Dispute Over Inapplicable Code Resolved Quickly
Developers who want to build apartment communities are used to neighborhood opposition. But the opponents of a community being proposed by Princeton Properties, Lowell, MA, used a strategy that the company's CEO, Andrew Chaban, had never seen before.
“They wanted to derail the project, so they went to the planning board to argue that our project violated a regulation concerning site access that appeared in the NFPA 5000 code — even though that code isn’t part of the Massachusetts state code,” said Chaban.
Chaban immediately called the experts at NAHB's Construction, Codes and Standards.
“[Staff member] Jeff Inks thoroughly researched the issue, and found that the planning board didn’t have the right to impose that regulation,” he said.
Because NAHB was able to respond quickly on Princeton’s behalf, said Chaban, “we were able to save a lot of time in resolving the issue, and that saved us money. That kind of service means a lot to members.”