Historic Businesses In Plainfield Can Apply For Grant To Protect Buildings With Fire Sprinklers

Congratulations Plainfield Fire Chief Jon Stratton, Fire Marshal Mary Kay Ludemann, their Board of Trustees and the Village of Plainfield.

The grant program is designed for existing commercial structures that require the installation of a fire sprinkler system in the historic downtown area. The Village and Fire District will split the cost of the reimbursement grants 50/50.

The primary goal of this program is to enhance the safety of the business environment while lessening the financial burden a business/property owner may incur, but it also encourages the reuse and repurposing of Plainfield’s oldest structures. By incentivizing this safety requirement, the hope is to expedite this change creating an all-around safer business district for all property owners, businesses and patrons.

The program can be in combination with the new tax reform act, which allows a business owner to expend the total cost of a system, which will remove all financial and political obstacles to retrofitting a building as needed.

NIFSAB commends the Mayor of Plainfield, Michael P. Collins and the Village Trustees, along with the Fire District Board President William Barnes and the District Trustees for supporting the initiative and making the program a reality.

The Program:
20% of the total cost of qualified improvements below and maximum grant reimbursement of $20,000 (or maximum $100,000 total project cost of qualified improvements).

The following are the qualified improvements that can be considered reimbursable under this GRANT program:

• Fire sprinkler system equipment/installation.
• Associated fire alarm systems/installation.
• Architect costs directly associated to the fire sprinkler
  system installation (qualified cost not to exceed 10% of the construction costs).