Split screen from the Pearland, Texas Fire Department’s video showing HFSC’s fire timeline and the side-by-side burn demonstration..
broadening our reach so as many different stakeholders as possible get the message,” she says. “There is a role for everyone and the more we each do, the safer our communities will be.” Fire sprinkler incentives, or trade-ups as they are sometimes called, aren’t new. But despite being used effectively by the fire service in many jurisdictions, this progress is too often a well-kept secret. For the past year, HFSC has been shining a light on these sprinkler achievements, featuring diverse case studies on its revamped website and in advertising. Of course, improved public safety is paramount, but the case studies also show different ways sprinkler incentives benefit the entire community; for example: a Camas, Washington, developer who saved more than $1 million in infrastructure costs; a Saugatuck, Michigan, developer permitted to build new homes in an environmentally sensitive area, and a Hopkinton, Massachusetts, developer allowed to plan 1,000 homes on former agricultural land with strict open-space controls. Now, a new home fire sprinkler incentive story is making big news in Texas, which has enjoyed a strong housing market for years: the Mirror Lake duplex-home subdivision in the City of Pearland, the fastest-growing city in the Houston region. The Pearland Fire Department negotiated fire sprinkler installation in all 88 occupancies, which are being developed and built by the Houston-based WanBridge Group. “The development was a proposed gated community with 44 duplex-type dwellings having a total of 88 occupancies,” explains Pearland Fire Marshal Jason Shafer, who meets weekly with city departments and developers to explain fire codes at
the plan submittal stage. “Their challenge was that they could not meet the requirement for two separate and remote fire apparatus access roads. Through these discussions a ‘trade-up’ of installing NFPA 13D sprinkler systems in lieu of a second access was offered and agreed upon.” Long-time fire sprinkler advocates, the Pearland Fire Department is a 2019 recipient of an HFSC home fire sprinkler education stipend. With it, the department conducted public side-by-side flashover and sprinkler education during Home Fire Sprinkler Week this year and produced a video to dispel common home fire sprinkler myths. “The video was developed to educate all stakeholders including developers, builders, fire service, insurance agencies, real estate professionals, and most importantly, home buyers,” Fire Marshal Shafer adds. Pearland, Texas, AFSA Member Playing an Important Role Featured in the video is AFSA member William Manning, a volunteer firefighter (serving as Station Captain) and the manager of 1st Texas Fire Protection, Inc. in Houston, which has the contract to install Mirror Lake’s NFPA 13D systems. Manning walks through the installation in the video and provides basic information about how fire sprinklers work to save lives. Having experience with previous fire sprinkler installations in Pearland, Manning has been a key contributor to this incentive success story. “I worked with the Fire Marshal’s Office on plan design and review, and with the City of Pearland Building Department on plan submittals and permitting,” he explains. “And as the project continues, I oversee the installation and perform inspections with the Pearland Fire Marshal’s Office.” The installations are well under way and Manning continues working closely with Fire Marshal Shafer and other City personnel. Sprinkler Age | September/October 2019 43