03/13/2012 Ordinances 9375Ordinanc� No. 9375 was not approved by the City Council at the March 13, 2012
City Council meeting.
ORDINANCE N0.9375
WHEREAS, the City of Grand Island finds it necessary to amend Grand Island
City Code §16-11, its laws regulating open fires, to reflect modern fire safety and health
standards,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
GRAND ISLAND, NEBRASKA:
I. That Grand Island City Code § 16-11 be amended to read as follows:
§16-ii. Open Fires; Permit
(1) For purposes of this section, Open Fire shall mean burning under such conditions that the products of
combustion are emitted directly into the ambient air.
(2) No person shall cause or permit any open fire within the limits of the City.
(3) Exceptions:
(a) Fires set solely for the outdoor cooking of food for human consumption where no nuisance or hazard is
created;
(b) Fires set with the written permission of the Fire Chief of the City of Grand Island or his or her
designated representative and upon receipt of a permit from the Nebraska Department of Environmental
Quality:
(i) for the purpose of training public or industrial fire fighting personnel.
(ii) for essential agricultural operation in the growing of crops where no nuisance or hazard is
created.
(iii) for the purpose of destroying dangerous materials or diseased trees.
(iv) for the purpose of clearing land for roads or other construction activity.
(c) for ceremonial, educational, or recreational purposes by a legally established and recognized non-
profit organization or governmental entity.
(d) Fires set in operation of smokeless flare stacks for the combustion of waste gases, provided they
meet the requirements of the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality.
(e) For the private, residential use of outdoor fireplaces as defined below and with the following
restrictions:
(i) portable fire pits which are designed and commercially sold to confine outdoor wood fires;
(ii) chimineas, constructed of clay or some other fire safe material which are designed and
commercially sold to confne outdoor wood fires:
(iii) fire rings which are designed to enclose an outdoor fire with a metal tube, poured concrete,
stones, or some other fire safe material partially buried in the ground;
(iv) all outdoor fireplaces must be at a minimum fifteen (15) feet distance from any structure,
including fences and sheds and placed on a stable, non-combustible surface such as a concrete
pad;
(v) the fuel area for all outdoor fireplaces shall be no more than three (3) feet in diameter and
completely enclosed by a non-combustible screening material;
(vi) fuel for outdoor fireplaces shall be limited to untreated wood;
(vii) while in operation, all outdoor fireplaces shall be continuously monitored by at least one (1)
person eighteen (18)years of age or older and an operable garden hose connected to a water
supply shall be available for extinguishing flames; and
(viii) outdoor fireplaces shall not be operated when local average wind speed is twenty miles per
hour (20 mph) or greater.
(4) A fee of ten dollars ($10.00) per day shall be paid by any person or organization before receiving a permit for
any of the activities listed in paragraph (3)(b) above.
(5) The Fire Chief of the Grand Island Fire Department may prohibit any and all open burning when he or she
determines atmospheric conditions or local circumstances make such fires hazardous.
Approved as to Form tt
March 12, 2012 n Cit orney
ORDINANCE NO. 9375 (Cont.)
II. Any ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict are hereby repealed.
III. This ordinance shall be in full force and will take effect from and after its passage and
publication pursuant to law.
Enacted: March 13, 2012.
ATTEST:
RaNae Edwards, City Clerk
Jay Vavricek, Mayor
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