The above captioned case was scheduled for hearing on March 5, 2002 at l:00 p.m. At that time, Chairman Farrell and Commissioners Filippi, Richard, Evans, Burlingame, Newbrook, and Coutu were present. The fire service was represented by Assistant Deputy State Fire Marshal Robert Jobin of the East Providence Fire Marshal’s Office and Deputy State Fire Marshal Vincent Quinterno of the State Fire Marshal’s Office.  A motion was made by Commissioner Coutu and seconded by Commissioner Richard to grant the Applicant relief as outlined herein.  The motion was unanimous.

FINDING OF FACT

The numbers of the Decision below correspond with those of a March 4, 2001 inspection report compiled by the East Providence Fire Marshal’s Office.  The above report was utilized by the Board, the Applicant and the East Providence Fire Marshal’s Office during the March 5, 2002 hearing on this matter.  Accordingly, the Board hereby incorporates the March 4, 2001 inspection report as its initial findings of fact.

	Any deficiency, understood by the Board, to have been corrected which is not so corrected shall be immediately corrected by the Applicant.  The term approved as used 
herein is defined in Section 23-28.l-4(3) of the Rhode Island General Laws.

CONCLUSIONS AND VARIANCE REQUESTS

1.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 30-l.2 in order to allow the Applicant not to provide an approved separation between the first and second floors of this facility.  In granting this variance, the Board notes that the first floor maintains three (3) exits to the outside and that this building shall be equipped with an approved fire alarm system acceptable to the East Providence Fire Marshal’s Office.  The Board further directs the Applicant to provide approved separation from the corridor of this facility, at the direction and to the satisfaction of the East Providence Fire Marshal.  Finally, the Board directs the Applicant to provide an approved system of domestically supplied sprinkler heads along the second floor egress system and in the stairways leading from the second floor.  The above domestically supplied sprinkler head system shall be installed at the direction and to the satisfaction of the East Providence Fire Marshal.  Finally, the Board hereby grants the Applicant one hundred and twenty (l20) days in order to effect the above corrections.

2.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 10-3.6 in order to allow the Applicant to maintain less than a one (l) hour fire rating of the second floor corridor of this facility. Specifically, the Applicant shall have the option of either providing the existing door jambs of the second floor corridor with approved solid core wood doors equipped with spring-loaded hinges, or to sprinkler both sides of the existing doors of the second floor corridor with an approved system of domestically supplied sprinkler heads.  The Applicant is hereby directed to elect one of the two options and make the appropriate corrections, at the direction and to the satisfaction of the East Providence Fire Marshal, within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

3.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section l0-2.5.l in order to allow the Applicant to maintain the existing corridor construction and dead end on the second floor of this facility.  This variance is granted on the basis of structural hardship and in the absence of an objection by the fire service.

4.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 5-1.3.2.1 in order to allow the Applicant to maintain the existing rating of the stairway between the first and second floors.  In granting this variance, the Board directs the Applicant to provide the above stairway the approved sprinkler coverage as outlined above and to further provide the two (2) doors discharging onto the first floor corridor with approved magnetic hold-open devices installed at the direction and to the satisfaction of the East Providence Fire Marshal, within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

5.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 5-2.2.2.1 in order to allow the Applicant to maintain the existing cited dimension of the stairway within this facility.  With regard to the door swing, an issue presented during the March 5, 2002 hearing, the Board directs the Applicant to remove the cited door at the direction and to the satisfaction of the East Providence Fire Marshal’s Office.

6.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 10-3.5 in order to allow the Applicant not to provide sprinklers in the basement of this facility.  In granting this variance, the Board notes that the Applicant shall provide the second floor occupied level with an approved system of domestically supplied system of sprinkler heads as outlined above.

7.	During the March 5, 2002 hearing on this matter, the Applicant testified that the laboratory on the second floor of this facility shall neither contain nor utilize chemicals.  Accordingly, the Board finds deficiency #7 moot.

8.	During the March 5, 2002 hearing on this matter, the Board was advised that deficiency #8 had been corrected.

This Decision represents a comprehensive, integrated plan of fire safety for the above-captioned facility under the above-cited use or occupancy.  Accordingly, every variance granted is conditioned upon the Applicant’s timely and continued compliance with all of the directives of the Board.  Every variance granted is further conditioned upon the continued use or occupancy of this facility under the above-cited classification reviewed by the Board.

Failure of the Applicant to initially comply with the full Decision of the Board, within the stated time frame, shall void all variances granted herein.  In the event of complete, timely and continued compliance with the full Decision of the Board, the above-cited variances shall be deemed to have vested in the above-captioned facility.  As long as this facility is in continued compliance with the full Decision of the Board, the above-cited variances shall remain with this facility in the absence of any change in use or occupancy mandating review under a separate classification of the Fire Code or a revision of the above-cited classification.  Such changes in use or occupancy of this facility, or failure to continually comply with the Board’s Decision, shall void all variances granted under the above-cited use or occupancy.  If such changes creates a new use or occupancy as outlined in R.I.G.L. 23-28.l-6, all variances granted under the original use or occupancy are void and this facility shall be reviewed under the newly created use or occupancy.

	The Applicant may appeal the Board’s Decision within thirty (30) days of the mailing date of this Decision, by commencing an action against the State Fire Marshal in the Sixth Division of the District Court.  Commencement of such an action does not operate as an automatic stay of this Decision.  [RIGL 42-35-l5(c)]