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1999-098REGULATIONS" CODE OF ORDINANCES, CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS BY REPEALING ARTICLE II, DIVISION 2 "BUILDING CODE BOARD", SECTIONS 28-41-28-42, REPEALING ARTICLE III, DIVISION 3 "ELECTRICAL CODE BOARD", SECTIONS 28- 96-28-98, REPEALING ARTICLE IV, DIVISION 3 "PLUMBING AND MECHANICAL BOARD", SECTIONS 28-186-28-190, REPEALING ARTICLE V, DIVISION 2 "PLUMBING AND MECHANICAL CODE BOARD", SECTIONS 28-271-274, AMENDING CHAPTER 28 "BUILDINGS AND BUILDING REGULATIONS" BY ADDING ARTICLE 10, PROVIDING FOR THE CREATION OF A "CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY AND APPEALS BOARD" TO REPLACE BUILDING CODE BOARD, ELECTRICAL CODE BOARD, AND PLUMBING AND MECHANICAL CODE BOARD, AMENDING CHAPTER 28 "BUILDING AND BUILDING REGULATIONS" CODE OF ORDINANCES, CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS BY AMENDING SECTIONS 28-172, 28-231(f), 28-382, 28-386, 28-426, 28-429, 28-430, 28- 431(a), 28-432(g), 28-434(a), 28-434(b)(3) AND 28-437 BY SUBSTITUTING CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY AND APPEALS BOARD FOR PLUMBING AND MECHANICAL CODE BOARD AND BUILDING CODE BOARD, AMENDING CHAPTER 29 "FIRE CODE" CODE OF ORDINANCES CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS BY AMENDING SECTION 29 2 (A)(2) BY SUBSTITUTING CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY AND APPEALS BOARD FOR BUILDING CODE BOARD PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE, PROVIDING A PENALTY CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS SECTION I That Chapter 28, Code of Ordinances, City of Denton, Texas "Buildings and Building Regulations" is hereby amended by repealing Article II, Division 2 "Bmldmg Code Board, Sections 28-41-28-42, Article III, Division 3 "Electrical Code Board, Sections 28-96-28- 97, Article IV, Division 2 "Plumbing and Mechanical Code Board", sections 28-186-28-190 and Article V, Division 2 "Plumbing and Mechanical Code Board", Sections 28-271-28-274 in their entirety SECTION II That Chapter 28, Code of Ordinances, City of Denton, Texas, is hereby amended by adding Article X "Construction Advisory and Appeals Board" to read as follows ARTICLE X. CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY AND APPEALS BOARD Sec 28-438. Purpose. In order to hear and decide appeals of orders, declsions or determination made by the bmldmg official or fire marshal relative to the application and interpretation of the Uniform Building Code, Uniform Plumbing Code, Uniform Mechanical Code, Uniform Fire Code or National Electrical Code, there shall be a Construction Advisory and Appeals Board The board shall also here any other matters that are appealable pursuant to Chapter 28 Code of Ordinances, City of Denton, Texas Sec 28-439. Created There is hereby created a Construction Advisory and Appeals Board consisting of seven (7) members, each to be appointed by the mty council for a term of two (2) years, commenmng July 1 of the year appointed A member may be removed for cause by the council after a public heanng All seven members shall serve until their successors are appointed To the extent that persons are avmlable w~tlun the city, the board shall consist of one general contractor, one architect or engineer, one person fi.om the plumbing mdustry, one person fi.om the electrical industry, two individuals who are associated with the construction, development or real estate industry and an additional member All cases shall be heard by a mlmmum of four (4) members except for when consideration of variances as described in Sec 28-440 (a)(3) are involved, such cases shall be heard by a minimum of slx (6) members The building official shall be an ex officio member to th~s board and shall act as secretary to smd board but shall have no vote on any matter before the board Sec. 28-440 Procedures and powers. (a) The Construction Advisory and Appeals Board shall adopt rules to govern its proceedings, provided the rules are consistent with all adopted codes and statutes of the state The board shall (1) Elect a chairperson, who may adm~mster oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses, (2) Hear and determine, by a majority vote of the members, appeals from any demslon of the burldlng officml or fire marshal made pursuant to Chapter 28 and Chapter 29, Code of Ordinances, City of Denton, Texas after proper notice has been g~ven (3) The concumng vote of 75 percent of the members of the board is necessary to grant variances to any prowslons of Chapter 28 and Chapter 29, Code of Ordinances, other than Article IX of Chapter 28, subject to appropriate safeguards, and after a determination by the board that a hardslup exists which would be cured by the particular variance sought (4) Mmntmn jurisdiction of questions involving Article IX of Chapter 28, Code of Ordinances, as authorized therein (b) The powers of the board are hereby extended so as to authorize the board to make reasonable interpretations or rulings m matters properly before ~t pursuant to Sec 28-438 (c) The appeal procedure shall be as follows (1) Any person aggrieved by a decision of the building official or inspector under thru chapter may appeal such dems~on or order to the construction advisory and appeals board Every appeal shall be filed in writing within ten (10 days from the date of the decision or order appealed from and shall be filed in duphcate with the bmlchng official Such notice shall contmn appropriate reference to the decision or order appealed from, as well as the grounds of the appeal It shall be the duty of the bmldlng official to notify the chmrman of the construction advisory and appeal board and the proper inspector (2) The amount of the fees for appeals shall be set by the City Council by separate orchnance and shall be on file in the office of the bmldmg official and the City Secretary (3) The bmldurg official shall transmit to the board all relevant records and data upon which the appeal was taken (4) An appeal shall stay all proceedings in connection with the decision or