Bellevue Council's public safety committee will take another shot at drafting an ordinance regulating recreational fires after officials and residents agreed there was no "burn" in the burn ordinance proposed.

The committee reviewed the issue after receiving complaints from residents about outdoor fires that had become a nuisance due to the quality and quantity of smoke being produced.

Solicitor Tom McDermott told council that the ordinance he drafted was pretty basic, an "Open Fires for Dummies" that incorporated regulations already established by Allegheny County such as burning only clean wood, in an area not close to houses or utilities, without accelerants, and without becoming a nuisance.

Safety Committee chairman David Gillingham Jr. said that the committee recommended that Bellevue residents be required to obtain a permit for recreational fires, although there would be no cost.

There is nothing in the proposal that would penalize residents who burn without a permit, however.

"It doesn't do anything," said Mayor George Doscher. "This is a whole lot of voting for nothing."

McDermott said that the ordinance he drafted did not contain the permit requirement recommended by the safety committee, something resident Carol Wivell said was a definite oversight. Wivell, who has complained of nuisance fires in her neighborhood, said that not only do permits give police and the fire marshal the authority to stop people who do not follow the regulations, but the application process will give officials the opportunity to educate residents about safety issues.

Gillingham said that the matter would be taken back to committee for reconsideration.