Saratoga News

Photograph by Robert Scheer

Carpenters work on a class-A roof in a new subdivision on Kosich Place in Saratoga. Soon, class-A roofs may be required on all new houses in Saratoga.

Fire concerns prompt class-A roof campaign

By Sarah Lombardo

A new city ordinance could soon hold new roofs in the valley areas of Saratoga to the same standard as roofs on homes on the hillsides. At the recommendation of the Saratoga Public Safety Commission and fire department officials at a joint meeting Feb. 10, the City Council directed the staff to begin drafting an ordinance requiring citywide use of class-A roofing, the most fire-resistant available, on new housing and major replacement roofing projects.

Currently, new homes located in the hills all the way down to Los Gatos-Saratoga and Saratoga-Sunnyvale roads must be built using class-A roofing materials. The rest of Saratoga, or about two-thirds of the city, is only subject to class-C roofing standards, the lowest fire-protection rating.

Getting a class-A ordinance on the books had been one of the commission's priorities for 1998--one commissioners said they thought would be a little more difficult. Some commissioners and fire department officials had said they expected a push for tougher roofing standards to meet with more resistance from the council. The higher costs often associated with class-A roofing, they said, sometimes stand in the way of cities passing such standards.

Instead, councilmembers agreed to get an ordinance in the works right away.

"I think there was a recognition on the part of the council that this was an important decision for the long-term safety of the city," commission chairman Hugh Hexamer said.

Before any ordinance can be adopted, however, a draft version must come before the council in public hearings during the next few months for comments from residents and possible revision.

Saratoga Mayor Don Wolfe said that in light of last year's Los Gatos Cats fire, in which several homes were lost after fire spread from rooftop to rooftop, tougher roofing standards just make sense. "It seems to me that there are some issues whose times have come," he said.

Wolfe also pointed out the decrease in class-A roofing costs in recent years.

Doug Jonathan, president of American Building and Roofing, located in Saratoga, said class-A roofing can actually be some of the least expensive roofing on the market. Composition shingles, or fiberglass shingles, meet class-A fire resistance standards, but are "the least expensive roofing that you can get," he said.

Materials that also meet class-A standards include tile, concrete and treated wood, when applied with a solid plywood underlayer.

But a reduction in cost does not guarantee that an ordinance will pass.

In 1996, the Cupertino City Council sought to toughen its roofing standards throughout the city. At that time, Cupertino's roofing standards were similar to Saratoga's; homes in the hills required class-A roofing and homes on the valley floor only needed class-C roofing. After a number of public meetings and reports by city staff members, the Cupertino City Council decided that upgrading its roofing standards wasn't worth the cost to homeowners.

At issue was a report by Cupertino city staffers which stated that class-A roofing could increase the weight of a roof on a house and lead to structural problems and necessitate re-engineering of the home.

The council opted instead for an ordinance requiring class-B roofing throughout the city.

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