Board votes to decommission senior center sprinkler system after fire‑flow concerns

The Village Board voted to decommission the senior center’s existing wet sprinkler system after staff and the fire chief concluded the system is no longer performing as intended.

Fire Chief Delaine told trustees the sprinkler system is supplied by a private well tested at about 30 gallons per minute, while a properly functioning sprinkler system for the building would require roughly 600 gallons per minute and two hours of supply for full protection. The chief also said the glycol antifreeze currently in the system is only rated to −1°C and may have allowed pipe damage in recent freezing conditions. For detection and occupant warning, the building already has alarms, horns and strobes that the chief said exceed code requirements for the facility’s occupancy load.

Trustees discussed whether the system should be removed or simply decommissioned; the motion was revised on the floor to decommission (making the system inoperable and removing visible sprinkler heads to avoid giving occupants a false sense of protection), with the public works department covering the work. The board approved the decommissioning motion.