Town officials made moves last week to deal with problems in the Office of Inspections that had been outlined in a state report.
A letter issued by the state on Nov. 6 made recommendations for follow-up to an August state report that said that the town was seriously behind in its fire code inspections. The Nov. 6 letter, written by Sylvester C. Swanson of the New Jersey Division of Fire Safety, said regular monitoring of the town’s compliance with the Uniform Fire Code had found problems in the inspection process, in the Office of Inspection’s finances, and in other areas.
The town’s Office of Inspection conducts fire, plumbing, electrical and some other construction inspections. The Secaucus Fire Department does not do fire inspections because the department is all-volunteer.
The state report that was issued in August claimed that the Office of Inspection is under-staffed, noted that required inspections are behind schedule, and said that the office is taking in more money from code fees than it is spending on enforcing those codes, which is a violation of state law.
Hazards
The report and the November follow-up letter said that the Office of Inspections is behind in inspections in life hazard areas, non-life hazard areas and smoke detector inspections.
Life hazard areas are defined under the 1984 New Jersey Uniform Fire Code as places where a fire could cause significant loss of life, such as schools, nursing homes, shopping malls, movie theaters, or buildings that are fire-prone because combustible material is stored or used on the premises. These buildings must be inspected at least once a year by a certified fire official, and records of those inspections must be kept on file.
Former Fire Official George Heflich said the number of these places has been increasing over the 15 years both because of new classifications issued by the state as well as because of development in the Secaucus area. The number of life hazard categories alone has grown by 50 over the past four years. These include the high rise component of Harmon Cove Towers, gas stations, restaurants, and most recently, warehouses.
“Non-life uses would be the mom and pop store, jewelry stores and other small places,” Heflich said. “There are a lot of things included in the inspection. For instance, any place that has a maximum of 50 people or more has to have two fire exits. Under 50, you need one.”
Inspections would include checking lighting systems, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors and exits, and whether or not fire drills have been done on a regular basis. The state codes also call for reinspections in dealing with certain situations, such as checking welding on certain projects. The Mall at Mill Creek, for instance, requires twice-a-year inspections of some sections, while common areas and halls need to be checked every three months, Heflich said. The mall also has a smoke system that requires semi-annual inspections, not just once a year.
The August report said that fire inspections had not been done on numerous prominent buildings in Secaucus, from the Ideal Clam Bar on Front Street to the multi-million dollar corporate Hartz Mountain Headquarters on Plaza Drive. Churches, trucking terminals, gasoline storage facilities, restaurants and even day care centers were not inspected, according to the report.
Town administrator Anthony Iacono said last week that the town was already making moves to address the problems.
“We already intended to bring another part time inspector,” he said. “We also intend to hire a full time director of inspections.”
Iacono said the inspection process was actually tightened in 1999 when the Town Council established a new department under which all inspections would be done, helping the town to better monitor various aspects of inspections including plumbing and electrical inspections.
Iacono noted that some of the problems came from the state changing the criteria for inspections last year, adding an additional level of properties that need to be inspected.
“Any residential unit that has more than four units must have the common areas inspected,” Iacono said.
Short of personnel
In making recommendations for meeting the code, the November letter said the town should hire the equivalent of four full time inspectors, although this requirement can be met by use of an increased part time staff. While the town of Secaucus has used all part time people, the state recommended at least one full time employee, preferably the fire official.
“We note that the municipality recently decided to have a part time office,” Swanson said in his letter. “Perhaps local officials were not aware of the true responsibilities of the agency. In an event, we ask that this decision be reconsidered.”
Heflich, who retired in 1998 when his position was made part-time, said the job is too much for only part time people.
“That job cannot be done by part time employees,” said Heflich. “When I was working, I wasn’t supposed to be out in the field. I asked for the town to add a full time inspector.”
Heflich said inspections take time that part time staff may not be able to devote to them. Inspections are detailed in a monthly computer printout from the state. This includes a vast amount of paperwork, and often involves more than one visit to the site.
“Harmon Cove’s high rises take two days to do,” Heflich said. “You have to walk each floor and check each exit. You have to make sure that all the doors close properly. It is a long, drawn out process.”
Peggy Barkala, the town’s finance officer, said the state review said the town should be using four to five full time inspectors. This is based upon a formula used by the Department Community Affairs. But the state has agreed to allow the town to operate with one full time director of inspections and three part time inspectors. Paperwork has also been a problem. Check-off sheets, according to the state report, did not meet requirements of the code. Heflich said the state requires a significant amount of paperwork, something else that puts a burden on a part time staff.
The state requires that each town provide a file of reports for each life hazard area, even if no violations are found. This file must include details about the structures such as the number of stories, the materials of which a building might be constructed, and whether or not it has a sprinkler system. Secaucus inspectors, according to the state’s report, have also failed to use the proper forms. Barkala, however, said the state has since provided the town with these forms and this will not be a problem in the future.
The letter also recommended changes to local ordinances to meet state fire code regulations. This includes making sure that certain buildings constructed before 1979 have had sprinkler systems installed. Lack of staff, according to town officials, has kept Secaucus from performing this duty.
The Town Council introduced an ordinance at its Nov. 28 meeting that would establish the full-time position of director of inspections at a salary between $60,000 to $75,000. This would provide someone to oversee inspections and would use up the extra money generated by inspection fees.
“Hiring a director should alleviate some of the problems we’ve had,” Iacono said last week.
Ironically, this reverses the 1998 move that forced Heflich to retire, when the Town Council cut his position from full to part time and reduced his salary from $54,000 to $10,700 a year.
Problems with finances
The state report and the letter also said that the town has made too much money from its inspection fees, issuing a warning that unless the town addresses the matter, the state will force the town to reduce the fees.
“Code fees cannot be used as a hidden tax,” Swanson said in his letter. “All funds generated under the Uniform Fire Safety Act [are for fire inspection] purposes.”
“According to state law,” Iacono explained, “the town cannot make money with its fees. The most we can do is break even. This means we can collect as much in fees at it takes to run the department.”
Heflich said the town has put the money back in surplus, when it should have been used for training and classes for its inspectors. Iacono said hiring a new director would alleviate this problem.
The state said the fire official’s office must independently account for funds from inspections, and that the fees received must be used only for expenses accrued by that office.
Barkala said the inspection office is currently “not revenue neutral,” meaning that the department makes more money than it spends. Revenues for the year 1999 showed an excess of $55,000 to $60,000.
“Although our fees are still [among] the lowest in the state, unless we expend this money for purpose of enforcing the Uniform Fire Code, I’m sure we will be forced to reduce our fees even further,” she said, noting that many of the problems facing the fire inspectors will also be a problem in the construction code office.