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Council hears urgent fire‑safety concerns; monitored alarms, escape plans and propane detectors recommended
Summary
Fire chief and council members stressed life‑safety gaps in high‑occupancy short‑term rentals. The committee asked staff to include monitored smoke detection for larger units, posted escape plans inside units, and to study sprinkler or other retrofits for future construction.
Fire and life‑safety concerns were a recurring theme in the committee discussion. Chris Blankenship, the town’s fire chief, reminded members that many existing rental homes were built to residential codes and that retrofitting residential structures for commercial‑grade sprinklers would be a heavy lift.
"These houses were all built on single residential fire code, which does not mandate [sprinklers]," the chief said, adding that monitored automatic smoke detection tied to an alarm company, manual pull stations and posted escape plans would materially improve safety in many large units.
Councilmembers and residents urged additional measures. Several speakers recommended that a posted fire escape plan be required in every unit (similar to hotels), that alarms be interconnected and automatically notify emergency services, and that propane and carbon‑monoxide detectors be required and maintained. The chair recounted her recent experience with a house fire to stress the narrow window for escape and urged rapid action on alarm interconnection and inspection protocols.
What staff will consider
- Monitored automatic smoke detection and a manual alarm for larger homes (already proposed) and clear escape maps posted inside units. - Automatic shutoff timers for exterior gas grills (e.g., 60‑minute shutoff) to reduce grill‑related incidents. - Carbon monoxide and propane detection requirements in addition to smoke alarms. - Sprinkler requirements were discussed for new construction, but mandatory sprinklers for existing residential structures were acknowledged to be technically and financially difficult and were deferred for further study as part of LMO or building‑code alignment work.
The committee asked staff to include these life‑safety measures in the draft ordinance or to identify how such measures could be phased in, particularly for larger or high‑occupancy properties.
