By Kristen Levine
Originally an interim building inspector shared between Sterling and Boylston, Tony Zahariadis was officially instated as the permanent inspector on July 1, 2021. With eighteen years of service in building inspection, Zahariadis is well-acquainted with responsibilities in multiple settings.
“[Sharing] is something I’ve already done,” he said. “I’ve done the same with Lancaster and Boylston, then Clinton and Boylston. It’s something I’m comfortable with.”
Zahariadis has served as Sterling’s building inspector before, with a period in 2005.
“I was here before, doing the job. Coming back to it was the same job I did back then, the same zoning. I picked up where I left off,” he said. “If I leave now to go back to Clinton, I’d be picking up where I left off. It’s the same thing here.”
Building inspecting is a state-wide and national universal standard. However, towns have their own zoning standards that must be met. Zahariadis noted that keeping up with a town’s zoning is a more difficult aspect of the job.
“You go from one town to another, it’s the zoning that’s different,” he said. “That makes it challenging. Sterling has a similar zoning bylaw as Clinton does, and that’s easier for me because I’ve been dealing with Clinton for years.”
Zahariadis brings an impressive history of building inspection service, having served on multiple boards, such as sitting on the board of directors for the Massachusetts Federation of Building Officials, and Metrowest Building Officials. He was the president of the Wachusett Area Building Officials. He is still one of the building inspectors that represents Massachusetts for the New England Building Officials Association.
“I started doing building inspection around 1999 or 2000,” he said. “I came back to it fully in 2004, and I’ve been doing it ever since.”
As a building inspector, Zahariadis’ most important focus is on safety of everything that falls under his purview. Beyond safety for both public and private buildings, he noted that land use and zoning were the most challenging aspects of the job.
“The state of Massachusetts has a building code…whether you’re here or in Brookfield, it’s the same code,” he said. “In different parts of the country there’s different things that are relevant to inspection. In Florida there wouldn’t be frost protection, but there would be here. That’s the one that’s unique to each town.”
“There’s a still a few people here that were around the first time I was in Sterling, and I’m happy they’re still here,” he said, when asked about his feelings on returning to Sterling’s service. “I’m glad to be back.”