Brookhaven Glen residents press borough over unresolved fire-safety violations, withdrawn citations

Paul Pedrick, a Brookhaven Glen resident, told the May 2025 Brookhaven Borough Council meeting that many cited safety and maintenance problems at the seven-building condominium complex remain despite earlier inspections and withdrawn citations.

The issue centers on fire-safety systems, certificates of occupancy and enforcement actions the borough initiated earlier this year. ‘‘Who did the inspection to confirm the violations were remedied? What was the date of the inspection? What date did Mr. Guthrie go to the district court to remove the filings?’’ Pedrick asked, noting six of the seven buildings still show what he called ‘‘unsafe conditions’’ under the 2018 International Fire Code provision he cited (2018 IFC 703.2).

The matter drew sustained public comment from multiple unit owners, who said they have not received clear follow-up from borough staff after an inspection in March and that some units remain unsold and unfinished. Pedrick said 26 units across several buildings remain unsold and suggested, by his calculation, that the borough could have withheld up to about $7.8 million in buyer-held funds if different enforcement or escrow holds had been used.

Mister Wills, the borough solicitor, explained limits on the funds the borough had held in escrow and that those monies were tied specifically to site improvements required by the developer agreement. ‘‘That money was strictly for what we call site improvements,’’ he said, and said the escrow release followed terms in the developer agreement executed when the land development was approved.

Mister Catania, a borough staff member, described the narrower technical issue on annual testing and tags for fire alarms and sprinklers: "When the fire alarm and sprinkler systems were installed, the installer supplied certification that they were installed in accordance with the requirements and they were tested properly. They're still required of annual inspections… those were not done," he said, adding that some post-install service work may have been performed.

Residents pressed for clarity about who ultimately bears responsibility for annual maintenance—whether the developer, a management company or the condominium association—and about why citations were withdrawn without notice to unit owners. Pedrick said he received a copy of the list of violations from Mr. Guthrie and was told fines would be $1,000 per day starting March 6; he later learned the filings were withdrawn at the municipal district court because the building inspector determined the violations had been remediated.

Council members…