State sprinkler rule stymies 14 businesses
About 14 home-based businesses in Bath aren’t able to open because they haven’t complied with what they’re calling an expensive state mandate to install sprinklers.
Bath City Code Enforcement Officer Scott Davis told The Forecaster that the requirement to install a sprinkler system in homes where businesses operate is “excessive” and “expensive,” estimating that such an installation could cost them around $10,000. He said the requirement is preventing about 14 so-called home occupations in Bath from opening.
The sprinkler requirement is part of the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, The Forecaster reported. It only applies to businesses in municipalities where the population is at least 4,000.
“Throughout Maine there are a lot of home occupations in single-family houses that are unsprinklered, and we don't have a loss history with them,” Davis said. “All the codes officers I know agree with me."
State Rep. Jennifer DeChant, D-Bath, told The Forecaster that the Maine Attorney General’s office is in the final steps of reviewing a policy change to remove the requirement, which would ultimately give the Bath businesses the green light to open.
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