The Fire Marshal’s Office found several fire safety violations upon inspecting a local apartment complex Nov. 15 at the request of Newcastle’s code enforcement officer.
The report, by Mark Stevens, lists 12 violations at Newcastle Center, a building on Academy Hill with 13 apartments and two commercial units.
Newcastle Center owner Paul Sidelinger said Stevens’ report contains “a lot of inaccurate information,” but said he is already taking steps to remedy legitimate safety issues.
He said he plans to install an automatic sprinkler system, which would address almost all of the violations.
“I want it to be safe, I want it to be correct, I want my insurance premiums to be low,” Sidelinger said.
According to Stevens’ report, the building does not have a fire alarm system, which violates the state-adopted National Fire Protection Association Life Safety Code.
Sidelinger said he does not know whether Maine actually requires the building to have a fire alarm system.
The building does not have any carbon monoxide detectors and, while it does have smoke detectors, some did not work and others were missing or did not meet standards, failing to comply with Maine law. Maine law requires carbon monoxide detectors “in the immediate vicinity of all sleeping areas,” according to the report.
Sidelinger said he would install carbon monoxide detectors if necessary, but he said they are “not required by law.” He said the missing smoke detectors were removed by tenants, and he would not know they were missing unless the tenants told him.
The report lists several violations relative to building exits.
The second floor of the building, which contains seven apartments, only has one exit, according to the report; Maine law requires at least two.
The Life Safety Code requires a “secondary means of escape,” such as a window, for all apartments. Three apartments did not meet this requirement. A bedroom in one apartment did not have any windows; another had a window that does not open wide enough to permit escape; the third was missing a handle.
Sidelinger said the “bedroom” is not actually a bedroom, just a room with a futon where a guest of the tenant stayed for about a week. He said he installed a handle to address the third window issue.
The doors and windows of three apartments that open onto an outside balcony and stairs do not have a fire resistance rating of at least 45 minutes, according to the report. The Life Safety Code requires the 45-minute rating because, in the event of a fire, the people who live in the apartments would have to pass those doors and windows in order to get to the stairs.
An automatic sprinkler system like the one Sidelinger plans to install would address most of the exit issues without any further action on his part, according to the report.
The stairs violate the Life Safety Code, as they do not have adequate handrails or “guards” between the handrails and the stairs.
Sidelinger said he was in the process of installing the appropriate handrails.
Areas in the building where the Life Safety Code requires fire-resistive construction do not meet standards, according to the report.
The code defines the area around the boiler room and “workshop area” and the common laundry area as “hazardous areas” and requires fire resistive “separation” to completely enclose both areas.
The boiler room complies with the code, except for an issue with the door. The common laundry area, however, does not have any fire resistive construction, according to the report.
Sidelinger said he would address the issue with the door.
The code requires similar construction for ceiling and walls between the commercial space downstairs and the rest of the building. The ceiling does not comply with the code, but the sprinkler system would resolve that issue.
Finally, the build-up of storage in a first-floor hallway that serves as the only exit for the boiler room/workshop area and the restroom for one of the commercial areas also violates the code. The report requires the storage to be removed immediately.
Sidelinger said he would remove the items, which consist of a broom, a mop, a rug, four tires and a wheelbarrow.
The report also requires Sidelinger to submit a plan to rectify the violations within 10 days of receiving the report.
The town of Newcastle, meanwhile, is looking into a possible zoning violation or violations regarding the same property. The Newcastle Board of Selectmen met privately with town attorney Peter Drum and Code Enforcement Officer Stan Waltz Nov. 26 to discuss the matter.
“The selectmen’s first concern is the life safety code violations,” Drum said in an e-mail after the meeting. “Any zoning violations will be dealt with in due course, but the safety of the tenants is paramount at this time.”
