The City of Springfield may try to do an end run around possible new state rules that could require all new construction to include automatic sprinkler systems.
The Springfield Area Home Builders Association is asking aldermen to consider an ordinance, modeled on one passed in Bloomington earlier this year, that would ensure that sprinkler systems remain an option, not a requirement.
Dean Graven with the Home Builders Association says that the State Fire Marshall is pushing for a new mandate that would force all new construction, including single family homes, to install sprinkler systems.
Graven says this will increase the cost of not just building a home but also maintenance and insurance.
The group is hoping to use the city’s home rule power to prevent what they say would be a costly and unnecessary mandate.
