Huntingburg Council: Updates on building codes and solar park abatement passes

As a city grows, it requires more attention to standards and rules that govern the way it operates. Those standards and rules are made up of ordinances that are passed by the governing bodies.

And, even though a case can be made for there being too many ordinances, certain essential ones must not be ignored.

The Huntingburg City Council in Tuesday night’s meeting took up two such ordinances and passed one, but tabled the second for more examination and discussion.

City of Huntingburg Attorney Phil Schneider explained what the council would be doing by saying, “It’s become…increasingly desirable and necessary that our building code include with it a certificate of occupancy,” Schneider said. “We currently do not have that in our building code.”

He said the council would amend the building code to include the certificate of occupancy.

The purpose of the certificate is to ensure that the building is up to state codes that govern how it’s built. The city already does it, but it’s not in the building code of the city.

Any amending of the building code requires approval by the fire prevention and building safety commission of the State of Indiana, according to Schneider.

Furthermore, the commission won’t approve any building code that contains “extraneous” provisions which do not follow their template.

The problem with Huntingburg’s code book, says Schneider, is that when it was codified and reorganized by publisher American Publishing, they “stuck all of our general property regulations in the same chapter with our building code.”

Ordinance 2016-16 renumbered, rearranged and removed from the building code all of the general property regulations and placed them in chapter 150 of the Huntingburg Municipal code while leaving all of the building code in chapter 152 of the Huntingburg municipal code.

Schneider was quick to point out that the ordinance does not change the property regulations. Mayor Spinner said that it made the code clearer and easier to understand.

It passed with no further discussion.

The second ordinance that was discussed and tabled for further discussion at the request of council members. The ordinance will add language to chapter 152 to add the required certificate of occupancy for all new construction of buildings.

Some council members had questions about the second ordinance, specifically questioning the hiring of a contractor to perform building inspections on new construction.

Spinner said there is talk among city and town leaders along with those at the county level to provide one person to be in charge of all inspections.

Spinner suggested Huntingburg could contract that service out until something permanent was decided upon by all of the municipalities and the county.

Also in the meeting last night the council held a public hearing on the tax abatement proposal for the solar park. No one came forward to speak, but council member Tim Wehr said he had some discussion with citizens about passing a tax abatement with no apparent job benefit.

Mayor Spinner pointed out that in the application for a tax abatement, there is provision for the benefit of added jobs, but it isn’t the only criteria for the consideration of a tax abatement.

He was also pointed out that even though IMPA does not pay property taxes, they are required to make a payment in lieu of property taxes to the City of Huntingburg.

Dan Worl of IMPA was at the meeting last night and confirmed that fact.

The council passed ordinance 2016-15 that approved a five-year abatement on the solar park by Indiana Municipal Power Agency.