order appealed from, unless and until the proper inspector certifies to the board, at, er notice of appeal has been filed, that a stay would cause hazard to life or property In such case, proceechngs pursuant to the decision or order of the bmkhng official shall not be stayed except by order of the board or by a restralmng order issued by a court of competent jtmsdlctlon (5) The board shall fix a reasonable t~me for the heanng of an appeal, glwng notice in writing to the parties in interest, and shall reach its decision within three (3) days from the close of the heanng The appellant may appear before the board m person, by agent or by attorney and may present material witnesses The board may require additional data and tests necessary for adequate decision of the appeal and may continue the heanng therefor (6) The board shall have the power m all cases appealed to it from decisions or orders of the building official to reverse or affirm or modify, in whole or m part, the decision or order appealed from No decision of the board shall vary or be inconsistent with the terms or provisions of this article (d) It shall be the duty of the board to make an annual review of the provisions of tins chapter and to recommend any necessary changes and/or improvements to the city council This renew shall include consideration of suggestions from contractors and the pubhc at large, whmh may be obtmned by means of open heanngs as well as through regular channels (e) That any and all references to the Building Code Board, Electrical Code Board, and Plumbing and Mechanical Code Board as may be found in the Code of Orchnances, City of Denton, Texas shall hereinafter be construed to mean the Construction Advisory and Appeals Board for all purposes ~ That Section 28-172 of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton iS hereby amended to read as follows Sec 28-172. Appeals from decision of Inspectors. Any person aggrieved by and interpretation of this article or by any ruling or decision by a plttmbmg inspector may within five (5) days file with the building official a petition in writing requesting a review of the plumbing inspector's decision The building official shall personally determine the facts, and, within a reasonable period thereafter, he shall make a ruling m accordance with his findings Has ruling shall be final and binding on all parties, provided, however, that appeal may be taken to the construction advasory and appeal board as provided m thas chapter SECTION IV That Section 28-231 (0 of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (f) A speeaal ruling necessary to cover future construction or installation not specafically covered by this article shall be made by the plumbing inspector and future construction shall conform to such ruling The ruling shall be effective after approval by the construction advisory and appeals board A copy shall be filed m the permanent records of the ebaef plumbing inspector SECTION V That Section 28-382 entitled Appeals of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows See. 28-382. Appeals Any appeal from a decision of the building official under the terms of this article shall be made to the construction advisory and appeals board ~ That Section 28-386 entitled Definitions of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows Sec 28-386. Definitions For the purpose of this article, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivatives shall be construed as speclfted in either this section or as specified in the building code Where items are not defined, they shall have their ordinary, accepted meanings within the context w~th which they are used Board means the construction advisory and appeals board of the city created in Section 28-439 Butldtng code is the building code adopted in section 28-27 Efficiency dwelltng umt is a dwelling unit containing only one (1) habitable room and meeting the requirements of section 28-402(c) Mechamcal code is the mechanical code adopted in section 28-251 Plumbing code Is the plumbing code adopted in section 28-144 Electrtcal code is the electrical code adopted m section 28-61 ~ That Section 28-426(a)(1) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordmances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (1) A heading m the words "Before the Constructmn Advisory and Appeals Board of the City of Denton, Texas", ~ That Section 28-426(b) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the C~ty of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (b) Processmg of appeal Upon receipt of any appeal filed pursuant to this article and receipt of the fihng fee, the budding official shall present the appeal at the next regular or special meeting of the construction adwsory and appeals board ~ That Section 28-429(a) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is ,hereby amended to read as follows (a) Heartng exammers The construction and advisory board may appoint one (1) or more heanng examiners or das~gnate one (1) or more of its members to serve as heanng examiners to conduct the hearings provided m this d~ms~on The examiner heanng the case shall exercise all powers relating to the conduct of heanngs until it ~s submitted by him to the board for dec,stun _~.~LT. LQ..