Last Thursday the City Council made a unanimous decision requiring all towers to be registered with the Department of Buildings. Additionally, owners of towered structures must conduct quarterly maintenance inspections that comply with standards created by the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
This bill was passed on the heels of a Legionella outbreak. According to the Health Department, Legionella is common during the hot summer months. Dr. Marci Layton, a Health Department assistant commissioner, commented that with over 200 cases of Legionella in the city annually, the goal is to see a decline in outbreaks as cooling towers maintained more regularly.