Vanderburgh Sober Living planned to use the existing building in Greenfield, Massachusetts as a sober living residence for individuals in recovery who are capable of self-preservation. The existing two-story building includes a basement and approximately 6,240 square feet of total building area. The project involved increasing the resident capacity from 15 to 27 occupants, which required evaluating the building’s change in use and fire/life safety implications under the Massachusetts Existing Building Code.

Engineering Fire Protection, LLC prepared a Chapter 34 building evaluation report to support the client’s code compliance approach. EFP reviewed the existing building conditions, proposed occupancy change, fire protection systems, means of egress, interior finish, building height and area, fire alarm requirements, and other major fire/life safety considerations.

The project required a practical code path that allowed the client to continue using an existing residential building while addressing the higher life safety expectations associated with the proposed resident capacity. EFP helped clarify that the building could be evaluated using the Work Area Compliance Method, identified required fire protection upgrades such as extending sprinkler protection throughout the building and providing a compliant fire alarm/smoke/CO alarm approach, and documented the major code considerations for review by the design team and local code officials. This helped the client better understand the required improvements, avoid unnecessary building modifications, and move the sober living conversion forward with a clear compliance strategy.