The above captioned case was scheduled for hearing on July 17, 2001 at l:30 p.m.  At that time, Chairman Farrell and Commissioners Pearson, Richard, Evans, Wahlberg, OConnell and Burlingame were present.  The fire service was represented by, Assistant Deputy State Fire Marshal Cournier of the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office.  A motion was made by Commissioner Evans and seconded by Commissioner Pearson 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 January 28, 2001 inspection report compiled by the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office.  The above report was utilized by the Board, the Applicant and the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office during the July l7, 2001 hearing on this matter.  Accordingly, the Board hereby incorporates the January 28, 2001 inspection report as its initial findings of fact.  Any modification of the Boards findings, such as correction of a deficiency by the Applicant, shall be noted herein.

	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 directs the Applicant to correct deficiency l by providing the cited boilers with approved remote shutoff switches, at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshal, within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

2.	A-E.  The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 23-28.l6-2 in order to allow the Applicant to maintain the existing construction and configuration of the stairways of this facility and for the Applicant to utilize fire escapes as a second means of egress.  The Board further grants a variance in order to allow the Applicant to utilize windows as access to the fire escapes provided the Applicant remove all locks from bedroom doors used as access to the fire escape and to further remove the cited air conditioning unit from the window accessing the fire escape.  The Board further directs the Applicant to provide the third floor apartments with approved push-out windows to access the fire escape, at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office.  Finally, the Board grants a variance in order to allow the Applicant to maintain a 72 headroom at the winder turn at the second level of this facility.

3.	A-B.  The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 23-28.l6-5 in order to allow the Applicant to maintain the existing construction of the cited halls and ceilings of the egress system of this facility.  The Board further grants the Applicant a variance from the above provisions in order to allow the Applicant to provide the existing door jambs of this facility with approved solid core wood doors maintaining an approximate fire rating of twenty (20) minutes.  The above doors shall be further equipped with spring-loaded hinges and installed at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshal within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

4.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 23-28.l6-5(f) in order to allow the Applicant to maintain the existing winding stairways within this facility.  

5.	The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 23-28.l6-6 in order to allow the Applicant to provide the cited egress doors with approved spring-loaded hinges, installed at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshal, within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

6.	A.  The Board hereby grants a variance from the provisions of Section 23-28.l6-6 in order to allow the Applicant to provide the existing doorjambs with the solid core doors described in item 3 above.  The Board hereby directs the Applicant to correct the remainder of deficiency 6A, at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office.
B.  The Board hereby directs the Applicant to correct deficiency 6B, at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office.

7.	During the July l7, 2001 hearing on this matter, the Board was advised that deficiency 7 is Grandfathered, and not being requested by the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office.

8.	As a condition of the variances granted herein, the Board directs the Applicant to provide this facility with approved emergency lighting, installed at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshal, within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

9.	The Board hereby grants the Applicant an optional variance from the provisions of Section 23-28.l6-l3 in order to allow the Applicant to either provide fire extinguishing equipment in accordance with NFPA Standard l0, l988 edition or to provide each of the apartment units of this facility with approved fire extinguisher.  Either option shall be complied within fifteen (l5) days from the date of this Decision.

10.	As a condition of the variances granted herein, the Board directs the Applicant to provide this facility with an approved fire alarm system, installed at the direction and to the satisfaction of the Central Falls Fire Marshals Office within one hundred and twenty (l20) days from the date of this Decision.

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 Applicants 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 Boards 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 Boards 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)]