Sec. 34-301. - Compliance required.

No person shall operate a hotel or a rooming house, or shall occupy or let to another for occupancy any hotel unit in any hotel or any rooming unit in any rooming house, except in compliance with the provisions of every section of this chapter except the provisions of section 34-231 and section 34-237.

(Code 1968, § 34-59)

Sec. 34-302. - Operation and occupancy of rooming houses, generally.

(a)

Every rooming unit located within a rooming house shall comply with the requirements for dwelling units as established in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, and rooming houses shall, in addition, be subject to the following special requirements:

(1)

Each rooming house owner or operator within the city shall file, on or before January 1 of each year, a notarized registration statement listing the street address and parcel number of each such rooming house and the number of rooming units therein, together with an annual registration of rooming house fee of $100.00 per rooming house. Such registration fee is in addition to and not in lieu of the license fee requirements of chapter 5 of this Code and is in addition to and not in lieu of the permit fee requirements of this article. Such registration statement and fees shall be filed with the revenue division of the department of finance.

(2)

The department of licenses and inspections and the fire department shall inspect such registered rooming houses at least once per year.

(b)

Standards of operation.

(1)

The floor space requirements for rooming houses shall be a minimum of 70 square feet per rooming unit, except in instances of occupancy by more than one person in which case the minimum floor space requirements shall be 70 square feet per person occupying such room unit.

(2)

Each floor of a rooming house shall be equipped with a smoke detector of the hard wired variety, an emergency lighting system, and at least one fire extinguisher; in addition, at least one smoke detector shall be installed in the basement of the rooming house building.

(3)

Each floor of a rooming house shall have a common hallway, and each individual rooming unit shall contain at least one window; in addition, fire escapes shall be provided to service the third floor of a building where rooming units exist, with unobstructed access to such fire escapes. In no case shall access to any fire escape be located solely within a rooming unit or within or through any other private or normally closed room.

(4)

Partitions used in rooming house construction shall consist of two-by-four wood or steel studs and shall be covered on both sides with one hour fire-rated drywall.

(5)

The use of paneling in buildings dedicated to rooming house use is prohibited unless such paneling or any finish wall covering carries a minimum class C fire rating; in no case shall paneling be permitted in common hallway or stairway areas and the commissioner of licenses and inspection shall be empowered to order the removal of paneling from such common areas.

(6)

Common doorways between adjoining rooming house buildings shall be permitted only with the specific approval of the commissioner of licenses and inspections; any such doorway between rooming house buildings shall be equipped with a fire-rated class B door and permission shall be granted by the commissioner only upon a showing of exceptional need for the same by the owner or operator thereof.

(7)

A common or central kitchen facility in a rooming house may be maintained on an optional basis, but only after securing specific permission to do so from the city's department of licenses and inspections; in no case shall the use of hot plates or similar portable cooking devices be permitted in a rooming unit, or in any other area of a rooming house.

(8)

In addition to and not in lieu of the requirements of section 34-338, the department of licenses and inspections and the fire marshal's office shall inspect or cause to be inspected the electrical system in rooming houses and shall order the upgrading of such electrical system if such upgrading is necessary to meet the demands to be placed upon the electrical system and to assure the safety of rooming house occupants and nearby residents.

(Code 1968, § 34-59.1; Ord. No. 92-053(sub 1), § 21(h), 7-2-92)

Sec. 34-303. - Guest register.

The operator of a hotel or a rooming house shall keep a list of all occupants up to date at all times in a permanently bound volume and such volume shall be available for inspection by the commissioner of licenses and inspections or his authorized representative.

(Code 1968, § 34-60)

Sec. 34-304. - Toilet, etc., facilities.

At least one flush water closet, lavatory basin and bathtub or shower, properly connected to a water and sewer system, approved by the enforcement officer and in good working condition, shall be supplied for each six persons or fraction thereof residing within a hotel and for each four persons or fraction thereof residing within a rooming house, excluding members of the operator's family who shall have their own facilities; provided, that in a hotel or rooming house where rooms are let only to males, flush urinals may be substituted for not more than one-half the required number of water closets. All such facilities shall be so located within the dwelling as to be reasonably accessible from a common hall or passageway to all persons sharing such facilities. Every lavatory basin and bathtub or shower shall be supplied with hot water at all times. No such facilities shall be located in a basement except by written approval of the enforcement officer. All such facilities shall be located within a room which affords privacy and when not provided within a hotel unit or rooming unit, they shall not be more than one story removed from the hotel unit or rooming unit intended to be served by such facilities.

(Code 1968, § 34-61)

Sec. 34-305. - Bedding and towels.

The operator of every hotel or rooming house shall change supplied bed linen and towels therein at least once each week, and prior to the letting of any room to any occupant. The operator shall be responsible for the maintenance of all supplied bedding in a clean and sanitary manner.

(Code 1968, § 34-62)

Sec. 34-306. - Floor space requirements for hotels.

Every room in a hotel occupied for sleeping purposes by one person shall contain at least 70 square feet of floor space, and every such room occupied for sleeping purposes by more than one person shall contain at least 50 square feet of floor space for each occupant thereof.

(Code 1968, § 34-63)

Sec. 34-307. - Means of egress generally.

Every hotel unit and every rooming unit shall have safe, unobstructed means of egress leading to safe and open space at ground level as required by the enforcement officer or the fire marshal.

(Code 1968, § 34-64)

Sec. 34-308. - Separate access required.

There shall be for each dwelling unit and for each rooming unit in a rooming house and for each hotel unit in a hotel a separate access either to a hallway, landing, stairway or street.

(Code 1968, § 34-65)

Sec. 34-309. - Maintenance generally.

The operator of every hotel or rooming house shall be responsible for the sanitary maintenance of all walls, floors and ceilings, and for maintenance of a sanitary condition in every other part of the hotel or rooming house. He shall be further responsible for the sanitary maintenance of the entire premises when the entire structure or building is leased or occupied by the operator.

(Code 1968, § 34-66)

Sec. 34-310. - Dwelling units to comply with established requirements.

Every dwelling unit located within a hotel or a rooming house shall comply with all of the requirements for dwelling units as established in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(Code 1968, § 34-67)

Sec. 34-311. - Preparing or cooking food in hotels—Generally.

No occupant of a hotel shall prepare or cook food in a hotel unless such food is prepared or cooked in a dwelling unit contained therein.

(Code 1968, § 34-68)

Sec. 34-312. - Same—Communal kitchens prohibited.

No communal kitchen shall be contained in any hotel.

(Code 1968, § 34-69)

Sec. 34-313. - Preparing or cooking food in sleeping rooms of rooming houses.

Food shall not be prepared or cooked in any room in a rooming house used for sleeping purposes.

(Code 1968, § 34-70)

Secs. 34-314—34-335. - Reserved.