Page 7 - Palm City Spotlight - March '22
P. 7
Palm City Spotlight, Page 7
LocaL Government
‘Please Don’t Cry Wolf’ call. The risk to human life find no evidence of criminal offense or fire. Such occurrences
because of this wasted time engage the police or fire department and needlessly divert public
By Ruth “Ski” is a cause for concern. safety resources, costing time and means of local municipalities.
Pietruszewski, Many culprits can cause Frequent false alarms desensitize communities to the
Martin County Tax an alarm to go off. Stimuli actual incidents of crime or fire, eventually leading to
Collector that trick detectors or ignoring the actual cases. Alarms that are crying wolf affect
It’s good news for public sensors such as cooking – people’s behavior making them feel there’s no need to react
safety that automatic alarms grilling bacon and burning to the alarm, but for the one in ten or in a hundred alarms
and detection systems are toast, welding and grinding, that is genuine, complacency could be fatal.
widely used, so incident and steam from a shower, Educating household members on operating the system,
first responders can take cigarette smoke, dust, checking windows and doors, making sure that pets are out
lifesaving action quickly. aerosols, cleaning chemicals, a malfunction of the system, of the sensors’ zone, and even checking for drafts that can
Alarm systems are designed to low batteries, loose sensors, roaming pets, and simple user cause movement of the houseplants, holiday decorations,
protect our lives and property, error, can all unnecessarily generate a false alarm. fans, etc., are ways of preventing or limiting the incidents.
and when properly installed, used and maintained, are a real asset. False alarms disrupt everyday activities. They’re Many jurisdictions impose costly fines for excessive false
However, when responders are sent out on false alarm calls, it inconvenient, stressful, cause unnecessary expense, and are a alarms to offset the expenditures. The biggest cost is in the
means they don’t get to the genuine incidents as quickly and that’s wholly unproductive activity. A false alarm is a notification of loss of lifesaving resources.
time they can’t get back, hindering a rapid response to a critical an alarm to the police department when responding authorities On Sept. 27, 2005, Martin County Commissioners adopted
an ordinance titled The Martin County False Alarm Reduction
Ordinance 770, which allows imposing a fine against
businesses and homeowners for false alarms. There is no fine
for the first false alarm if the alarm operator has a valid alarm
permit. Alarm permit application forms are available on the
tax collector’s website, and the permit fee is $20.
As an incentive to reduce false alarm calls, alarm operators
who had no false alarm incidents during a permit year will be
rewarded by having the cost of their renewal being reduced to
$10, if their permit is renewed prior to the expiration date.
Alarm systems provide significant protection to our lives
and property, if installed and used properly. False alarms place
a drain on frontline services, increase the risk to road users, and
cause interruption to the business sector and communities. We
should do whatever we can to prevent and reduce them.
Did You Know You Can 'Co-
Own' A Property With Your
Adult Child, And They Can
Still File For The Homestead
Exemption Benefit?
By Jenny Fields, CFA,
Martin County Property
Appraiser
Due to the rising cost of
property ownership, it’s not
uncommon for parents to “co-
own” a property with their
child. While the parents own
another home and receive the
homestead exemption benefit
on their home, the child may
file for homestead exemption
on the “co-owned” property.
You may own more than one home but
you can only claim homestead exemption
Defeating colorectal cancer on one home. That home needs to be
your primary residence. The following
starts with you. illustrates this scenario.
Take the first step today. House No. 1
This house is
owned by John
and Mary Smith.
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. John and Mary live
Yet, through early detection from a colonoscopy, it’s also one of the most preventable. and reside in this
Cleveland Clinic Martin Health is here to provide our community access to the latest treatments and home and filed for
technologies including robotic colorectal surgery. The digestive care you need is right where you need it. their homestead
exemption.
At Cleveland Clinic Martin Health, we believe every life deserves world class care.
Let nothing stand in your way.
House No. 2
This house is
owned by John and
Mary Smith and
their adult daughter
Maggie Smith.
Maggie Smith lives
and resides in this
home and filed
for her homestead
exemption.
HELLO SPRING!
Call 844.630.4968 or visit ccmartinhealth.org/colonoscopy to schedule an appointment.