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The Manhattan Board engaged in a spirited debate about whether St. Joseph School should be held to the village’s ordinance on fire suppression sprinklers or whether the village should re-write its code to exempt the school and others that may find themselves in similar positions.
Village Attorney Jeff Taylor explained that village codes cannot have exceptions and changes must be codified. Variances, exemptions, or special use permits simply are not permitted.
Taylor urged the board to have a rational basis for changing the code, as it would go beyond the single instance and impact all buildings used for assembly or educational purposes in the future.
Manhattan Fire Protection District’s Battalion Chief Bruce Boyle attended the meeting and strongly urged the village to retain its current code.
Tom Biscan spoke on behalf of St. Joseph School to request the village rewrite its code to remove the fire suppression sprinkler requirement for places of assembly or, at the very least, limit the size to 1,500 square feet or smaller.
This would allow the school to evade the sprinkler requirement.
“Father McMahon and Deacon Forsythe were unable to attend, but they wanted me to go over any questions you may have, and I think you all have the email from Father McMahon,” Biscan said, addressing the board.
The reason for the request is St. Joseph School and Church intend to repurpose a storage shed on its property to function as a flex space, allowing the school to operate a daycare in addition to the private school and utilize the space for meetings and other purposes.
“The Archdiocese stated that if the village were to require sprinklers, they could not afford this program, this conversion,” Biscan said.
The Diocese found the cost of adding a sprinkler system prohibitive at $126,000, Biscan reported.
However, this estimate differed from the amount the village had estimated after consulting the contractors who installed the sprinkler system in the new public works building.
Public Works Superintendent John Tyk reported the cost to be about $100,000 less at a mere $30,000 for the sprinkler suppression system.
Boyle said that in the event of a fire at this building, they would have to stretch a hose about half a block from the hydrant to the building to fight the fire. He explained that tragedies happen when a door is inadvertently locked or someone willfully sets a fire; however, the sprinkler systems take care of the fire while help is on the way.
“We’re talking, in this case, 50 children. We’re opening ourselves up to eroding away at the base of life safety that you have chosen for this growing community,” Boyle said, pleading with the village board to maintain their code.
At one point, Tom Doyle objected, asking whether the code was for new or existing buildings.
“Tom, the building was designed as a shed,” Boyle said. “A change in use is what triggers the upgrade,” Boyle remarked.
Later, Doyle brought up that the ordinance would prevent people from raising their kids in the Catholic School like they wanted, which would then cause public school overcrowding.
Biscan then mentioned temporary classrooms, but Community Development Director Marc Nelson said the Regional Board of Education, not the village, oversees the codes for those structures.
Trustee Ron Adamski asked about sprinkler alternatives.
Biscan replied that it is a brick building with fire-proof drywall but did not explain anything that could fight the fire or act as an alternative to a sprinkler system.
The building has two exits and would be divided into two rooms. Beemsterboer added it would have a fire alarm.
However, B&F Code Service’s Sean Fallows, who also was present at the meeting, explained that they would not be required to install a fire alarm per the code, so that may not be the case.
Boyle explained that a fire alarm system alone may not help people safely escape a burning building when something goes awry.
“The point is, we changed the ordinance when we realized there was something wrong. With this, my opinion is I don’t see any issue with going to a 1,500 or 1,200 square foot or less,” Beemsterboer pressed on.
Trustee Justin Young took issue with the request.
“We’re talking about money over safety of kids, whether it’s $30,000 or $100,000. I mean, if my kid went to school there, I would want him to be safe,” Young said.
Beemsterboer interrupted and brought up that the school isn’t sprinklered right now, to which Young replied, “Yes, I’m aware.”
“We’re not experts, but we have the fire department here who is, and they’re telling us what needs to be done to get there on time and protect these children, the staff, or anyone else who is using it,” Young said.
“We should be listening,” Young said emphatically, adding they should hold off if it is too expensive.
At that point, Young pulled out the meeting minutes from 2008, when the ordinance was initially approved, and called out that both Biscan and Beemsterboer voted for it. Beemsterboer had acknowledged during the meeting that he felt his past vote was wrong.
Adrieansen requested a straw poll, which reflected strong feelings on the split board.
A tense exchange occurred between Dilling and Adrieansen.
“What are you looking at me for?” Dilling said, with Adrieansen responding that he wanted to know what Dilling thought.
“You don’t want to know my thoughts right now. Anyways, I’m all for safety,” Dilling said, explaining his safety background.
“I don’t want to impose an ordinance that will make every small business run from here,” Dilling said, noting he favored reducing the size but wanted other safety features included.
Trustee Lucinda Neighbors expressed concerns about setting a precedent but said she needed more information and hoped they could present something better.
At the end of the discussion, Adrieansen finally suggested a compromise that seemed amenable to the board and Chief Boyle.
The village could give the church a year from occupancy to connect the water to the sprinkler system, giving them time to budget for the expense. It would not require a change in the ordinance.
In other public safety news, the village board swore in a new full-time police officer, Kanoah Hughes, to the Manhattan Police Department.
They also approved a police department drone, which Chief Ryan Gulli explained could only be used for police purposes. He assured that a flight log would be kept and made available to the public.
Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.
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