Owner Of Quadruple Fatal Worcester Fire Property Facing Fines: City

WORCESTER, MA — The owner of a property that was the site of a quadruple fatal 2022 fire has been ordered to make safety improvements — or face fines or possible criminal action.

Four people died in the March 2022 fire at 2 Gage St. The heavily damaged building was torn down after the fire, leaving just the foundation. The owner erected security fences and pulled a building permit to reconstruct a residential building, but progress on construction appears "stalled" city officials have said.

City inspectors have visited the site more than 30 times since the building permit was issued in February 2023 to check on progress. Little has been done, and the city on March 25 issued orders to the owner to repair the sidewalk, replace the construction fence and maintain erosion controls. The owner was up against an April 1 deadline to act on the city's orders.

"With the foundation still not 100 percent complete, multiple site violations, and a complete lack of progress, the building commissioner has determined that this construction project is not progressing in good faith," Inspectional Services Department Commissioner Christopher Spencer said in a memo to councilors.

RELATED: Worcester Gage St. Fire: Many Code Violations Preceded Deadly Blaze

At the time of the fire, Huanchen Li and Wendy Wang, of Westford, owned 2 Gage St. But around the time the building permit was issued in 2023, Li and Wang transferred the property to a new limited liability corporation (LLC). According to state records, the managers of that LLC are Jaime Vargas, a contractor based in Marlborough, and 2 Gage Street LLC — a separate LLC managed by Huanchen Li and Lisa Wang Li with an address that matches the Li's home in Westford. Lisa Wang Li is a relative of Huanchen Li and Wendy Wang.

Last year, Vargas went to the Worcester Affordable Housing Trust Fund board seeking $472,000 in public funds to put toward rebuilding Gage Street. After public outcry, the trust fund board denied those funds. At the time, the total cost to rebuild 2 Gage St. was estimated at $1.5 million.

Spencer said the project appears dead in the water after more than a year working with the owners.

"Despite our best attempts, and spending an inordinate amount of time and staff resources on 2 Gage Street, this project appears stalled, with little or no communication from the property owners," he told councilors.