The Crested Butte Town Council rejected an initiative to extend the exemption for fire sprinkler requirements in new triplexes.

The goal of the initiative was to replace the sprinkler requirement with a requirement for a two-hour firewall between units.

The idea was brought to the council in  January. Some council members asked that the Crested Butte Fire Protection District be consulted on the issue. The CBFPD administration showed up at the February 4 meeting and discouraged the exemption.

“Life and safety are what we do. We are big supporters of sprinklers,” said CBFPD manager Sean Caffrey. “Residential structures are where the biggest loss of life occurs in a fire. Houses are now built very tight and with a lot of synthetics. We support the International Fire Code as written and urge you to keep it.”