The following are general requirements of the Central Calaveras Fire protection District for new commercial building site infrastructure. These comments are for new commercial buildings only. Plans submitted for approval represent requirements that apply. All of the following comments shall be printed on a sheet attached to the plans submitted for approval.

The minimum number of access roads serving new commercial buildings shall be determined by the size of the building, the planned use for the building (Occupancy) and the fire protection proposed for the building.

Driveways, thruways, entrances and fire access roads shall be 26 feet in width for commercial buildings 2 stories or less in height and 28 feet for commercial building 3 stories or more in height. Vertical clearance shall be 13 feet 6 inches for the width of the road. For the purpose of this section, roadway width shall mean driving surface. Curb and gutter is not included in the roadway width. Emergency access roadways shall be marked with approved signs stating “EMERGENCY FIRE ACCESS ROAD”. All required roadways, access roads and water supplies for fire protection shall be installed and made serviceable prior to and during the time of construction. (See Attached Details)  

Access roadways shall extend to within 150 feet of all portions of the exterior walls of the first story of any building.

There shall be no parking on fire access roadways 34 feet or less in width or in required fire apparatus turnaround areas. Parking will only be allowed in designated parking areas. Parking will be allowed on one side of the road on roadway 34 feet to 40 feet. On roadways over 40 feet parking will be allowed on both sides. When the roadway width restricts parking, “NO PARKING FIRE LANE” signs shall be posted every 200 feet and curbs to be painted red with “NO PARKING FIRE LANE” stenciled on them. (See Attached Details)

Driveway, roadway and emergency access roadway surfaces shall be paved all weather driving surface capable of supporting a 40,000 lb load.

The grade for all roads, streets, private lanes and driveways shall not exceed 16 percent.

No roadway shall have a horizontal outside radius curvature of less than 42 feet or a inside radius curvature of more than 27 feet. (See Attached Details)

Turnarounds are required on driveways and dead end roads as specified. Cul-de-sac radius shall be 42 feet of driving surface. Curb and gutter is not included in the cul-de-sac radius. If a hammerhead/T is used, the top of the (T) shall be a minmum of 60 feet in length. Curb and gutter is not included in the hammerhead length. (See Attached Details)

Dead-end fire apparatus access roads in excess of 150 feet in length shall be provided with an approved turnaround for fire apparatus.

Gate entrances shall be at least two feet wider than the width of the traffic lane serving that gate.
All gates providing access from a road to a driveway or private road shall be located at least 30 feet from the roadway and open to allow a vehicle to stop without obstructing traffic on that road. Gates shall be accessible to the fire district by approved electric key switch; strobe entry, person gate and standard key pad access code.

Bridges designed for major ingress/egress roads serving commercial buildings shall have a minmum load limit of 80,000 pounds and be no narrower than the driving portion of the road serving each end.

On site water supply for firefighting shall be as follows for new commercial buildings. The minimum number of fire hydrants and amount of available water for commercial buildings shall be determined by the size of the building, the planned use for the building (Occupancy) and the fire protection proposed for the building. Fire flow and the number of hydrants for new commercial buildings shall be no less than those amounts specified in Appendix III-A of the 1997 Uniform Fire Code. All proposed water supplies shall come from a reliable source such as fixed underground water
Distribution system or a static water system equaling or exceeding the National Fire Protection Assn (NFPA Standard 1142) “Standard on Water Supplies for Suburban and Rural Fire Fighting”. (A reduction of fire flow is allowed when the building is provided with an approved automatic sprinkler system, but in no case shall the fire flow be less than 1,500 gallons per minute at 20 pounds residual pressure). The fire flow for the proposed building shall be determined by the fire district and indicated on the final approved plans.

Hydrants shall be wet barrel type with two 2 ½ inch discharges and one 4 ½ inch discharge, with individual valves for each discharge. (RICH 960 or equivalent). Two way blue reflective pavement markers shall be placed in the roadway (eight inches from the center line on the hydrant side) at each hydrant location. The area around the hydrant will be kept clear of obstructions including fences, trees and shrubs. The center of the lowest discharge shall be a minimum of 18 inches and a maximum of 24 inches off the ground. The hydrant shall be a maximum of 2 feet from the driving surface. Water supply and hydrants to be provided previous to any building construction. Final acceptance of the water supply system shall be granted only after testing and inspection by fire district. Water supply system testing and inspections will only be conducted with a written letter or verbal approval from the water district that provides service to the project. (See Attached Details)

Hydrants shall be spaced a minimum of 300 feet apart. One hydrant shall be placed within 40 feet of each fire department connection when the building is protected by an automatic fire sprinkler system. Ballards shall be provided to protect appliances from vehicle damage when necessary. 

All new commercial buildings larger than 4,500 square feet shall be protected by an automatic fire sprinkler system per the edition of NFPA Pamphlet 13. Design and construction to be completed by a currently licensed C-16 fire sprinkler designer and contractor. Two sets of plans shall be submitted for review and approval prior to issuance of a building permit. The system and all control valves shall be monitored by a UL listed monitoring station. A letter of agreement with the approved private licensed central monitoring station shall be submitted prior to final inspection of the project. The design and location of the fire department connection and placement of control valves shall be approved Ballards shall be provided to protect appliances from vehicle damage when necessary.  

All new commercial buildings larger than 1,500 square feet but smaller than 4,500 square feet shall be protected by an automatic fire alarm system per the latest edition of NFPA Pamphlet 72. Two sets  of plans shall be submitted for review and approval prior to issuance of a building permit. The system shall be monitored by a UL listed central monitoring station. A letter of agreement with the approved private licensed central monitoring station shall be submitted prior to final inspection of the project. All new commercial buildings regardless of their size on other protection measures shall have an automatic fire alarm system installed when the occupancy classification is A, E, H or I. Said system shall be tested and approved by a recognized listing agency. The electronic fire detection system shall be used only for the detection and warning of fire or life safety systems and no other systems shall be interfaced to it.  

All new commercial buildings regardless of their size or other protection measures shall have an manual fire alarm system installed when the occupancy classification is A, E, H or I.

The final plans shall be approved only when stamped and/or signed by authorized Central Calaveras Fire District personnel.

Final acceptance of the project is subject to inspection and testing from Central Calaveras Fire Protection District.  72 hour notice required previous to inspection and testing.

Attached Details not Drawn to Scale:

Central Calaveras Fire Protection District
19927 Jesus Maria Road
Mokelumne Hill, CA 95245
(209) 754-4330