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Committee moves Detroit fire-code update to formal after public hearing on NFPA 2021 alignment
Summary
The committee held a public hearing on an ordinance to update Chapter 18 (Fire Prevention and Protection) to align Detroit's fire code references with the 2021 NFPA editions; staff described it as largely technical, and the committee moved the measure to formal with a recommendation to approve.
A Committee of the Whole public hearing on a wide-ranging update to Detroit’s fire code concluded with the committee voting to send the ordinance to formal session with a recommendation to approve.
The ordinance, introduced by Councilmember Scott Benson and summarized by V. Sarah Foskey of the law department, would amend and renumber Chapter 18 of the Detroit City Code (Fire Prevention and Protection) to update code references from earlier NFPA editions to the 2021 National Fire Protection Association standards. "This is to bring the city's fire code up to date with the 2021 ..." Foskey said, describing the changes as largely technical updates to code references to match current national and state standards.
Damon Robinson, chief of fire plans and exams for the Detroit Fire Department, said the department currently operates under the 2015 edition of the code and supported moving to the 2021 edition. "We are currently operating under the 2015 version of this code," Robinson said, adding the update would align local practice with state and building-code changes.
The ordinance text read in committee included a long list of renumbered and updated sections covering items from fireworks and pyrotechnics to compressed-gas and ethylene-oxide rules and even provisions for resurfacing bowling lanes and bowling pins, which staff said were singled out because some products used in bowling-alleys can be flammable. Granville Nixon of BC Construction said his review found no issues with the proposed ordinance.
During the hearing members of the public asked whether the update addressed newer hazards such as electric-vehicle (EV) battery fires and solar-farm incidents. One caller, Miss Warwick, asked, "Does this have to do with EVs and fires and solar farm fires?" Chief Robinson replied that by adopting the 2021 NFPA references the city is incorporating national standards that address EV and solar-field fire-safety practices, though the ordinance does not spell out every mitigation technique verbatim.
Graham Anderson of the law department urged adoption, calling the measure overdue and noting cooperation between the fire department, building construction review and the law department.
After public comment and departmental presentations, a member moved to send the ordinance to formal session with a recommendation to approve; the chair noted no objections and closed the public hearing. The committee recalled its regular meeting and confirmed the motion to move the ordinance to formal session.
What happens next: The ordinance will appear at a formal session for further consideration and any required readings or votes there.
