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The East Peoria City Council voted Tuesday, June 17, 2014, to drop a fire sprinkler mandate from an update to its building codes.

The council adopted much of the 2012 International Residential Code, but the portion mandating costly fire suppression systems in new residential housing was not in the package of code enhancements.

The decision came after more than a year of work by the Peoria Area Association of REALTORS® to make sure any policy adopted by the council did not hurt homeowners.

In addition, the council exempted several existing commercial properties in the city from having to retrofit sprinkler systems.