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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Building Code Board Of Appeals - 06/18/2009 RECEIVED Minutes of the Building Code Board of Appeals ��T 2 3 2009 Regular Meeting CITY SECRETARY'S OFFICE Thursday,June 18,2009, 1:30 p.m. Fire Department Conference Room (3rd Floor Development Services Building) I. Call to Order Meeting was called to order at 1:38 p.m. II. Roll Call Board members present: Cliff Atnip, John Dykema, Mike Lippincott, Ricardo Martinez City staff present: Dale Jackson, Deborah Brown, and Elsa Martinez III. Approval of Minutes: February 20,2009,Rescheduled Regular Meeting March 3,2009,Special Meeting May 21,2009,Regular Meeting Mr. Dykema motioned to approve the February 20, 2009, meeting minutes;the motion was seconded by Mr. Lippincott. The motion carried unanimously. Mr. Dykema motioned to approve the March 3, 2009, meeting minutes;the motion was seconded by Mr. Lippincott. The motion carried unanimously. Mr. Martinez motioned to approve the May 21, 2009, meeting minutes; the motion was seconded by Mr. Mike Lippincott. Motion carried unanimously. IV. Review, Discuss, and Act as Appropriate on the Board's Previous Action to Submit a Recommendation to Fill the Board Position Occupied by Don Boyd V. Review and Discuss Candidates' Resumes/Biographies for New Board Member and Determine if a Recommendation Will be Submitted to City Council [Pursuant to Ordinance No. 12604 as amended by Ordinance No. 13554; (Section 1, City Code amending Sec. 111, Standard Building code, 1985 Edition);Ordinance No.021208—8/6/1991] Items IV and V were discussed Mr. Lippincott explained to the members that the recommendation previously submitted for the reappointment of Don Boyd was not accepted by the City Secretary's office. He explained that if Mr. Boyd were reappointed, he would exceed the number of service years a member is allowed to serve. Mr. Atnip clarified that members who serve on the Building Code Board of Appeals are only allowed to serve a maximum of six years consecutively. The board moved to discuss a recommendation for this vacancy. The board members unanimously agreed to submit a recommendation to the City Secretary with Mr. Chris Hamilton's name for said position. VI. Review, Discuss, and Act as Appropriate to Recommend to City Council the Adoption of Identified Local Amendments to the International Building Code, International Existing Building Code, International Residential Code,and International Energy Conservation Code VII. Review, Discuss, and Act as Appropriate to Recommend to City Council the Adoption of the International Building Code, International Existing Building Code, International Residential Code, and International Energy Conservation Code There was discussion between Dale Jackson, Interim Building Official, and board members regarding items VI and VII. Mr. Jackson informed the board that the City's staff position is to hold off on adopting the International Existing Building Code because of the controversial issues that exist with SCANNED 41100 1111111, Minutes of the Building Code Board of Appeals Regular Meeting June 18,2009 Page 2 developers and builders and this code. He stated that the staff's position is to hold off on the adoption of this code until a more thorough review of the 2009 code be completed. A discussion continued with the topic of the International Energy Conservation Code. Mr. Jackson informed the board that the North Central Texas Council of Government made the effort to get together with all cities and hammer out what regional amendments are recommended for their cities. He added that the Energy Systems Laboratory(ESL)reviewed the amendments presented to the board in the form of a half-page document at this meeting and approved these to say it meets state law. Mr. Lippincott asked if ESL has been in communication with the International Code Council regarding the 2009 code. Mr. Jackson responded with a no and added that there is a big push, especially from larger cities, to exceed the requirements of the energy code. He shared that cities like Austin and Dallas have required that the code be exceeded by fifteen percent. He informed that ESL determined that ResCheck, a tool of the Department of Energy, did not comply with the 2000 code; therefore, ESL came up with its own software and it is called the IC3 calculator. He informed that it is available online, through ESL's website. He shared that this tool allows for certificate numbers to be entered and it tracks within different areas of the state buildings that comply with the energy code and to what degree they comply. He informed that they are now trying to develop a point system to give cities credit in some form or manner, but details on how this will evolve and how cities will benefit from this has not been determined. Mr. Jackson informed that once the City adopts the 2006 energy code amendments, it can no longer use the ResCheck instrument. Energy Star or the IC3 calculator would have to be used from that point forward. Mr. Dykema inquired about the applicability of the energy code to type of structures. Mr. Jackson informed that it applied to all buildings. He clarified that it applied to any building that will be heated or cooled, in commercial or residential, or any commercial building that will be lighted. The board held off on taking any action regarding the presented amendment of the 2006 energy code until it considered the rest of the items. Mr. Lippincott asked if City staff has determined that all codes have been thoroughly reviewed before the board votes on these items. He asked if it would be appropriate to have staff review the proposed amendments to ensure that all recommendations were covered and incorporated Mr. Jackson responded that he could not confirm it this had been accomplished since this was his first meeting in which he was