NORWAY — The safety of long-term guests at the Inn Town Motel could be jeopardized by the lack of local oversight and regulation, town officials said.
At issue is whether people staying at the motel for months means it falls under the legal definition of a rooming house and therefore is subject to the Norway Rental Occupancy Ordinance.
The matter came to the attention of Code Enforcement Officer Joelle Corey-Whitman last week when police advised her one man had been living at the motel since October and had made numerous calls to police for assistance.
The issue sparked a discussion among local officials about safety.
Fire Chief Dennis Yates told the Planning Board last week that the owners of the motel at 58 Paris St. will have to improve fire safety measures, particularly if they intend to continue to have long-term guests.
With 34 units in two buildings, the potential for at least 64 people to be housed in unsafe conditions is a real possibility, officials said. If the motel is defined as a rooming house, it would come under the local Rental Occupancy Ordinance.
The motel was built in 1989 and has had a succession of owners. Most recently, OM Shiv Shakti Corp. purchased it in 2008 for $246,000. The president of the corporation is Malay Patel of Lowell, Mass., according to records in the Secretary of State’s Corporation Division. Records indicate corporation Treasurer Harshad Patel lives at the motel.
Repeated calls to the motel’s local and 800 numbers for comment went unanswered for days. There was no answering machine or recording for either number.
The Rental Occupancy Ordinance was approved by voters in 2012 and provides annual health and life safety inspection standards. It allows the code enforcement officer to issue, enforce or revoke occupancy permits. There are fines for violations.
The ordinance does not cover hotels or motels, officials said, which are defined as “premises that are rented for overnight or several nights rather than weekly or longer.”
Corey-Whitman said her research indicates that an establishment with 16 units or more is considered a motel or hotel. Otherwise it’s a rooming house.
The 2009 National Fire Protection Agency, Life Safety Code 101, as adopted by the state, backs up the definition in terms of its safety requirements.
The code defines a rooming house generally as “buildings that provide sleeping accommodations for 16 or fewer persons on either a transient or permanent basis, with or without meals, but without separate cooking facilities for individual occupants.”
Corey-Whitman said she uses the National Fire Protection Agency Life Safety Code during her inspections of rental units, which currently do not have to register with the town, so it’s not known how many exist in Norway.
She said she and Yates inspect rentals routinely and if a single-family home is converted to a multiunit a site plan review goes before the Planning board.
Yates said it’s clear that if the Inn Town Motel continues to provide lodging for long-term guests, certain life and safety issues must be addressed, including:
* Having someone on call 24 hours to report a fire.
* Removing two wire fences erected to keep motorists from driving through from Tucker Street to Paris Street. The fences prevent Fire Department equipment from getting to the buildings quickly.
* Installing interconnected smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms.
* Having two exit doors in every room.
Corey-Whitman said she and Yates, along with the Office of the State Fire Marshal are researching the commercial building codes and the National Fire Protection Agency Life Safety Code to make sure all safety measures they can enforce are being done.
Planning Board Chairman Dennis Gray has suggested officials collaborate so safety issues such as cooking in the motel units, can be addressed.
State cites Inn Town Motel
NORWAY — Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention inspection reports indicate the Inn Town Motel has been cited over the past five years for numerous health and safety violations. They include:
* Nov. 1, 2011 — A dirty ice machine, dirty toilet facilities, dirty vent fans, dirty furniture, fixtures and carpets.
* Oct. 14, 2014 — A dirty laundry room with lights that are not shielded.
* Oct. 24, 2014 — Dirty furniture and fixtures, dirty bathroom, torn and soiled bedding and unacceptable plumbing.
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