Four members of the Alexander City Council and Mayor Crystal Herrmann
discussed three topics at a workshop held Thursday, April 2. Council
members present were Joy Gray, Angela Griffin, Amy Lyons, and
Christopher Prowse. No one
from the general public attended the workshop.
Discussed were the posting of permits, the construction of fences and
inspections.
How to post permits
Problem – Currently, posting permits is already required but
there are no standards as to how and where to post a permit so it is
visible.
“Because people right now either put it like up on the porch or in
the window or they don't have it posted at all,” Herrmann said.
“And then if they do have their permit, they're really upset that
somebody in the field (police) didn't automatically know they had
their permit.”
Police officers are now watching for code violations, including
construction activity. The Mayor will be purchasing what’s called
outdoor real estate brochure boxes to be used to hold permits. They
have legs that can be pushed into the ground.
It was agreed this added requirement can be amended to the existing
permit fee ordinance, which was adopted in 2020. It will include
instructions to place the box at the end of the driveway.
Council members agreed on a $50 deposit. Herrmann suggested keeping a
“percentage” of the deposit for processing costs. Five dollars
was mentioned.
Building a fence will cost you more than just the fence
Problem – Under the current permit fee structure the
ordinance states, “Fence Over 6 (six) Feet High … $25.” It does
not require a permit for all fence construction. There’s no
approval process to show the new fence is within the property lines
and underground utilities are located. Acceptable fencing material is
also not specified.
“And now having active code enforcement through with the (police)
officers, we can have them (property owner) stake it like we do with
their storage buildings,” Herrmann said. “We tell them to stake
it out where it's gonna be and then we can have somebody drop on, you
can confirm that it's not in the utilities (easement) but it's within
reasonable setbacks.”
Besides where to build a fence, what material to use is also a
concern. Herrmann says she’s been getting complaints about one
property that has wooden pallets being used as a fence.
“And these examples I'm giving are actually being used in the city,
the pallets,” Herrmann said. “I do get complaints about the
pallets. Also another fence. There's also another fence that's old
roofing panels.”
Council Member Joy Gray suggested keeping it “simple,” while
allowing for multiple types of fence styles.
“I think if you keep it simple and you know, wood, chain link or
what's the vinyl?” Gray said. “[B]ut you have to verify that it's
on your property.”
Later Gray clarified when she said “wood” she meant wood
specifically designed to build fences.
“And if we want to put a height, whatever, I don't have strong
feelings about that,” Gray continued. “But I mean, I don't think
we need to get into like POA (Property Owners Association) level of
rules”
When all of these requirements are included in an ordinance, property
owners will have to bare the additional cost of a survey of the
property and providing a drawing showing the property lines, utility
easements and location of the new fence. The repairing of a fence
will not be included.
Herrmann noted that having a police officer deliver the final notice
for compliance is getting more reaction than a code enforcement
officer was getting. She said one homeowner, whose house is nearly
completed, came in for the permit when an officer hand-delivered the
threat of legal action. The penalty for not having a permit is double
the cost of the permit if received prior to beginning construction.
Inspections to be done by third-party
Problem – The City of Alexander does not have its own
building inspector. Under current zoning, utility companies are
responsible for inspections prior to making any connections. In every
zoning category it states, “Inspection
shall be made as required by each authority having jurisdiction
during the construction of all ... units to be located within the
City of Alexander or within subdivisions regulated by the City.”
Mayor
Herrmann wants new construction inspected by a third-party paid for
by the developer or property owner.
“So as of right now that you know larger cities actually have staff
that go in and do the various phases of construction (inspections),”
Herrmann began. “Smaller cities, which I know of Shannon Hills,
Bauxite, multiple other small cities use third-party inspectors that
the permit holder is responsible for the fee for their inspections.”
Aside from inspecting used manufactured homes before allowing them to
be brought into Alexander and inspecting lot lines and setback
requirements, Herrmann says it’s up to utilities to satisfy
themselves of a proper connection.
“Because as of right now we tell the homeowners when they come in
that they have to get their own inspections but the city has nothing
to do with their inspections unless it's a (used) mobile home that's
fixing to be pulled into the city,” Herrmann said. “[T]here's no
inspection other than checking, we'll have them stake out their
setbacks for the hall or the building or whatever but there's no
other inspections. So if Entergy is okay with it they will just plug
them in and if the water department feels free they'll just cut the
water on but that doesn't mean it was properly built.”
One problem mentioned was a lack of proper compaction of the earth,
for the new structure or manufactured home, to keep from sinking. In
many cases a bulldozer is used to do some “compacting” but no
testing is done for consistency.
“So from start to finish they'll have the various inspections that
they'll need to get passed by the inspector,” Herrmann continued.
“And do we issue the occupancy (permit)? Yes. So once all of this
comes through that it's cleaning clear then we can issue (occupancy
permit).”
It’s expected, to make this change, the zoning ordinance will have
to be amended to include the requirement of an independent building
inspector paid for by the owner of the building permit.