Title
CONSIDERATION OF ORDINANCE O-1718-18 UPON SECOND AND FINAL READING: AN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORMAN, OKLAHOMA, AMENDING SECTIONS 10-601 AND 10-602 OF ARTICLE VI OF CHAPTER 10 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF NORMAN SO AS TO ADOPT AND AMEND THE 2015 INTERNATIONAL PROPERTY MAINTENANCE CODE; AND REPEALING SECTIONS 10-603 THROUGH 10-700 IN THEIR ENTIRETY; AND PROVIDING FOR THE SEVERABILITY THEREOF.
Body
BACKGROUND: The Oversight Committee met on May 30th and August 17, 2017 to consider information that is pertinent to updating the City’s building, fire prevention and property maintenance codes. Staff presented information relevant to the City codes, local amendments, and the current State-adopted building codes. Cities are only allowed to make amendments to the State-adopted codes that are more restrictive or where an alternative is equal to the State requirement. Staff has included Attachments 1, 2 and 3 to address questions that were raised during the initial Oversight Committee meeting on May 30, 2017. Attachment 1 lists the City code amendments that are more restrictive than the code requirements adopted by the State. Attachment 2 lists the City code amendments that are being removed from the code because they are less restrictive than the State code. Attachment 3 lists miscellaneous code items that came up in the Committee discussion. The conclusion of the August 17th Oversight Committee meeting recommended submittal of the proposed City code, with amendments, which is attached for consideration for adoption.
The Oklahoma Legislature, in May 2009, passed legislation creating the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission. The Commission is composed of eleven members and is tasked with creating and maintaining a statewide uniform building code.
The current edition of codes adopted by the state include the 2015 editions of relevant codes published by the International Code Council (ICC) and the 2014 edition of the National Electrical Code (NEC) published by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). A summary of the codes currently adopted by the state and a brief summary of the state code adoption process is included as Exhibit A.
The City of Norman Code of Ordinances currently references the 2009 editions of relevant ICC codes and the 2011 edition of the NEC. Consistent with the legislative action creating the uniform building code, the City of Norman is obligated to adhere to the state codes and may also adopt amendments deemed more stringent than the state adopted codes.
Companion to these state adopted codes for construction, the Norman Fire Department currently relies on the NFPA family of codes through local adoption of the NFPA 1 Fire Code for fire prevention and general administration.
Similarly, local code enforcement pertaining to existing structures and minimum housing criteria are administered through local adoption of the International Property Maintenance Code.
DISCUSSION: Pertinent City staff, and in several instances local stake holders, have undertaken a joint effort to evaluate the relevant codes for building, fire prevention and property maintenance and to consider what, if any, local amendments to these codes may be appropriate to reflect community standards for the built environment or that may be necessary to accommodate other City ordinance and/or engineering standards.
City staff met with representatives from the Builder’s Association of Central Oklahoma (BASCO) during three monthly “Brown Bag Lunch” meetings in October, November and December of 2016 to discuss changes and local amendments to the IRC. Additionally, staff has discussed proposed ordinance changes and code amendments to IBC with local design professionals during development.
Current staff actions also include efforts to streamline and modernize the City Code format and content of these codes to enhance readability and clarity.
Although a number of “cleanup” language amendments are included in this code adoption cycle, the most substantial proposed changes include:
• Amendments to current ordinances to allow the International Fire Code (IFC) to be the primary code used in review of the non-residential construction building permits;
• Deletion of local International Building and Plumbing Code amendments that allowed reduced minimum plumbing fixtures for small building spaces in favor of the current state code; and
• State amendment of the International Residential Code providing less stringent standards for residential swimming pool barriers.
Additionally, to aid consistent application of related permit fees prescribed by City ordinance, staff is recommending a few changes to the ordinance to clarify the application of certain fees.
CONCLUSION: Staff is recommending changes to chapter 10 of the Code of Ordinances to update the City’s property maintenance codes. Ordinance O-1718-18, both clean and annotated copies, is attached. City staff is recommending adoption of the proposed City code update to chapter 10.