responsible for presenting this information to the board. Mr. Dykema informed that there is not much to go through. He added that much was information that was stricken for deletion. Mr. Jackson informed the board that he understood the intent of the codes'review was to remove as many of the local amendments as possible and go with the base code, which will allow the City of Corpus Christi to be in line with many of the other cities within the state and country so that when contractors come here, they are not surprised with the local amendments. Mr. Martinez drew the board's attention to a revision that caught his eye. He inquired about a proposed change to Section 1805 of the International Building Code located on page 8. The change, as noted, has to do with foundations and minimum requirements. There was some discussion on this item. Mr. Martinez made another inquiry about another proposed change located on page 10. Due to the lack of clarity of the proposed changes to Section 1805, Mr. Jackson informed the board that he would take another look at this section to see what the intent of the changes was. Minutes of the Building Code Board of Appeals Regular Meeting June 18,2009 Page 3 The board opted to table Items VI and VII until Mr. Jackson reviews the proposed amendments and is ready to report back to the board to readdress these recommendations. VIII. Review, Discuss, and Act as Appropriate to Recommend to City Council the Adoption of the Administration Provision for Technical Construction Codes in Chapter 14,Code of Ordinances The board tabled Item VIII until Mr. Reining is ready to present and review the revisions of this item. IX. Building Official's Report A. Department Updates B. Staffing Mr. Jackson informed that interviews for the building official position have been conducted and that the staff hopes to make an announcement by the end of next week. Mr. Jackson informed that he met with the Engineering Department and that he provided advice on their public restrooms'project. Mr. Jackson shared his knowledge with the Engineering staff of another project which took place at North Beach in which the customer was required to comply with elevation requirements. Mr.Jackson provided the board with a staffing update. He informed that the Department counts with a new plan coordinator and two plan reviewers. He also shared that a building inspector will begin on Monday and that the Department also counts with a senior building inspector. Mr. Atnip shared with the board that he was in receipt of a letter addressed to the Building Code Board of Appeals. He informed that he had not had the opportunity to scan the letter to forward a copy to each member, but that he would do so. He read excerpts of the letter which denote serious concerns and this board's responsibility when considering an applicant's appeal for a code variance, when such is applicable to a property located within a flood zone. Mr. Jackson explained the City's current status with regards to a voluntary community site visit and the Department's record keeping practices. After some discussion, Mr. Atnip told present members that he would provide them with an electronic copy of the communication. Prior to moving into discussion of the next item, Mr. Atnip addressed members with a brief note regarding Item V. He informed the board that he would contact Mr. Hamilton to inquire if he remained interested in serving on this board. He added that if Mr. Hamilton did not wish to serve, he would proceed with contacting Mr. Ernest Salazar. X. Public Comments Board members may not deliberate or make a decision on any matter presented at this time. The Open Meetings Act limits Board response to only two options: 1)a statement of specific factual information given in response to an inquiry; or 2) a recitation of existing policy in response to the inquiry. Any deliberation of or decision about the subject shall be limited to a proposal to place the subject on the agenda for a subsequent meeting. Mr.Atnip opened the opportunity for public comment. Ms.Jeri Morey indicated she had about four items she wished to address. I) She announced she received an appointment to the ICC's International Existing Building Committee; 111110 *111111, Minutes of the Building Code Board of Appeals Regular Meeting June 18,2009 Page 4 2) Ms. Morey informed that the IEBC currently has three methods of compliance, two of which are found in the IBC. She informed that the other method is one that no one seems to know what is going on. She informed the board that they are going to have to learn the IEBC any way. She shared that she will have a case study, which she will make available for reference for any staff wishing to review it. 3) Meeting with Associated Builders and Contractors(a week prior to this meeting)—She spoke to a representative from Binswanger. Ms. Morey shared with board that this representative has expressed to her his frustration from the lack of enforcement on windstorm glazing. Ms. Morey shared her viewpoints to solve the concerns. 4) Building permits written between the 1930s and the 1990s — have missing information; construction information was missing even from one permit to another even if it was the same building. Ms. Morey indicated that she will go back to see if certificates of occupancy were given for these permits or not. She indicated that plan reviewers need to start tracking old files for existing buildings to have the knowledge of what building permits have been issued for an existing building and to determine if a change of occupancy is necessary or not. 5) Her last item was posed as a question. She indicated that she has a list of items pertaining to Chapter 14 and wants to know when she can share these. XI. Identify items to be placed on next agenda No items were identified for the next agenda. XII. Adjourn The meeting was adjourned at 2:40 p.m. Presiding 0"icer