One morning in late November 2019, a historic office building on Duke of Gloucester Street caught fire, consuming all three stories in flames. In the aftermath, Alderwoman Elly Tierney, a Democrat who represents the Historic District, introduced a bill requiring commercial property owners to install sprinkler systems in their buildings. Last week, the bill passed the City Council by an 8-1 vote. Tierney had withdrawn the bill at the start of the pandemic and reintroduced it in January.
