro-visions thereof shall apply to all construction,
reconstruction and repairs authorized by building permits issued after the
date of adoption for a period of 120
days.
1!It(.., jfJ!tii]i "".~~
SECTION
V:The
reasons for the urgency of the Ordinance are as follows:The
Gypsum Canyon fire of October 9, 1982, caused severe residential
property losses in the City of Orange. There are unique
climatic, geographic and topographic conditions which existed
at the time of the fire which have frequently existed before
and which will most likely exist frequently in the future.Since
it is not very likely these natural conditions will soon change,
the residential structures in such area must be constructed
in a manner which will minimize the risk of fire damage.
By its very nature, the roof covering of a structure is vulnerable
to the flying and burning debris of a brush fire. To mitigate
this risk of loss, the Orange Fire Department has recommended,
and the City Council has accepted the recommendation,that
all roof coverings constructed or reconstructed in those areas
designated as "brush covered landl! shall be effective against
at least moderate fire exposures.THEREFORE,
pursuant to the Procedures of Section 36937 of the California
Government Code, the City Council of the City of Orange hereby
enacts this Ordinance as an urgency measure in order to protect
the public health, safety, and welfare.ADOPTED
this 16th day of November, 1982.ATTEST:
g~~
Cl. ty Cler of tl1 C '/ y of Orange STATE
OF CALIFORNIA )COUNTY
OF ORANGE ) ss CITY
OF ORANGE )I,
MARILYN" J. JENSEN, City Clerk of the City of Orange, DO HEREBY CERTIFY
that the foregoing Ordinance No. 41-82 was regularly intro-
duced, reading in full was waived, was read by Title, was passed and
adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of
Orange, California, held on the 16th day of November, 1982, by the
following vote, to wit:
AYES: COUNCILMEN: BARRERA, MAYOR BEAM, PEREZ, BEYER
NOES: COUNCILMEN: NONE
ABSENT: COUNCILMEN: SMITH
WITNESS may hand and seal this 19th day of November ,-~1982.
of
Orange 3-