
DATE: Friday, September 5, 1997             TAG: 9709050596

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY TONI GUAGENTI, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   88 lines

MOST OCEANFRONT INNS FULFILL SPRINKLER LAW CITY MAY ASK COURT FOR INJUNCTIONS AGAINST ONLY A FEW

What could have been a gusher turned out to be a trickle for city officials charged with inspecting Oceanfront hotels for fire sprinkler systems.

Most of the 33 hotels that had to comply with a 1990 law requiring motels to have working sprinkler systems have done so, or weren't too far from being in compliance, according to the city's Permits and Inspections Office.

Many were so close and the finishing touches so minor that the city might ask Circuit Court for an injunction to close only one or two hotels, if that, said Cheri Hainer, the Beach building codes administrator.

``We're just thrilled to death we've gotten the compliance we have,'' Hainer said.

The law gave owners of hotels higher than three stories seven years to install the sprinklers, and the legislature granted a six-month extension last spring after Virginia Beach hotel owners lobbied for more time.

Of the 33 original hotels that had to comply with the law, 11 were not in compliance as of Thursday, according to a list compiled by the Permits and Inspections Office.

Hainer said violation notices were issued to most of the 11 as a matter of formality.

If the systems are in working order, she said, and the guest rooms and areas where safety is of utmost concern are covered by sprinklers, the city probably will sign off on the property.

One hotel, the Aloha Motel Apartments at 1500 Pacific Ave., voluntarily shut down Tuesday while a sprinkler installation is coordinated with Virginia Sprinkler Co. Inc.

The only hotel that has not received a permit for work is the Princess Anne Inn at 2501 Atlantic Ave.

The inn's owner, Dawson Sterling, has plans to raze the hotel and build a new one on the same site.

A fire marshal began inspecting hotels Tuesday, a day after the law's deadline.

Under the building code, the city is required to give businesses an additional seven days to comply with the law. The city will reinspect those properties Tuesday.

Hotel owners not in compliance at that time will be issued another notice of violation. The following day, the city attorney's office will file a suit in Circuit Court seeking an injunction to close the properties until sprinklers are installed. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for Sept. 12.

Many of the remaining properties had ``housekeeping'' concerns, Hainer said, which would not warrant an injunction.

The Quality Inn in 2209 Atlantic Ave. is one of those finishing last-minute details.

The hotel applied for a permit Thursday to install sprinklers in the hotel lobby. Rooms had been equipped with sprinklers several years ago when the hotel was renovated.

Another hotel, the new Cavalier at 4201 Atlantic Ave., still needs sprinklers in the basement and an outdoor area that had been enclosed, said manager Dan Batchelor.

Batchelor said this week he hopes to have sprinklers installed soon. MEMO: List of 11 hotels not in compliance/B4 ILLUSTRATION: HOTELS NOT IN COMPLIANCE

Cerca Del Mar, 410 21st St. - All sprinklers installed, waiting

to connect to city water.

Tropicana Hotel, 1719 Atlantic Ave. - All sprinklers installed,

waiting to connect to city water.

Howard Johnson Boardwalk Hotel, 1801 Atlantic Ave. - All

sprinklers installed, taking care of minor problems.

Quality Inn Oceanfront, 2207 Atlantic Ave. - Sprinklers installed

in guest rooms, applied for permit Thursday to install them in the

lobby.

Princess Anne Inn, 2501 Atlantic Ave. - No permit, owner plans to

raze the hotel and build another on the same site.

La Playa, 3201 Atlantic Ave. - All sprinklers installed, waiting