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ATTY/ORD.410/FIRE SPRINKLER <br />REV: 06-02-15 PT <br />Page 2 of 9 <br />2. 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. <br /> <br />a. Smoke alarms alert occupants to the presence of danger but do not extinguish <br />a fire. Smoke alarms are required in all residential structures regardless if they <br />are single or multi-family occupancy. Smoke alarms became law in California <br />under the 1985 adoption of the State Building Code. <br /> <br />b. Automatic Sprinkler Systems respond quickly to reduce heat, flames, and <br />smoke from a fire giving occupants valuable time to get out safely. Effective <br />July 1, 1989, the State of California required Automatic Sprinkler Systems for <br />new multi-unit residential buildings. Effective January 1, 2011, the State <br />required Automatic Sprinkler Systems for new single-family homes. <br /> <br />c. Currently, state law does not require multi-unit residential buildings permitted <br />before July 1, 1989, to be retrofitted with Automatic Sprinkler Systems, and <br />instead the determination has been left to local jurisdictions to decide what is <br />appropriate for their communities. <br /> <br />3. The risk of fires similar to those on Woodside Road, as well as greater harm due to a <br />fire spreading beyond a single structure, is exacerbated by the City’s local climatic, <br />geological, and topographical conditions as articulated in Resolution Number 15410, <br />adopted on May 18, 2015. <br /> <br />a. As more specifically detailed in Resolution No. 15410, local Redwood City <br />climatic conditions include low precipitation and gusty westerly winds especially <br />during the dry period, which creates potentially hazardous fire conditions. <br /> <br />b. As more specifically detailed in Resolution No. 15410, local Redwood City <br />geological conditions include the City’s location in a seismically-active area <br />adjacent to several major earthquake faults, including the San Andreas Fault. <br />The City also includes many hilly neighborhoods and open spaces in which steep, <br />narrow, and older streets are common. Such steep, narrow and older streets, <br />which are a function of local geological conditions, make firefighting more difficult <br />because they limit and slow emergency vehicle access. In addition, local soil <br />conditions (bay mud) increase the risk of building damage and fires resulting from <br />seismic activity. <br /> <br />c. As more specifically detailed in Resolution No. 15410, local Redwood City <br />topographical conditions include multiple elevation changes resulting in <br />meandering streets and over-crowded thoroughfares creating barriers to <br />firefighting and potentially increasing response times to fires. <br /> <br />d. In Redwood City, there are approximately five hundred and sixty (560) <br />residential buildings with four units or more lacking Automatic Sprinkler System <br />7.4.A. - Page 4