Building Code Board of Appeals Minutes 06/19/2018
BUILDING CODE BOARD OF APPEALS - SPECIAL MEETING – 6:00 PM
MINUTES – Subject to Vote of Approval
JUNE 19, 2018
I. ROLL CALL
Charles Warren, Chairman, called the Special Meeting for the Building Code Board of Appeals to order at 6:05 p.m. on Tuesday, June 19, 2018 in the Planning Department Conference Room of the Simsbury Town Offices located at 933 Hopmeadow Street, Simsbury, CT. The following members and alternates were also present: Steven Antonio, Joann Hogan, Richard Cortes and Sandy Ziplow. Also in attendance was Henry Miga, Simsbury Building Official.
Chairman Warren thanked everyone for coming. He seated Mr. Cortes as a full member for the purposes of this meeting and acknowledged the vacancy left by Paul Holland’s 2016 retirement.
II. REVIEW AND APPROVE MINUTES
a. Annual Meeting June 21, 2016
There was no quorum for the 2017 meeting so 2016 minutes were not approved.
Steven Antonio made a motion to approve the minutes as presented from June 21, 2016. The motion was seconded by Joann Hogan and was unanimously approved.
It was confirmed that Sandy Ziplow could not be elected Chairman as an alternate member.
III. ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN
The Board discussed whether they would continue to meet on a regular basis or meet only on an ad hoc basis if any appeals were to arise. Mr. Miga indicated that even if the Board were unable to convene for some reason to hear an appeal a resident would have the option of an interpretation from the State Building Official or State Fire Marshal and then filing their appeal with the State Codes & Standards Committee. After discussion, it was agreed they would elect a chairman, continue on as an appointed board, and Mr. Miga would then research the proper procedure for them to only convene on an as-needed basis.
Steven Antonio made a motion to nominate Joann Hogan as Chairman. The motion was seconded by Rich Cortes and was approved by a vote of 3-0.
IV. APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY CHAIRMAN
Steven Antonio referenced Mr. Warren’s vast experience and Mr. Warren agreed he would be willing to continue on as Deputy Chair.
As newly elected Chairman, Joann Hogan appointed Mr. Warren as Deputy Chairman.
V. OLD BUSINESS
a. Membership List – verify contact information
Members verified their contact information and provided any updates to Mr. Warren. He will forward that to the Town for their records.
VI. NEW BUSINESS
a. Report by Henry Miga, Town Building Official, including comments on updates of CT Building Codes
Mr. Miga indicated that the 2012 set of complete codes are at Regulatory Review and have been temporarily tabled for discussions regarding a proposed requirement for sprinklers in townhouses. The intent is for the next set of 2015 codes to be in place by October 1st and then the Codes & Standard Subcommittee will begin reviewing the 2018 family of codes. There has been a recent move towards accepting more of the nationally approved codes and allow for less and less State modifications. In addition, the administrative process for how codes get accepted into the State regulations has been amended in an effort to reduce the time and process to get them adopted. Although Connecticut has a good training program for building and fire inspectors through the State Code Education Fund, the codes are becoming more and more complex (i.e., International Energy Code, etc.). In response to Mr. Ziplow, Mr. Miga indicated a committee has been formed to review the entire fire code and there has been a movement towards distinguishing between fire safety codes and fire prevention codes.
In response to Mr. Antonio, Mr. Miga indicated that the proposed sprinkler requirements for townhomes has been a sort of compromise to the recent attempt at requiring sprinklers for 1 and 2-family homes. Townhomes involve more lives and the thought was that a water supply would be readily available and there may be some economies of scale when building. However, the Home Builder’s Association disagreed, indicating the cost per unit ends up being very similar to that of single family homes. Mr. Miga indicated the statistics show there has not been a loss of life in townhomes built after 1985.
Mr. Miga also made the Board aware of the recent hiring of Dwight Carlson, Deputy Building Official, who will be working part-time for Simsbury and part-time for Bloomfield. He comes to Simsbury with 10 years’ experience as an electrical inspector with the Town of Stamford.
VII. DATE FOR 2019 ANNUL MEETING
a. Suggested: Tuesday, June 18, 2019, 6PM
Steven Antonio made a motion to accept the date of the next meeting as June 18, 2019 pending further communication from the Chairman and Deputy Chairman if the Board is able to convene on an ad hoc basis in the future. The motion was seconded by Joann Hogan and was unanimously approved.
VIII. ADJOURNMENT
Joann Hogan motioned to adjourn the meeting at 7:15 pm. The motion was seconded by Steven Antonio and was unanimously approved.
Respectfully Submitted,
Colleen Fenn, Commission Clerk