Faced with a number of challenges, the Redwood City Council unanimously voted to end financial support of a five-year-old fire safety program aimed at encouraging owners of multifamily residences to install sprinkler systems in aging buildings.
“We don’t want to lose sight of why this was instituted in the first place,” Mayor Diane Howard said during Monday’s City Council meeting.
The city’s Fire Safety First Pilot Program was adopted in 2015 as a reaction to a string of apartment fires including two in 2013 that displaced a number of residents after destroying 147 units. One of those structures, known as the Hallmark House, has since been rebuilt and is currently accepting applications, Fire Chief Ray Iverson said.