The Borough of Bergenfield, New Jersey has become one of the few municipalities in Bergen County, if not the State, to require the placarding of all single family dwellings that are constructed utilizing lightweight building materials.
In December, following in the foot steps of the River Edge Fire Department, Chief Robert E. Byrnes, Jr. made a presentation to the mayor and Council on the hazards of Lightweight and pre-engineered wood construction, the Mayor and Council moved quickly to introduce an ordinance. This year, Chief Edward J. Kniesler, II and Deputy Chiefs Robert E. Byrnes, Sr. and James P. Lodato picked up where Chief Byrnes, Jr. had left off at the end of 2009. Councilman and Fire Department Commissioner Thomas A. Lodato was instrumental in getting the ordinance introduced.
Ordinance #10-2427 was passed on February 16th and will require all homes constructed with lightweight materials in the Borough to display a 4” x 4” reflective Maltese cross on the electrical meter pan. The new requirement will also include all homes that were built prior to the enacting of the ordinance.
The Maltese cross consists of the letters “LW” in the center for Lightweight. If the structure has a lightweight roof, the letter “R” will appear in the right side of the cross. Should the structure have both lightweight floor and roof system, then both letters will be present.
In addition to the placarding, all of the affected addresses are in the CAD system of our dispatch center. Anyone requiring any additional information or are interested in obtaining a copy of the ordinance can call the Bergenfield Fire Department at 201.387.4000.