~ That Section 28-430 entitled Form of notme of heanng of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton ~s hereby amended to read as follows See. 28-430. Form of notice of hearing The notme of heanng to the appellant pursuant to th~s artmle shall be substantmlly ~n the following form, but may include other ~nformat~on "You are hereby notified that a heanng wdl be held before the Construction Advisory and Appeals Board, at on the day of ., __ at the hour of , upon the notice and order served upon you You may be present at the hearing You may be, but need not be, represented by counsel You may present any relevant ewdence and w~ll be given full opportumty to cross-examination all witnesses testifying agmnst you You may request the issuance of subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, documents or other things by fihng an affidawt thereof with the Construction Advisory and Appeals Board (or name ofheanng examiner)" ~ That Section 28-431(a) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (a) Fthng of affidavit The Construction advisory and appeals board or examiner may obtmn the issuance and service of a subpoena for the attendance of witnesses or the production of other evidence at a heanng conducted pursuant to this division upon the request of a member of the board or upon the written demand of any party The issuance and service of such subpoena shall be obtained upon the filing of an affidavit therefor which states the name and address of the proposed witness, specifics the exact things sought to be produced and the matenahty thereof in detml to the issues involved and states that the witness has the desired things in his possession or under hm control A subpoena need not be ~ssued when the affidavit is defective in any particular ~ That Section 28-432(g) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the C~ty of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (g) Inspection of premises The construction advisory and appeals board or the heanng examiner may inspect upon notice to all parties any building or promises involved in the appeal dunng the course of the heanng ~ That Section 28-434(a) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the C~ty of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (a) Hearing required In cases where the bmldlng official has determined that a bmldmg or structure should be demolished, a pubhc hearing before the construction advisory and appeals board shall be held, regardless of whether or not a n appeal from such dotermlnation has been filed by any person ~ That Section 28-434(b)(3) of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows (3) A statement that a public heanng wall be held before the construction advisory and appeals board on a date and time and a t a place therein specified to determine whether the building should be demolished in accordance with the notice and order of the bmldlng offimal ~_C_!LO_.]~I_._~ That Section 28-437 entitled Objections to assessment of Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordinances of the C~ty of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows Sec 28-437. Obleetlon to assessment. Any person interested in or affected by an assessment levied agmnst property as a result of any demohtlon work as provided ~n this article may file a written protest or objection with the Construetmn advisory and appeals board, specifically stating the grounds of such objections, the board shall within a reasonable time review the assessment and the grounds for objections and may adjust the mount of such assessment in accordance with any errors made in calculating such assessment ~ That Section 29-2(A)(2) of Chapter 29 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton is hereby amended to read as follows 2 Section 103 1 4, entitled Appeals, is amended to read as follows 103.1.4 Board of Appeals. In order to determine the SUltabIhty of alternate materials and types of construction and to provide for reasonable mterpretat~ons of the provisions of this code, the Construction Advisory and Appeals Board as created and organized under Chapter 28 of the Code of Ordmances shall pass upon all pertinent matters Whenever the F~re Marshal disapproves and apphcation or refuses a permit applied for, or whenever it ~s claimed that the prowsions of the Code do not apply or that the true intent or meamng of the Code have been wrongly misconstrued or wrongly interpreted, the apphcant may appeal from the decision of the Fire Marshal to said Board within thirty (30) days from the date of the decision appealed In addition to such Board, the Fire Marshal may request that additional members be appomted for specific rulings or ~nterpretations Such members shall be voting, ex- officio members and appointed by the Chairperson of the Construction Advisory and Appeals Board to assist m the determination and/or ruhng of a specific issue or case Such appointments shall be temporary until the ruling IS rendered No more than two (2) members shall be appomted, each having experience an the matter ~n question The board shall adopt reasonable rules and regulations for conducting this investigation and shall render all decisions and finding in writing to the Fire Marshal with duplicate copy to the appellant and may recommend to the City Council such legislation as is consistent therewith ~ That this ordinance shall repeal every prior ordmanee in conflict herewith, but only Insofar as the portion of such prior ordmanee shall be ~n conflict, and as to all other sections of the ordmance not m direct conflict herewith, th~s ordinance shall be and is hereby made cumulative except as to such prior ordmances or portions thereof as are expressly repealed hereby ~ That If any provisions of this ordinance or application thereof to any person or e~reumstanees is held invahd by any court, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remalmng portions of th~s ordmanee, and the City Council of the City of Denton, Texas hereby declares that it would have enacted the remmning portions despite any such invalidity ~ That any person violating any provision of this ordinance shall, upon conviction, be fined a sum not to exceed two thousand dollars ($2000 00) Each day that a prowslon of th~s Ordinance is violated shall constitute a separate and distinct offense ~ That tlus ordinance shall become effective fourteen (14) days from the date of its passage, and the City Secretary is hereby d~rected to cause the caption of this ordinance to be pubhshed twice in the Denton Record-Chromcle, the official newspaper of the City of Denton, Texas w~thm ten (10) days of the date of Its passage PASSED AND APPROVED this thedTIO~AQ day of ~ , 1999 JAC~ ATTEST JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY HERBERT L PROUTY, CITY ATTORNEY F \shared~dept\LGL\Our Documents\Ordmances\99\¢onstmct~on advtsory board doc