Freeport City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XIX
Fallout Shelters
§ 210-184 Use of land authorized.
Notwithstanding the provisions of the Building Code of the Village,[1] this chapter or any other ordinance of the Village regulating the use of land or the erection of buildings and structures or the installation of sanitary, electrical, heating or other facilities therein, land may be used and buildings or structures may be erected, altered and used in any use district of the Village, as defined by this chapter, for the purpose of fallout shelters as provided in this article.
§ 210-185 Definitions.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Any building or structure or part thereof designed and used in accordance with this article for protection against atomic radiation resulting from nuclear explosions.
Any fallout shelter built as an accessory to a single-family or two-family dwelling and designed for the protection of the occupants of such dwelling.
Every fallout shelter other than a family shelter.
The floor area of a fallout shelter within the walls of the fallout shelter and available for fallout shelter purposes, such as for sleeping, eating, food preparation, toilets, storage of food, water, bunks and other supplies and material.
§ 210-186 Application for permit; issuance.
A.
Execution; contents. Any person wishing to construct or install a fallout shelter under this article shall file an application therefor with the Building Department of the Village (on forms provided by said Department), which shall be verified by the applicant and shall contain the following information:
(1)
The name and residence address of the applicant.
(2)
The name and residence address of the owner of the premises on which said shelter is proposed to be constructed or erected.
(3)
The number of persons which said shelter is intended to accommodate.
(4)
A survey of the premises.
(5)
The location on the premises, according to such survey, of the proposed shelter.
B.
Accompanying documents. Such application shall be accompanied by a copy of the latest available tax bill covering the premises, two sets of structural drawings and, if the floor of the shelter is lower than the lowest floor elevation of the building to which it is accessory, the existing water table data for the location. The structural drawings shall be certified by a registered architect or professional engineer, under his seal, or shall conform to plans supplied by the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization.
C.
Authority of Superintendent of Building Department. If it appears from such application and accompanying documents that the proposed shelter will conform to this article, a permit shall be issued by the Superintendent of the Building Department for the construction thereof. The Superintendent of the Building Department shall have the same powers and duties with respect to the issuance of a permit hereunder as he has with respect to the issuance of a building permit under the Building Code of the Village,[1] except that there shall be no fee for the issuance of such permit.
§ 210-187 Certificate of occupancy.
No fallout shelter shall be occupied or used until a certificate of occupancy shall have been issued by the Superintendent of the Building Department certifying that it complies with this article.
§ 210-188 Construction standards.
A.
Conformity to rules required. All fallout shelters constructed or installed pursuant hereto shall conform to regulations promulgated from time to time by the Superintendent of Buildings upon the prior written certification of the Civilian Defense Director of the Village that such regulations are substantially in accordance with directives and specifications issued for such shelters by the Office of Civilian Defense. All such regulations shall become effective upon being filed in the Building Department with such certification attached, and a copy thereof shall be forwarded forthwith to the Board of Trustees.
B.
Minimum standards. In the event no such regulations shall be promulgated by the Superintendent of Buildings, all fallout shelters constructed or installed pursuant hereto shall conform to the following regulations:
(1)
Every such fallout shelter shall be constructed of such materials and in such manner as to provide an attenuation factor of 100 or more; that is, the ratio of the amount of atomic radiation resulting from nuclear explosions that would be received by a radiation detector within such shelter, compared to the amount it would receive if it were unprotected, shall be a maximum of 1:100 as determined by the Superintendent of the Building Department, based on data supplied by the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization.
(2)
Family fallout shelters for 10 persons or less shall have a minimum of 10 square feet of net available area and 40 cubic feet of net available volume for each person.
(3)
Family fallout shelters for more than 10 persons shall require a minimum of 10 square feet of net available area and 55 cubic feet of net available volume for each person and a minimum height of five feet six inches for 50% of the net available area.
(4)
Group fallout shelters for 15 persons or less shall have a minimum of 12 square feet of net available area and 65 cubic feet of net available volume for each person and a minimum height of six feet for 50% of the net available area.
(5)
Group fallout shelters for 16 persons or more shall have 180 square feet of net available area, plus not less than 10 square feet of net available area for each person over 15 persons, and 65 cubic feet of net available volume for each person, with a minimum height of six feet for 50% of the fallout shelter net available area.
(6)
No such shelter shall contain any windows.
(7)
The entrance to every such shelter shall have not less than one right-angle turn constructed so as to prevent the entrance of radiation in a straight line.
(8)
Every shelter shall be provided with facilities for sanitary waste disposal. In family shelters such facilities may be provided by a water closet, either flush or chemical type, or by disposable waste receptacle. In group shelters there shall be one toilet for each 50 persons, with a minimum of two toilets.
§ 210-189 Ventilation requirements.
Every fallout shelter detached from the main building on the premises and having an entrance which is not through such main building shall be supplied with ventilation pursuant to this section:
A.
Rate of air intake generally. All such shelters shall provide for a fresh-air intake of three cubic feet per minute for each intended occupant.
B.
Family shelters. Family shelters may provide ventilation by means of hand-operated blowers with a hooded intake and hooded exhaust sufficient to exclude fallout particles.
C.
Group shelters. Group shelters must provide power-driven ventilation systems with filters sufficient to exclude fallout particles.
§ 210-190 Electrical requirements.
Every group shelter shall be provided with electric current sufficient to operate all required facilities which may be operated by power and to furnish adequate light, with an emergency auxiliary power source.
§ 210-191 Location and waterproofing requirements.
No fallout shelter shall be constructed beneath any building and no shelter shall be constructed outside of any building any part of which is below the highest level of the groundwater table for such location, as determined from the records of the Nassau County Department of Public Works, unless the plans for waterproofing such fallout shelter have been approved by the Superintendent of Buildings.
§ 210-192 Compliance with setback regulations.
No fallout shelter shall be constructed beneath any building accessory to the main building on the same plot and no such shelter shall be constructed outside any building any part of which is above the grade of the immediately surrounding land unless it shall comply with the setback regulations of this chapter for the use district in which the premises are located.
§ 210-193 Additional regulations.
No fallout shelter shall be constructed outside of any building except in conformity with the following regulations in addition to the regulations relating to such shelter hereinbefore provided:
A.
Restricted to rear yard. No such shelter, any part of which is above the grade of the immediately surrounding land, shall be constructed or maintained except in a rear yard.
B.
Effect of setback regulations. Each such shelter shall comply with the side and rear yard setback regulations of this chapter for the use district designated by said ordinance in which the premises are located.
C.
Use restricted. No such shelter shall be used for any purpose except during a period when there is actual or anticipated and imminent danger from atomic radiation or during a drill or practice exercise authorized or conducted by the Nassau County Office of Civil Defense, except that a family shelter may be used at other times for occasional recreational purposes.
D.
Purpose to be accessory to main building. No such shelter shall be constructed or used except as an accessory to a main building on the same plot.
§ 210-194 Granting of variances.
The Village Board of Zoning Appeals may permit the construction on any premises of a fallout shelter not conforming to the location or setback requirements of this article or of this chapter if it shall find that compliance with such requirements shall cause practical difficulties in the construction of an adequate shelter upon such premises and, in granting such permission, may impose such conditions for the protection of persons and property affected by the proposed construction as it may deem reasonable and in the public interest. Such permit shall be granted after application and hearing in the manner provided by the Village Law and this chapter for granting by said Board of variances from the regulations of said ordinance.