City building code calls for sprinkler system in KFVS building

A Cape Girardeau television station would have to install a costly sprinkler system in its 13-story structure within the next 10 years to meet the city’s building code, fire chief Rick Ennis said Tuesday.

Ennis said the code is warranted because sprinklers save lives and limit fire and smoke damage to buildings.

The City Council adopted the 2015 international building code two years ago, which included a requirement all new and existing high-rise buildings be outfitted with sprinkler systems.

The issue resurfaced at Monday’s City Council meeting after city staff learned the sprinkler requirement and other items contained in appendices to the ordinance accidentally had been left out after a later revision.

Council members approved first reading of a measure that again would include those regulations as originally intended. The measure is scheduled to come up for final approval at the council’s Aug. 7 meeting.

Scott Thomas, vice president and general manager of KFVS12, told the council it could cost $100,000 or more to retrofit the high-rise structure at 310 Broadway with a sprinkler system.

But Ennis said the sprinkler system could be installed in phases between now and 2027, spreading the cost for the company.

Thomas urged the council to look into the issue before adopting the code.

Thomas said Tuesday his biggest concern is the fact the city ordinance would apply retroactively.

Typically, when there is a code or zoning change, “any existing building is grandfathered in,” he said.

“That would be the typical expectation from a business person that is operating in the city,” he said.

If KFVS12 were building a new structure, Thomas said he would have no problem with the city’s sprinkler requirement.

The Hirsch Tower, which houses KFVS12 and a number of tenant businesses, was built in the late 1960s, long before sprinkler systems were being installed in high-rise buildings.

Ennis said the Hirsch Tower is the only high-rise in the city that does not have a sprinkler system.

The code requires sprinklers be installed on all buildings rising more than 75 feet above ground, according to city fire marshal Brian Shaffer.

As a result, any building taller than seven stories would be required to have sprinklers, he said.

Firefighters could not reach the top floors of Hirsch Tower with the current ladder truck, Shaffer said.

“We would be lucky to get to the eighth floor,” he said.

Ennis said that means firefighters would have to climb the remaining floors to reach a fire near the top of the building.

The fire chief said his department is equipped to deal with home, business and apartment fires.

The fire department would be challenged to deal with a large high-rise fire, Ennis said.

“We are not set up for that type of fire,” he said.

Ennis said, “Based on my 35 years in fire service, I have come to realize that fire sprinkler systems are the most efficient and effective way to extinguish a fire because they extinguish a fire within minutes of a fire igniting.”

In the case of Hirsch Tower, KFVS12 officials are concerned a sprinkler system, if activated, would damage electronic equipment that is housed on the top floor.

But Ennis and Shaffer said there are chemical fire-suppression systems that can extinguish a blaze without damaging such equipment.

They said Isle Casino Cape Girardeau has such a system to protect its electronic equipment.

Ennis said he understands the television company’s cost concerns.

“It is a hard pill for a building owner to swallow” when there is a belief his or her building never will experience a fire, he said.

But the fire chief said history shows “the amount of damage from a fire far exceeds the cost of a sprinkler system.”

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

310 Broadway, Cape Girardeau