Sprinklers

Re "Mayor proposes limits on water use," Feb. 10 Los Angeles is running out of water, and our mayor has established six phases of water restrictions. The most important restriction that he forgot is stopping the development of new housing. If we do not have sufficient water for the current population, how do we justify more housing and more people? Before the approval of future housing developments, water supply studies should be done to ensure that we have ample supplies for the new residences being created.

Re "Dealing with drought," Feb. 13 I applaud The Times for pointing out the need for serious action to deal with the drought, and for saying that "Angelenos must learn to treat today's drought conditions as the new normal." I'm disappointed that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has apparently focused only on persuading current DWP customers to reduce water consumption. No matter how much current water users cut back, their efforts will be swamped if the number of users continues to grow at an exponential rate.

Water restrictions: An article in the July 23 Section A said the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power bars ratepayers from watering outdoors on days other than Mondays and Thursdays. The DWP only prohibits the use of sprinklers on days other than Mondays and Thursdays. Hand-watering -- using a hose with a nozzle -- is allowed on a daily basis, although not between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

The ferocity of the Universal Studios blaze earlier this month stemmed mostly from the high flammability of the movie lot's sets and not from the flow of water to hoses and other firefighting equipment, according to a review by the Los Angeles County Fire Department and the county Department of Public Works. "The problem was related to the fuel," county Fire Chief P. Michael Freeman said at a news conference Friday. The set facades were built almost entirely of wood and plastic, and therefore were 95% combustible, Freeman said.

The International Code Council, the nation's leading building-code body, has adopted a residential fire sprinkler requirement for all new one- and two-bedroom houses and town houses, beginning in 2009. The council included a grace period of two years to implement the rule. -- Diane Wedner

Re "Offering Solace, Bush Surveys Destruction," Nov. 5: President Bush always has time for California when there's a good photo opportunity or a rich Republican enclave doing a fund-raiser. But where was he when we needed his help during the energy crisis when his Texas buddies were robbing us? Where was he when Gov. Gray Davis asked for money to help take steps that might have mitigated the severity of some of the fires? John Kane Lake Forest Now is the time for taxpayers to ask for reinstatement or expansion of fire safety education programs lost to state budget cuts.

I am a nine-year resident of Glendale. I purchased a very small home in the La Crescenta area with the hope of adding onto the house when I could afford to do so. Now that I can, I am told that I must install fire sprinklers, of all things, in my entire house. Aside from the cost burden--about $4,000, or 7% of the entire budget--I am vehemently opposed to sprinklers in single-family residences as they are a property damage hazard. If an earthquake causes them to discharge, everything I own would be destroyed, and there is no insurance coverage for it (I am an insurance broker and I know this as a fact)

Re "A Modest Renaissance in Reseda," Dec. 1. No, I will not clean the sidewalk in front of my store. I have owned a business on Sherman Way in Reseda for 10 years. The merchants pay an assessment to the city of Los Angeles to have the sidewalks washed once a week. This service was discontinued in August 1993, but the city continues to assess, we continue to pay and receive no service. Where does this money go? Will we ever see it again? Will they ever use this money to clean the sidewalks again?

An early morning fire Monday at Northridge Fashion Center was extinguished by the mall's sprinkler system before it could spread, according to authorities. The fire occurred just after 6 a.m. in the Natural Wonders store, said Brian Humphrey, a L.A. Fire Department spokesman. The flames were out when firefighters arrived; the cause of the fire remained under investigation. Investigators estimated Natural Wonders had lost $1,500 in property.