Irvine Rejects Swimming-Pool Safety Proposal
After two hours of public debate Tuesday night, the City Council voted 3-2 to reject a proposed swimming-pool safety ordinance that would have been the strictest in the county.
“We do have a code, and I do believe it’s successful and enforceable,” said Councilman William A. (Art) Bloomer in voting against the proposed ordinance.
Mayor Sally Anne Sheridan and Councilwoman Paula Werner voted for the ordinance.
“The cost of one human life is too much. . . .” Sheridan said. “All you have to see is one vegetable, and that’s enough to last you a lifetime.”
About 13 people addressed the council on the issue, but only about three were from Irvine. The rest were mostly from consumer groups and government health agencies that support the proposal.
The ordinance, proposed by Robert Storchheim, Irvine’s manager of building, safety and engineering, would have required all new back-yard swimming pools, hot tubs and spas to be enclosed within a separate fence or be protected by alarms or two sets of physical barriers between the home and the water.
Irvine, like most cities and the county of Orange, currently requires that pools and spas be walled off from neighbors and that gates leading to the pool close automatically.
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