VENTNOR – The city commissioners are expected to introduce an ordinance Thursday regulating the use of fire pits.

The ordinance was prompted by concerns brought to their attention by a resident about fire pits – the outdoor fireplaces with an open top that burn either wood or gas. Enforcement would be under the jurisdiction of the police.

Commissioner John Piatt said he worked on tailoring the regulations with the help of Fire Chief John Hazlett and Capt. James Culbertson.

“The whole point is we didn’t want to blatantly outlaw fire pits in the city. There’s a lot of responsible people that enjoy them and have very beautiful fire pit arrangements,” Piatt said at the commission workshop meeting Thursday, Feb. 9. “We did want to have some mechanism to control people who are not responsible.”

Piatt, who is the commissioner of public safety, said he sent the particulars to City Solicitor Tim Maguire, who told the commissioners at the meeting that the ordinance has been written.

“It was a nice job by John and the committee and certainly by Tim Maguire,” said Mayor Theresa Kelly.

“I like the way it was written,” Commissioner Michael Advena added.

Piatt said Monday that variables of the issue made crafting the ordinance a difficult task.

“It’s not just a matter of the proximity of it to buildings, but what the fire pit is made of physically and what they’re burning,” he said.

“Someone got a hold of me about a case where some family was burning building materials, using them in the fire pit at night. Things that aren’t meant to be burned for recreation create sparks flying through the air.”

He said the ordinance stipulates that only dried firewood or a Duraflame log be burned in a fire pit within the city limits.

He said first they had to define what a fire pit is. The ordinance stipulates that the burning area on the ground be no greater than 3 feet in diameter and no more than 2 feet high, and it must have a screen or spark arrestor.

The ordinance stipulates that fire pits be used in residential zones only.

The fire pit must be placed on a noncombustible surface such as concrete and must be attended while burning. They can only be used between 9 a.m. and midnight and must be extinguished with a fire extinguisher or a garden hose. The ashes must be disposed of within 48 hours after burning.

Using a fire pit within 15 feet of any structure and within 5 feet of any other combustible surface would be prohibited under the ordinance.

“I think the thing that really distinguishes this from anything in the fire code is it’s a police ordinance, so there’s a monetary fine and the possibility of jail time if there’s somebody who persists,” said Piatt.

The first offense would receive a verbal warning, he said. After that penalties range from a fine of $50 to $1,000 and imprisonment of up to 90 days.

“It might seem pretty excessive, but we’re dealing with something that could result in the loss of life, so we can’t mess around,” Piatt said.

He said during his research with the fire department he learned there were a number of calls for service concerning fire pits. He added that at times firefighters would be called back after they thought they handled the situation, but a fire pit was started again after they had left.

“The objective is, shut it down the first time it is observed to be a harmful and dangerous situation,” Piatt said.

He said resident John Olive brought it to the commission at a meeting.

“I had no idea this was a problem, first of all. It was great that it came forward from the public,” Piatt said. “It’s a great thing when the public is getting in there helping us solve the problem we didn’t know existed.”

The next commission meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16 in Commission Chambers on the second floor of City Hall.