PROVIDENCE — Tony Soares is mad because, over the summer, National Grid workers “destroyed” his newly planted flower box so that they could install a new gas meter in front of his three-unit apartment building in the city’s historic Broadway-Armory District.

“I came back from vacation and my flowers were all torn up,” Soares said after testifying before state lawmakers yesterday. “What National Grid did was criminal.”

Soares testified before the House Committee on Corporations yesterday in support of a bill that would prohibit public utilities from placing gas meters on the exteriors of houses in historic districts.

For houses outside such districts, the bill would forbid exterior installations visible from the street unless there is no choice.

“Rhode Island is known for its historic housing stock. This bill creates safeguards and protections for the investment people make in their homes and neighborhoods,” said Rep. Steven Costantino, D-Providence, who cosponsored the bill with other city representatives.

After hearing from 20 people, only one of whom, a representative of National Grid, spoke against the measure, the committee voted to hold the bill for further study.

“National Grid did not properly communicate what it needed to communicate to these groups and individuals,” Committee Chairman Brian P. Kennedy, D-Hopkinton, said after hearing testimony. “We need to do something to address the concerns brought to us.”National Grid has said that the placement of the gas meters on the outside of homes is in the interest of public safety.

Company spokesman David Graves said yesterday that placing the meters outside enables utility workers to quickly cut off gas service in the event of a fire or other emergency.

Graves argued that historic homes should not be treated differently from other residences. “If it is a question of public safety across the board, then it is a question of public safety for historic homes as well,” he said.

In Providence, National Grid’s upgrade of gas meters in the College Hill, Federal Hill and Fox Point neighborhoods late last year sparked considerable local opposition. The utility work in those neighborhoods is part of a long-term and statewide infrastructure upgrade.

The proposed state legislation comes as the city has enacted its own law regulating public utilities.

A measure adopted in December by the City Council and signed by Mayor David N. Cicilline requires that utilities obtain a permit from the Department of Planning and Development to make upgrades along public streets and sidewalks. National Grid has asked the state Public Utilities Commission for relief from that requirement.

pmarcelo@projo.com