LAURA CAMPER

ANNISTON, Ala. - Colonial Park Apartment residents woke recently to find pink notices at their doors explaining that their grills were illegal and needed to be removed from the premises within five days or they would be disposed of by staff.

It came as a surprise to Michelle Waldrep, who lives in the complex with her family and her parents so she can keep an eye on her dad. Her parents have lived at the complex for 16 or 17 years and two grills are stationed near the door.

"It's crazy," Waldrep said. "A lot of people are going to have something against that 'cause some people don't have any place else to put it."

Be that as it may, the state of Alabama fire code makes it illegal for many apartment dwellers to use a grill, said Anniston Fire Marshal Chief David Randle. The fire code specifies that charcoal grills and other open-flame cooking devices cannot be used on combustible balconies or within 10 feet of combustible construction unless the building, balcony or deck has an automated sprinkler system, he said. The only exceptions are one- and two-family dwellings.

That means most apartment dwellers in Anniston can't use the grills on their balconies, he said. In fact, Randle doesn't know of any that are protected by the sprinkler systems that would allow the use of grills.

"You can have them out in the yard in a common area," Randle said. "But actually on a deck of (an) apartment complex, it is a fire code violation."

It's in the international fire code the city adopted in 2003, but it's also a state fire code, he said, and if there is a fire caused by a grill, the apartment complex can be fined.

"It's up to the apartment manager to make sure this is enforced," Randle said. "There is a liability if you cause a fire with a grill on your deck."

However, it may not be well known even among the managers of apartment buildings.

Louise Adams, property manager at Colonial Park Apartments, which is operated by Birmingham-based Hubbard Properties, only found out about the fire code recently when the property manager from the company's Talladega apartment complex faxed her.

"It was kind of a surprise to us, too," she said. "We didn't know anything about it."

The Talladega manager found out when a new tenant in that complex told her. She called the Talladega fire marshal and learned it was true. Then, she notified the other property managers.

But it's not welcome news to Waldrep, whose first-floor apartment allowed her to take the grill out into the grassy area away from the buildings. Still, she will now have to find somewhere else to store her grills. She understands the hazards, though.

About 10 years ago, her parents were living in another building of the complex. That building was destroyed in a fire when a neighbor fell asleep while a pan was cooking on the stove.

"I think if they take all the grills, they should make a community grill out there," said Waldrep's husband, Terry, motioning to the grassy area between their apartment building and another.

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Information from: The Anniston Star, http://www.annistonstar.com/

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