HAVERHILL — On Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, the Haverhill City Council voted to revoke an approved increase to Broco Energy’s flammable fuel storage permit after the company failed to notify abutters within the statutory deadline.
Council President Timothy Jordan opened the hearing by emphasizing the narrow scope of the proceeding.
“This hearing is just to basically revoke what was approved was their increase due to the fact that abutters were not notified,” Jordan said, adding that it was “not a hearing to discuss the merits of whether this project is good or bad.”
During the meeting, Broco Energy President Robert Brown apologized to councilors and residents, saying the notice failure stemmed from staffing disruption in the fall.
“We had [someone] who had historically handled all of our projects and submittals and he took a leave of absence at the end of September,” Brown said. “So, we were kind of left holding the bag, we had a lot of new personnel.”
Brown told the council the company understands it needs abutter support to operate and grow.
“It doesn’t do us any favors not having our abutters, the people that we serve every day, not on our side,” Brown said. “Our company only grows with getting the community buy-in.”
Brown said he met with abutters who did receive the notice after a prior council meeting because he “did want to hear their concerns” and wanted to “be a good neighbor,” adding that he “take[s] full responsibility” for the notice “not being submitted ahead of time.”
During public comment, Burke Street resident Mike Russo said he was “deeply concerned” the current amount of fuel stored at the site already exceeds what the property “can safely handle.”
“This is not a hypothetical risk. There have already been at least two fires at this location,” Russo said. “Each time we were lucky, but luck is not a safety plan. I am genuinely afraid that the next incident will not be something we can walk away from.”
Abutter Ken Sier of Norfolk Street told councilors he was not properly notified.
“The letter was not even sent to me and I’m the owner of the house,” he said.
Sier also said he wanted to ensure the fire department had adequate resources if a future incident occurred.
“If we don’t have the right trucks, if we don’t have enough foam, it seems like we’re going to be mixing oil and propane, which are two deadly substances, together,” he said.
Brown then gave a rebuttal, telling councilors Broco has worked closely with the Haverhill Fire Department and made safety improvements after what he described as an “unfortunate event” — a Dec. 14, 2021 fire at the company’s Hale Street fuel oil terminal that destroyed seven vehicles after overflowing oil accidentally ignited when vapor came into contact with a tanker truck’s hot engine, according to WHAV.
“We did a debrief after that incident and we decided that…job would have got done a lot quicker if we had foam,” Brown said. “So, we got the firefighter foam solution in drums and that can be used anywhere in the city.”
Broco Energy’s Chief Operating Officer Hisham Fayed also apologized and said the company works “side by side with the fire department” and the fire chief to ensure the plan is “safe” and “sound.”
After hearing testimony, the city council voted 10-0, with one member absent, to revoke the approved increase.
