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9.A. - Page 1 <br /> REPORT <br /> To the Honorable Mayor and City Council <br /> From the City Manager <br /> May 18, 2015 <br /> SUBJECT <br /> Fire Safety First Program Requiring Automatic Fire Sprinkler Systems for Older <br /> Buildings And Providing Voluntary Participants with Low Interest Loan and Rent <br /> Stabilization Program <br /> RECOMMENDATION <br /> 1. Waive First Reading and Adopt an Ordinance Amending Sections 12.18 and 12.15 <br /> of the City Building Code and Section 9.3 of the City Building Code to Require <br /> Automatic Fire Sprinkler Systems in Multi-Unit Residential Buildings of Four Units or <br /> More and To Make Violations of this Requirement a Misdemeanor and; <br /> 2. Adopt Resolution Adopting Fire Safety First Pilot Program and Program Loan <br /> Documents. <br /> BACKGROUND <br /> In the past few years the community of Redwood City experienced an unprecident <br /> amount of apartment fires, one of which resulted in a civilian fatality. These recent fires <br /> had an immense impact on the Fire Department and City resources. Two of the Fires <br /> resulted in the loss of over 147 residential units. The impact on the community of just <br /> these two large fires was far reaching. The other apartment building fires, while smaller <br /> in size, had the same level of impact on the residents as the two larger fires. <br /> The close proximity living associated with apartment style housing creates an increased <br /> risk from multiple ignition sources common within apartment buildings. Fires in these <br /> wood frame buildings can ignite interior contents, and thereby spreading fire from its <br /> origin into adjacent areas and apartments. With human behavior, acts and/or omissions <br /> as to the cause of these fires, early fire suppression by the means of an automatic fire <br /> sprinkler system will reduce the chances of a major conflagration from occurring. <br /> In the opinion of the California State Fire Marshal (CSFM) and the City's Fire Marshal, <br /> the best form of protection against multi-unit residential fires is a combination of smoke <br /> alarms and Automatic Sprinkler Systems. Smoke alarms alert occupants to the <br /> presence of danger but do not extinguish a fire. Smoke alarms are required in all <br /> residential structures regardless if they are single or multi-family occupancy. Smoke <br /> alarms became law in California under the 1985 adoption of the State Building Code. <br /> Automatic Sprinkler Systems respond quickly to reduce heat, flames, and smoke from a <br /> Page 1 of 5 <br />