Middlesex Town Garage

November 2025
Assessment of the Building
 
The building is 3,000 gross square feet.
 
Life Safety/Code Issues

• No smoke/fire detection system.
• The only exhaust fan is a single residential unit (a home kitchen fan).
• The exhaust system for the bathroom vents out to the working garage area.
• There is no make-up air anywhere in the building.
• The hazardous materials storage area is a closet with no ventilation system. Gasoline is properly stored in a stand-alone fire proof vault but the vault is in the same closet with no ventilation system.
• There is no designated indoor area for welding. A portable welding unit is used throughout the garage. There is no welding apron for staff to use to protect adjacent equipment. 
• The building is not ADA compliant.

 
Water/Environmental Issues

• The water well is located approximately 10 feet from the building septic tank.
• There is a single water drain in the garage. The garage is the location where trucks are washed and serviced. It is reasonable to assume that oils, salt, anti-freeze etc. are washed off the trucks and into the drain. All fluid entering this single drain is discharged “to daylight” (above ground) near the water well.
•  It is believed that the septic tank needs to be replaced. 

 
Structural Steel and Steel Wall Panels
There are literally dozens of examples and/or indications of damage to, or deterioration of, structural steel and steel wall panels throughout the building including:

• Numerous indoor and outdoor locations with extensive rust including structural steel, wall panels, doors etc.
• Any penetration through the exterior walls (e.g., propane fired heating exhaust flue) is surrounded with rust. In some of these locations the rusting has been so significant that daylight can be seen at these penetrations.
• All doors, and especially garage doors, have significant rust on panels and track systems. Some garage door tracks are so rusted that parts have pulled away from the building.
• There are dozens of examples of dented, damaged and rusted wall panels that have caused some of these panels to separate from seams.
• The structure is not well-insulated or air-sealed. Reinforcing the roof structure for greater snow load would allow for more insulation. Sealing the gaps in the walls would reduce heating costs.

 
Heating, Ventilation, & Air-Conditioning

• There is virtually no ventilation system in the building. The concern is that a lack of ventilation in most buildings can be harmful to those using the facility. The risk is exacerbated when trucks are routinely driven into and out of the garage and small engines are routinely used in the garage (e.g., pressure washers). It is likely that the largest source of ventilation is holes in the exterior wall panels.
• Black mold can be found in several locations including the bathroom, break room, hallways and ceilings.
• Some insulation is visible and shows water damage.
• Staff reports that the heat is insufficient throughout the building on colder winter days.

 
Other Issues

• Garage floor has several large cracks.
• There is no ADA-compliant place for visitors to enter the building and/or wait for staff. Visitors enter directly into the working garage.
• There is no lift system for the vehicles thereby requiring staff to routinely crawl under vehicles and equipment.
• Staff need more lighting.
• The electrical system throughout the building is insufficient and routinely pops breakers. The staff report that getting shocked is common. The system serving the southwest wall is particularly bad.