By Adam Bass
masslive.com
WORCESTER, Mass. — The Worcester City Council went against the recommendations of its city manager and fire chief by opting out of a state law requiring automatic sprinklers in new or significantly renovated residential buildings with four or more units.
On Tuesday, the public safety committee made a recommendation to lay aside a communication from City Manager Eric D. Batista recommending the adoption of the law.
| MORE: Fire officer’s 4 steps to fire sprinkler advocacy
The council voted 6-4 in favor of the subcommittee’s recommendation, choosing not to opt into the law.
Voting against adopting the law were Mayor Joseph Petty, Councilors-at-Large Kathleen Toomey, Morris Bergman and Donna Colorio, District 2 Councilor Candy Mero-Carlson and District 3 Councilor George Russell.
The councilors voted to lay aside the recommendation because they believed the sprinkler law was redundant due to changes to Worcester’s building codes.
“The codes meet and exceed the standards,” said Toomey, who chairs the Public Safety Committee. “Things have changed here in Worcester, and we now have rules and regulations between the Fire Department and inspectional services that far supersede what this legislation would have.
Voting against the recommendation to kill the adoption of the law were City Council Vice Chair and Councilor-at-Large King, District 1 Councilor Jenny Pacillo, District 4 Councilor Luis Ojeda and District 5 Councilor Etel Haxhiaj.
“The vote leaves many residents without an additional safeguard, particularly those in older four-unit-plus buildings, without the additional layer of protection that sprinklers provide in preventing injury, loss of life, and property damage,” King wrote.
Haxhiaj was the one who put forth the order to opt into the state law in December 2024. Haxhiaj’s district saw two fires take place at the Washington Heights apartment complex near Mill Street in about six months.
The first fire took place in June 2024, which resulted in the displacement of more than 30 people and a total loss of 36 units.
The second fire happened last month, resulting in the displacement of 28 people and a total loss of 24 apartment units, according to reporting from the Telegram and Gazette.
“The law hasn’t changed, the need hasn’t changed,” Haxhiaj said. “All I am asking is for Worcester to take this step to better protect our residents and our firefighters.”
Fire Chief Martin Dyer attended the meeting on Tuesday and told the council that he supports the measure. “As a fire chief I always support installation of sprinklers wherever possible,” he said.
Batista also supported opting into the law in a letter sent to the council in February.
“Automatic fire sprinkler systems have been instrumental in reducing fire fatalities and injuries in Worcester,” Batista wrote to the council.“By containing fires in their early stages, these systems also reduce property damage, which helps prevent tenant displacement—an important factor in maintaining stable housing stock.”
Most residential fires can be quickly contained or extinguished by a single sprinkler head, which puts out about 12 to 15 gallons of water per minute, according to the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services. An uncontrolled fire in the same environment can double in size every 30 seconds, requiring firefighters to use hundreds or thousands of gallons of water to extinguish it, according to the department.
Nevertheless, the council chose not to move forward on updating the law.
King, who is also running for mayor this year, expressed disappointment with the vote on Facebook on Wednesday morning.
“The vote leaves many residents without an additional safeguard. Particularly, those in older 4-unit plus buildings, without the additional layer of protection that sprinklers provide in preventing injury, loss of life, and property damage,” King wrote. “As a community, we must continue to advocate for policies that put safety first and ensure that all Worcester families can feel secure in their homes.”
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