By LISA LAVIA RYAN – DesMoinesRegister.com

It’s far too early to determine where the city of Johnston will land regarding proposed rules governing sprinkler requirements in residences, Johnston’s fire chief told the City Council last week.

International Residential Code sprinkler requirements announced recently mandate installing residential fire sprinklers in new one- and two-family homes effective Jan. 1, 2011.

Some entities, including the state fire marshal and the Iowa Building Code Commissioner, are recommending that implementation of that law be delayed two years. If that happens, Johnston and other cities will have to determine how their communities will respond to the news, Jim Krohse said.

Krohse is part of an ad-hoc committee of fire chiefs of local communities. The group has been discussing the issue and will continue to update local councils on the sprinkler rules, he said.

“Every one of us is waiting to see where the state goes to determine where we go from here,” Krohse said. “A number of entities think an extension would be appropriate, but it’s too soon to predict where this will go. I imagine it will have a fairly significant statewide impact.”

Currently, the city of Johnston requires that fire sprinklers be installed in any one- or two-family home or townhome larger than 8,000 square feet. Apartment and condominium buildings are exempt from that requirement.

Because Johnston already has sprinkler regulations in place, any impact on residents – no matter when the mandate takes effect – won’t be as large as it is likely to be in cities with no sprinkler laws on the books, Krohse said

“The only real change will be that all residential dwellings, not just those exceeding 8,000 square feet, will have to install sprinklers,” Krohse said.

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