Above: The Imperial under construction (April 11, 2024), from Greenwich Boulevard.

Sathaun Sa agrees to pay a $2,500 fine and follow several stipulations

A day before the Building Standards Committee was to take up an appeal of the Town of East Greenwich’s stop-work order against The Imperial on Greenwich Boulevard, the two parties came to an agreement outlining a series of stipulations the builder must follow in order for work to continue. 

Building Official Brad Ward issued the stop-work order Feb. 29, citing a number of “deviations” from the approved plans. Under the agreement, developer Sathaun Sa did not admit wrongdoing but agreed to pay a $2,500 fine. 

He also agreed to these measures: 

• Real estate showings are limited to the exterior of the building until a first-floor “model unit” receives a temporary certificate of occupancy.
• If the town learns the public is entering the building, the town will lock all access points at the expense of the developer as a lien on the property.
• Town building and fire officials will have random access during daylight hours to monitor the above conditions.
• All deviations from the approved plans not first approved by both the project designer and town building and fire officials must be removed at the developer’s expense.
• The building official must approve the hardwood floors that are installed, confirming they are fit for their intended purpose and installed correctly.
• Work on exit stairways is prohibited pending approval of correction details from the architect for fire rating assembly work.
• The contractor/developer acknowledges he is proceeding at his own risk.
• The developer acknowledges and agrees that all real estate agents abide by the restrictions outlined in the first two conditions.
• Standpipes shall be ready for use at all times. 
• Sheetrock cannot be installed in the hallways until the building official and fire marshal ensure all “life safety” issues have been addressed.
• Sheetrock wrapped around mini-split units must be removed within 10 days of this agreement.
• Both parties agree to the designation of a new engineer for the project and the developer must make sure the new engineer has all necessary reports, plans and analysis on the project.

Find the agreement here: Imperial Resolution.

Sa issued this statement about the settlement on Wednesday (4/10/24): 

Earlier today I reached an agreement with the Town of East Greenwich that removes all stop work orders currently in place at the Imperial, addressing the minor issues that had slowed progress there.  (The Town had permitted exterior work to continue, and progress has continued outside the building). 

The agreement includes a number of conditions that are standard in the industry and clarifies the issues that led to my disagreement with the town building official. I also agreed to pay a small fine in order to prevent further delays that would inconvenience buyers and slow down our efforts to increase the town’s supply of much needed affordable housing.

I am glad that our flexible and reasonable approach to this issue produced results and I appreciate the work of everyone involved. I look forward to continued progress in East Greenwich.