landlord training Program background

Background

Multifamily housing is an environment in which a tenant can do everything right, and still be at the mercy of their neighbor's unsafe behavior. This includes making sure there are working smoke alarms in every apartment unit. 

To develop strategies to increase awareness of the importance of working smoke alarms, TVF&R secured an $85,000 federal grant. The grant provided funding to conduct:

  • Demographic study and focus groups
  • Awareness campaign
  • Apartment landlord training program

Partners

The study was performed in partnership with Cambell DeLong Resources, Bruce Internationals, Newton Bard, The Maris Agency, @Large Films, and OBIE Media.

Demographic Study

In the first phase of the grant project, TVF&R hired Campbell DeLong Resources (CDR), Inc. of Portland, Oregon. Using census data, CDR completed a Demographic Study of TVF&R's service area. The research highlighted the fact that the service area was 8% Hispanic / Latino at the time of the study. This would later influence the public education messages.

In addition, CDR conducted several focus groups, interviews with English and Spanish-speaking tenants, to determine why tenants are apt to disable their smoke alarms. Focus groups were conducted at several apartment complexes that had experienced fatal fires. A focus group was also held at the Welcoming Center, a Beaverton School District resource for new Spanish-speaking residents.

Key Issues Emerged

  • Landlords and property managers have a pivotal role in emphasizing fire safety in the communities they manage and own.
  • Tenants lack an understanding of why you need a smoke alarm.

This information laid the foundation for the second and third phase of the grant project; an awareness campaign and apartment pilot program.

Awareness Campaign

The second phase of the grant project included an awareness campaign utilizing mass media. The district hired Lloyd Maris Advertising who, using the Campbell DeLong research. They developed bilingual and pictorial key messages. The awareness campaign included transit advertising, radio, and television public service announcements.

Lloyd Maris also designed and developed materials for the apartment complexes.

Campaign Components

The district also hired Campbell Delong Resources, Inc. to evaluate the effectiveness of the awareness campaign. A phone survey of the tenants in the Apartment Pilot Program was conducted in January 2004.

Landlord Grant Project

The third phase of the project included identifying 10 high-risk apartment complexes. The landlords of these complexes were provided resources to assist in educating their tenants about the importance of smoke alarms. These resources included posters for laundry facilities and common areas, smoke alarm pictorial sheets, a tabletop display for new tenant orientation, and refrigerator magnets. Additionally, Lloyd Maris developed three direct mail pieces which were mailed to the tenants in these complexes.

Landlord Resources

Direct Mail Piece

Current Status

The apartment landlord program has evolved over the years, keeping up with advances in communication and other technologies that didn't exist when the research first launched. 

We aim to hold two multifamily housing landlord training programs a year, in partnership with Hillsboro Fire & Rescue, Clackamas Fire District #1, and American Red Cross Cascades Region. The training program has yielded well over a thousand participants the past 20 years, including staff from other fire departments across the country who would like to replicate the program in their area.

Visit our multifamily housing landlord training program page to learn about our next in-person training and on online self-paced training option. 

Contact Us

aptsafety@tvfr.com
(503) 259-1502