From: Paul Clark
To: City Clerk
Cc: Paul Clark
Subject: Council meeting November 28 2023 item 8A
Date: Monday, November 27, 2023 7:27:59 AM
Change in requirements for sprinklers.
I was surprised to hear this was an error, I recall thinking at the time it was a reasonable solution to a problem that this ordinance created.
The city can’t keep track of permits pulled; they hardly can process a permit application with current staffing. There have been several projects that were informed AFTER they pulled permits that sprinklers had to be installed, and the City lost those battles. The move to one permit and 75,000 made sense, it did not put the City or an applicant in the position of calculating values. What if it was a new owner? What is the solution? Just drop this for existing buildings and go with the Uniform Building Code like most cities do. This was created from concerns years ago about downtown mainly. Make things simpler, not more complicated. Also, this has not gotten much attention, I don’t think it was an agenda item on the Public Safety Committee meeting but was discussed. The process should be open and transparent, like called for in the City’s Economic Development Strategy requires, you may want to revisit that adopted plan for the City and reach out to the interested parties.
Paul Clark
DRE 00640014
809 North Main Street
Fort Bragg, CA 95437
707-964-0811
[email protected]