SharkBait707
Junior Member
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. Last year Governor Brown signed Senate Bill 1069 into law. The law was enacted to help ease the housing crisis in California by making it easier and more affordable for homeowners like myself to build Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) on their property. One of the items SB 1069 changed was that fire sprinklers were not required for ADUs where they aren't required for the primary residence.
I'm in the process of building an ADU on my property. The City approved my permit to build an ADU and the permit included a note stating that fire sprinklers would not be required. In addition to this I received an email from the Building Department where the Fire Department confirmed that fire sprinklers would not be required in my case because the unit meets access requirements and has a fire hydrant close by. After beginning construction, I was notified by the Building Department that the Fire Department was putting a requirement in place that I must install fire sprinklers.
I've been trying to get the city to reverse the decision for months now. I've informed the City Manager's office that the Building Department is violating Government Code Section 65852.2 subdivision (c) which specifically states: Quote
The City Manager forwarded my issue to someone who began looking into the issue but they then stopped replying to my emails or phone calls presumably because they didn't have a good response to my complaint. In 3 months, the City Manager's office has not responded with a reason for this nor have they removed the requirement after several requests. I have sent several messages to the Mayor and City Council who sent a general reply that they would get back to me in 2 weeks but that came and went without a response.
My building is halfway completed but construction has come to a halt because of this. To make matters worse, I live in Santa Rosa where the recent fires destroyed thousands of homes and there is a desperate need for additional housing but the City won't get back to me about my request to remove the requirement which will open up another rental.
I've reached out to Assemblymember Jim Wood's office and his aid has been trying to help with the situation but has stated that they can't make the City react to the situation which leads me to the question, if a City is in violation of the Government Code, is there an agency who can put pressure on the City to resolve the issue?
I'm in the process of building an ADU on my property. The City approved my permit to build an ADU and the permit included a note stating that fire sprinklers would not be required. In addition to this I received an email from the Building Department where the Fire Department confirmed that fire sprinklers would not be required in my case because the unit meets access requirements and has a fire hydrant close by. After beginning construction, I was notified by the Building Department that the Fire Department was putting a requirement in place that I must install fire sprinklers.
I've been trying to get the city to reverse the decision for months now. I've informed the City Manager's office that the Building Department is violating Government Code Section 65852.2 subdivision (c) which specifically states: Quote
“Accessory dwelling units shall not be required to provide fire sprinklers if they are not required for the primary residence.”
The City Manager forwarded my issue to someone who began looking into the issue but they then stopped replying to my emails or phone calls presumably because they didn't have a good response to my complaint. In 3 months, the City Manager's office has not responded with a reason for this nor have they removed the requirement after several requests. I have sent several messages to the Mayor and City Council who sent a general reply that they would get back to me in 2 weeks but that came and went without a response.
My building is halfway completed but construction has come to a halt because of this. To make matters worse, I live in Santa Rosa where the recent fires destroyed thousands of homes and there is a desperate need for additional housing but the City won't get back to me about my request to remove the requirement which will open up another rental.
I've reached out to Assemblymember Jim Wood's office and his aid has been trying to help with the situation but has stated that they can't make the City react to the situation which leads me to the question, if a City is in violation of the Government Code, is there an agency who can put pressure on the City to resolve the issue?
