Well, that Lurie legislation came up Monday before the SF Board of Supervisors Land Use and Transportation Committee. And that committee voted unanimously to kick the can on the sprinkler requirement five years down the road from 2027 until 2032, as more than 100 homeowners lined up to complain that the fire safety rules would burden them with financial hardship.<\/p>\n
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Image: SFGovTV<\/p>\n
There is also the argument that the onerous sprinkler requirement \u2014 which is for all buildings over 11 stories that don’t have at least two egress stairwells deemed fire-safe for up to two hours \u2014 is having a depressing effect on real estate values for units in the 126 buildings that are impacted, as it looms over the properties’ futures. And cost estimates to install the sprinklers may be off because of the hazardous materials \u2014 like asbestos \u2014 that will be unleashed once you start cutting into walls in these historic highrises.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith a stroke of gavel you have taken money out of these people\u2019s pockets,\u201d San Francisco realtor Dona Crowder comlined during public comment. \u201cTheir values have gone down and they could be underwater. This is today. We can\u2019t sell the units or the buildings today without a very significant effect on the value. That is a fact.\u201d<\/p>\n
The delay approved Monday is not a final decision. The matter still needs to go before the full SF Board of Supervisors. <\/p>\n
The new sprinkler rule was a part of the routine updating of the city\u2019s fire code that happens every three years. And opponents say that the measure was passed without studying the feasibility of its implementation, or the individual financial burden it would create for nearly 10,000 homeowners.<\/p>\n
But delay measure’s co-sponsor, Supervisor Danny Sauter, got his condo constituency the relief they wanted, even if they are still pushing for the entire code change to be repealed. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOne thing I heard loud and clear is that what we are doing today, the changes to the fire code are not enough, that delay is not enough,\u201d Sauter said before the vote. \u201cThis is going to continue to cause a lot of anxiety.\u201d<\/p>\n
The proposed sprinkler rule would apply to around 9,800 units in mostly pre-1975 buildings. The delay legislation not only puts off implementation for five years, but also appoints a committee to study its feasibility. And a blue-ribbon committee is often a great way for City Hall to make sure that nothing ever gets done about something, which may be exactly what the condo owners are hoping for. <\/p>\n