Tuesday, Feb, 23, 2010 • Supes say they can’t help local contractor

Publisher’s note: This story originally appeared in the Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2010 edition of the Lassen County Times.

There’s just no way around the fire safety standards set forth in Lassen County Ordinance 502. The ordinance governs the road and driveway access requirements that must be met before the county’s building department will issue a certificate of occupancy on a new dwelling.

During the board’s public comment period on Tuesday, Jan. 26, local contractor Mike McCourt asked the county to help him get a certificate of occupancy on a new home he’d built for his family that the county planning department acknowledged “has had a final inspection and, with the exception of meeting the access requirements, is essentially complete.”

The matter came up and the board’s agenda on Tuesday, Feb. 16, and McCourt finally got the answer he didn’t want to hear.

“Mike, there’s nothing we can do to help you,” said a sympathetic District 1 Supervisor and Chairman Bob Pyle. “It’s cut and dried.”

McCourt said he had hoped the board could find a way to help him get the certificate of occupancy, and he would bring the road into compliance when the weather warmed up this spring. He said he needed the certificate of occupancy to complete the financing on the project, and he offered to put up a bond or sign a release of liability if that would help.

Craig Settlemire, Lassen County Counsel, said the property would not qualify for a variance because it was not unique and a release of liability would not cover the potential liability that might be faced by public safety personnel who might have to respond to the property in the event of an emergency or a fire.

District 3 Supervisor Lloyd Keefer said he had visited the property and saw the road site first hand. He said the house is complete, but the road still has issues. He’d hoped county staff could come up with “a magic wand” to help resolve McCourt’s problem.

“I don’t think there is one,” said District 2 Supervisor Jim Chapman.

“The human side is really tough to deal with,” Keefer said.

According to a report from Maury Anderson, director of Lassen County’s Department of Building and Planning Services, county fire agencies must inspect and verify the road meets county standards before his department issues a certificate of occupancy.

Approving the certificate of occupancy before the roadwork is completed would “create an unacceptable situation as related to emergency services and to compromise the requirements could potentially put life and property at risk,” Anderson wrote.

The county first adopted ordinance 502 on June 12, 1990, and it has been amended five times since then, according to the staff report.

The county ordinance is more restrictive than the state code. The local rule requires paving of any section of a road that exceeds a 12 percent grade. The state requirement is 16 percent.

The application for the building permit signed by McCourt advised him, “All Lassen County Fire Ordinance 502 conditions shall be met prior to occupancy.”

Chapman said he was surprised McCourt would find himself in this position. He said the road should have been built before construction on the home began because there are still health and safety issues during the construction process.

According to Chapman, the building department should determine “legal access” to the property before issuing a building permit.

Anderson said requiring the construction of a road before issuing a building permit would weigh heavily on applicants.

Chapman also said public agencies have a responsibility to ensure development occurs in a safe environment. He suggested the board should review the ordinance’s defects.

The board agreed to direct staff and CalFire to review the ordinance, but that process could take six months or longer and would not be completed quickly enough to help McCourt.