Council enforcing fines for false alarms

HUNTINGTON -- The city of Huntington has been more consistent in its enforcement of an ordinance that fines business owners and residents for excessive false alarm calls, Finance and Administration Director Brandi Jones said Monday.

Jones gave a brief report on the ordinance during Monday night's City Council meeting. The city has received several calls lately from businesses complaining about getting bills for false alarm calls, she said. Some council members said they also have received complaints.

In 2005, the council unanimously voted to strengthen the fines in the ordinance, which has been part of city code since 1979, Jones said. Businesses and residents have to pay a fine only if the police or fire department answers more than one false alarm call in a 30-day period.

The second false alarm within a 30-day period nets a $100 fine, while a third false alarm amounts to $200. Each false alarm thereafter within a 30-day period is $400.

The intent of the ordinance is to encourage businesses and residents to rectify problems with their alarm companies, Jones said.

"Every time the police department or fire department is called out to answer one of these false alarms, it takes up valuable resources," Jones said. "We need to allocate our limited resources appropriately."

The city billed about $7,000 in false alarm calls between July 1 and Dec. 1 of last year, Jones said.

"The ordinance is pretty liberal in its current form, because you're getting one free false alarm every 30 days," Mayor David Felinton said. "We're certainly not doing this to generate revenue."

The city has purchased software that will automate all false alarm calls, which means the billing system will be more uniform in its enforcement, Jones said.

In other business, the council referred an ordinance regarding the Barnett Child Care Center to its finance committee. The ordinance would transfer ownership of the center's building at the corner of 10th Avenue and Hal Greer Boulevard from the city to the Huntington Municipal Development Authority.

The transfer would eventually allow the center to purchase the building so it can make renovations, said Lisa Martin, president of Barnett's Board of Directors.

The center wants to add a pre-kindergarten program as well as infant and toddler rooms, Martin said. It needs to own the building to get a loan and state and federal grants to make the needed renovations, she said.

Councilman Garry Black made the motion to study the issue further in committee. He said there should be safeguards in the deed saying that the building would revert back to the city if it stopped being used as a daycare center.

The council also unanimously approved separate resolutions designating two city thoroughfares as "Midway Historical Boulevard" and "Troy Brown Way."

Fourth Avenue between 1st and 2nd streets will be designated Midway Historical Boulevard to recognize the 60th anniversary of Midway Barbershop, owned by Nicola F. "Nick" Morabito. The shop is located at 4th Avenue and 1st Street.

Sixteenth Street Road from Washington Boulevard to the city limits will be designated Troy Brown Way to honor the New England Patriots receiver who just completed his 15th year in the National Football League. Brown helped Marshall win its first I-AA national championship in 1992 and was drafted by the Patriots the following year. He has been a member of all three of the Patriots' Super Bowl teams.

Brown lives in Huntington and is active in several community organizations.

The streets are not being renamed as a result of the resolutions, Councilman Paul Farrell said.

"This is only an honorary designation," he said.