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Windcrest council weighs penalties for unpaid fire inspections, new fire-safety requirements
Summary
Councilors heard Fire Department proposals to add enforcement tools for unpaid inspection fees, a hazardous-structure abatement ordinance and requirements for Knox boxes, padlocks and siren-operated gate sensors. Staff will return with revised ordinance language at the next meeting.
Windcrest City Council on March 3 heard multiple proposals from the Fire Department aimed at strengthening enforcement of inspection fees and preventing damage to commercial properties during emergency entry.
Fire staff said the city currently bills businesses after inspection and has about $5,350 in uncollected fees for 2022–2024 and $5,540 so far for 2025. The department proposed ordinance language that would allow the city to require payment before a business is allowed to operate, to place delinquent fees on business registration, or to pursue abatement remedies. The city attorney cautioned against criminalizing nonpayment and recommended drafting an ordinance that ties compliance (inspection and payment) to the ability to operate or receive permits, with a notice and cure period and collection steps for existing delinquencies.
Councilors discussed alternative enforcement approaches, including adding the inspection fee to the required business-registration payment so the city receives payment up front, and using statutory abatement procedures and notices that lead to administrative closure if a site remains unsafe. Fire staff said the inspection fee tiers are square-footage based: $75 for up to 999 sq ft, $200 for 10,000–49,999 sq ft, $300 for 50,000+ sq ft, and a $90 reinspection fee.
Separately, the council reviewed an expanded abatement ordinance draft to clarify fire marshal authority in cases of dilapidated or hazardous properties, including multiunit structures. Staff said the proposed ordinance would clarify the city's ability to require repairs or demolition and to proceed with abatement where necessary; councilors asked staff to return with any needed cross-references for the board of adjustment and related code sections.
Fire Department staff also described a proposal to require Knox boxes or equivalent secure key vaults, siren-operated gate sensors for secured entrances, Knox padlocks and tamper-resistant caps for standpipe and sprinkler connections at commercial occupancies. Fire staff said a Knox box costs roughly $300–$500 depending on size; siren-operated gate sensors can cost about $1,500, padlocks about $100, and sprinkler/standpipe caps about $150–$175. Staff recommended an implementation period (one council speaker referenced an 18-month compliance window used by a prior city) before the requirement takes effect to allow businesses to comply.
Councilors asked staff to return with ordinance language that: (1) avoids criminalizing a failure to pay, (2) allows the city to withhold permits or business registration for nonpayment, (3) includes a notice-and-cure timeline for existing delinquencies, and (4) proposes an effective date or compliance period for Knox/padlock/sensor requirements. Staff said they will bring the revised language back at the next meeting.
