grandfather clause question

[newliberty]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
south carolina
I am purchasing an empty church in liberty south carolina. it has been empty for several years. At some point in time it was used to house people because the rooms had bunk beds in them and two of the restrooms have 2 shower stalls.
I and a small group of friends are starting a church there, but the addition in the rear is a project im working on myself. I have boarding homes for mentally & physically handicapped people in Anderson SC. The 3 story addition on the church would be perfect to house people since it seems to have been used for this in the past.
I was told by the building inspector of the town that i could move people into the place while I was bringing the building up to code. the first floor is basically liveable. If I have people in the home, I can bring in some income to help with financing the repairs. after a few days, the inspector returned and said we had to move the guys out. I was told I had to install a sprinkler system before anyone could spend the night in the building. We have been told that due to the change in use laws we have to get the system installed. I'm trying to understand why we do not fall under the grandfather clause so that we can run the home while we raise money for the sprinkler system.

the building inspector tells us that its not their rules, but the state that is requiring this. I have contacted my state representatives recently trying to get help with the grandfather clause.

We are paying $1400 monthly for the mortgage & the utilities vary monthly. I spend close to $2000 a month just to keep the place open for the church services.
We have an estimate of $80,000 to $100,000 to have a sprinkler system installed. We recently contacted a sprinkler company that is trying to give us a good deal. They now say the state is requiring us to put a dry fire system in the attic. We will know in the next few days what the price tag on that will be.

We have no way to raise this kind of money without being able to house guys there to help pay the expenses. We are trying to get a grant to help with the financial aspect, but if that doesn't happen, we will have to give up the church.

My question is this, is there such a thing as the grandfather clause that can help us so we can house people while doing the upgrades. Is there a state law that requires an existing building to have a sprinkler system put in before anyone can sleep in the building. I know there are hotels in the area that were built before sprinkler systems were required and they didn't have to install them.

Im sorry to rattle along, but this is bothering me tremendously and I don't know where to turn. I have been taking in the mentally handicapped for the last 6 years in my boarding homes. I even take in people that have no where to go and no income. I work 6 days a week as an electrician to support myself, my family and my non paying clients. I just need a little help to fight city hall, or the state, or whoever I have to in order to get this building approved

thanks in advance for any help you can give me in this situation.

[justalayman]

this wouldn't fall under a grandfather clause because the non-conforming use was terminated at some point and actually, you are not even sure what it was used for before so your use may be a totally different use than what was there prior.