Germantown committee recommends abandoning nonfunctional senior center sprinkler system

The Public Works and Highway Committee voted unanimously to recommend abandonment of the sprinkler system at the senior center after staff reported the system is shut down and nonfunctional.

Staff explained that the system’s antifreeze was testing at a temperature rating that risks freezing in attic spaces and that the installed system was designed to run on municipal water but has instead been tied to a well rated at approximately 30 gallons per minute, far below the system specification of about 1,500 gallons per minute. Staff said the system—installed when the village’s standards were stricter—was not required under the adopted state (national fire protection) code for a building of this size and occupancy.

Staff presented options: a full removal of heads and abandonment; installing a large tank to meet flow requirements; or connecting the system to municipal water and repiping the building to meet new material requirements. Staff and committee members noted connecting municipal water and repiping would be expensive; one staff member said repiping could require extensive work and larger branch/service lines for new suppression materials. The committee voted to recommend abandonment, asked staff to investigate insurance impacts and to post notice at the senior center that the building is not sprinkler-protected while further decisions and funding are considered.