Paul Pedrick, vice president of the Brookhaven Glen Association, told Brookhaven Borough Council on March 3 that inspections of a new multi‑building development found multiple safety and security problems he called “serious” and said residents — many of them older adults — were at risk.

Pedrick said the buildings, a cluster of seven similar structures opened about two years ago, showed what he described as missing fireproof caulking, taped‑over ceiling penetrations, masking tape over overhead lights, electrical boxes without covers, expired sprinkler testing tags, missing wrenches in sprinkler valve boxes, fire extinguishers without tags, and storage of construction materials in common‑area closets. He also said several building access doors do not latch, allowing easy entry.

The concerns, Pedrick said, prompted a walk‑through with borough staff and the fire marshal and led to questions about whether the developer had ever received a permanent certificate of occupancy. “My name is Paul Pedrick … I’m the vice president of the Brookhaven Glen Association,” Pedrick said. “There was no fireproof caulking.”

Why it matters

Council members and borough staff said the items raised are enforcement matters under state code and the borough’s authority and that they can result in citations or withholding permanent certificate of occupancy (C of O) approvals. Borough officials told residents the process for formal dedication or acceptance of the project would be advertised and that the borough secretary could begin direct communications with the homeowners’ association leadership.

“I can tell you, number one, it would be advertised on the agenda, here in Borough Hall, [and] advertised on the borough website,” Borough Secretary Jay Wilwert said, describing how residents would be notified if a dedication or a formal council action were scheduled.

What the council and staff said they will do

Council members and staff described a mix of immediate enforcement and longer‑term steps. The fire inspector who spoke at the meeting said he had documented multiple inspections and said the paperwork shows the issues have been noted repeatedly. He told council, “I have every inspection paper and every time that I was there documented and everything that I saw.”

Officials told the room they would pursue enforcement under the fire code and Pennsylvania borough law. Council members said the borough could issue daily citations for continuing violations and agreed not to issue additional certificates of occupancy for units or buildings until outstanding common‑area and life‑safety items are corrected. Council asked borough staff to set up follow‑up inspections with a team including the fire inspector, the borough engineer and building‑code staff.

Council members and staff also discussed practical limits: the borough engineer said the escrow held for unfinished work likely would not cover the full cost of completing common‑area corrections across several buildings, and that any borough‑led remediation would likely be expensive and require legal steps to recover costs.

Resident concerns and next steps

Pedrick and other residents raised the prospect that the developer was using occupied units and common areas to store materials and asked how residents would be informed about the schedule for final inspections and the issuance or withholding of C of Os. The borough secretary agreed to collect contact information and to start direct correspondence with association leaders.

Council indicated it would schedule follow‑up site visits; the fire inspector offered to return with a team for another walkthrough. Officials also said they would explore issuing citations daily until defects are remedied and would refuse to sign off on any additional certificates of occupancy for buildings until common‑area fire‑safety, egress and security items are corrected.

Ending

Residents asked the council to act quickly because they said some of the defects — exposed glass shards, unlocked doors and stored flammable materials — presented an immediate hazard. Borough staff and the fire inspector agreed to coordinate inspections and to communicate timelines and findings to the association’s board and management company.