Junction City council adopts fire lockbox ordinance to aid first responders

The Junction City Council on Dec. 9 adopted Ordinance No. 1, amending JCMC Chapter 15.10 to require fire department key lock boxes on certain structures. City staff read the ordinance by title during the meeting: “Ordinance number 1, an ordinance amending JCMC chapter 15.10 to require lock box installation,” and the council voted unanimously to adopt it.

The ordinance, as presented, references section 506 of the Oregon Uniform Fire Code and requires key lock boxes for specified occupancies including commercial structures, multifamily residential buildings of more than four units, public and private educational facilities, nursing homes, occupancies with monitored or local fire alarm systems, structures with suppression systems or elevators, healthcare and lodging facilities, and any other occupancy types the Fire Chief deems necessary.

Under the ordinance text read to the council, the Fire Chief or the Fire Chief’s designee will identify the location and type of installed key lock boxes and require entry keys to be stored within them. The ordinance includes standard severability language and becomes effective thirty days after council enactment, according to the reading.

Council discussion did not produce further amendments during the meeting; no public testimony was recorded at the time of the vote. The council approved the ordinance by motion and recorded a unanimous vote; the ordinance will be implemented by the fire district following the effective date.