There will be no haunted depot in Opp, city officials said Tuesday.

Mayor John Bartholomew said the Downtown Redevelopment Authority was sponsoring the haunted house type fundraiser to purchase a new Christmas tree for the city; however, that won’t happen now.

“From what we’ve been told, there are new regulations by the state for haunted houses, which requires a sprinkler system and an emergency alarm system that will automatically turn on the lights in the building,” Bartholomew said. “The building doesn’t have that, and we can’t afford to put it in.”

Bartholomew said the city is pursuing grant funds to refurbish the former train depot and plans will be made to include the systems.

This would’ve been the first event of its kind by the group, he said.

“We just won’t have a haunted house this year, and that’s sad,” Bartholomew said. “This was the DRA’s idea, and it was a good one. We weren’t aware of the new regulations, and there isn’t another building in town available to us that will meet those. We have to respect the fire marshal’s decision.”