Mandated Fire Sprinkler Debate Continues
Monday
The argument against mandated fire sprinklers always comes from home builders and others in the construction industry. And the argument always involves forced sprinkler installations will raise the costs too high for every new home built.I've seen another article, from the Ottawa Citizen, where this is the case again. One politician caught in the middle of the argument has easily seen the light:
"She has examined the studies and has found that safety and lives are worth the extra expenses of the systems, which are estimated at one per cent of overall new home costs or between $3,000 and $6,000.
Ms. Deans said with the average price of a new home hovering in the $300,000 range, the returns on the investment, in terms of saved lives and reduced injury and property damage, outweigh the costs."
I could see if fire sprinkler systems were costing new home builders $50,0000 or $60,000 to install that it could be cost prohibitive. But a mere 1% of total building costs is not going to send potential home buyers running away for purchases. It's just not the case.Unfortunately, once again, greed is more important than saving lives and property. Let's hope mandated sprinklers will appeal to everyone's common sense at some point.
