Agenda Index City of Vancouver

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

TO:

Vancouver City Council

FROM:

General Manager, Community Services and Chief Building Official
in concurrence with the Director of Legal Services

SUBJECT:

Building By-law Amendment - Related to Unsafe Conditions

 

RECOMMENDATIONS

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

COUNCIL POLICY

All changes in level of service are to be reported to Council.

Council on January 17, 1991 resolved:

THAT every Department/Board review services for which fees are now charged to ensure that fees are recovering the full cost of the services to the City, or are equivalent to competitive charges where the fee is of a market nature, rather than for cost recovery.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to ask Council to approve amendments to the Vancouver Building By-law to support the current administrative practices established for the co-ordinated enforcement initiatives in the department and to recover some of the costs associated with enforcement of problem premises by the establishment of a fee for the processing and issuance of a re-occupancy permit.

BACKGROUND

In March of 2000, Council approved the reorganization of the Community Service Group's licensing, enforcement and inspection functions. A Deputy Chief License Inspector position was established and one of the mandates of that position was the development of a coordinated approach to problem premise enforcement using a variety of methods.

The subsequent establishment of the Grow Busters Program in July of 2000 and its ongoing success is a positive example of the work being carried out by the coordinated enforcement division.

DISCUSSION

By-law enforcement, in particular related to problem properties is multifaceted and complex and demands a great deal of staff time and resources.

i) Re-Occupancy Permits

Current departmental policy requires that a re-occupancy permit be obtained prior to occupancy of any building or part of a building that has been closed as a result of an unsafe condition. At present, illegal marijuana grow operations form the majority of these situations. However, this policy is not limited to buildings that have contained grow operations but includes any building in which inspectors have observed serious life safety violations that warrant the building being ordered vacated.

Re-occupancy permits are issued following inspection of a building by the four inspection disciplines (building, plumbing, electrical and property use) and their confirmation that the unsafe conditions and other related by-law violations have been rectified. It is important to note that the issuance of a re-occupancy permit does not mean that the building fully complies with all requirements of the by-laws but that the building is safe for re-occupancy.

Amending the Building By-law to make re-occupancy permits mandatory will provide the Chief Building Official with legal recourse in the event that a property owner fails to meet the pre-determined by-law conditions for occupancy and the establishment of a fee for the re-occupancy permit will provide a revenue stream to offset some of the costs of the co-ordinated enforcement initiatives.

ii) Enforcement Costs:

Closing a building that has been certified as unsafe requires an initial inspection that identifies the unsafe condition. This is followed by staff meetings to discuss the level of safety that has been reduced in the building, other applicable by-law violations and the enforcement strategy to be applied. This activity results in letters, orders and meetings with property owners, disconnection of electrical and gas where warranted and follow up inspections. In some cases, further legal action is warranted either through City Council or through the Courts.

Traditionally, enforcement of the City's by-laws has been an important service provided by this department and with few exceptions, the associated costs have not been recovered. Establishment of the coordinated enforcement model has proven effective and efficient in that all of the issues related to a problem property are dealt with collectively. However, the process is expensive.

The Grow Busters Project, which is the most notable coordinated initiative at present, is one example where Council has set up a cost recovery model with the establishment of aspecial inspection fee. These fees currently cover annual staff costs for six inspectors, one Fire Prevention Officer and one clerical support.

Since meeting with Council last summer, staff tracked the number of first time grow operations, the number of repeat grow operations and the number of grow operations that were occupied by the property owner. The results are listed below:

Number of "owner occupied" grow operations: 203 (20%)

A new strategy has been developed to address the "repeat" as well as the "owner occupied" grow operations. Owners are given strict guidelines under which the City will allow reconnection of services and the address files are flagged accordingly and follow up inspections are carried out. These strategies, and the processing of re-occupancy permits, although effective, add substantial costs to the City that are not captured under the current fee schedule.

Permit Fee:

Current revenue generated from the special inspections and repair permits average about $750.00 per address.

Establishment of a fee of $100.00 for a re-occupancy permit will provide a revenue stream of approximately $72,000 annually that will relieve the City of some of the costs of managing the ongoing coordinated enforcement of problem properties.

SUMMARY

The proposed amendments to the Building By-law will enable staff to address unsafe conditions effectively and protect neighbouring properties and residents. It will enable the Chief Building Official to pursue legal action against those property owners who occupy a building that has been closed due to unsafe conditions, prior to obtaining inspection and permit approval from the City.

Establishment of a fee for the re-occupancy permit will offset the rising costs associated with the increased workload for enforcement of problem premises.

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APPENDIX A

Unsafe condition

BY-LAW NO.

A By-law to amend
Building By-law No. 8057

THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF VANCOUVER, in public meeting, enacts as follows:

1. This By-law amends the indicated sections and schedules of Building By-law No. 8057.

2. To Article 1.1.3.2., immediately after the definition of "relief vent", add:

3. From Article 1.1.3.2., delete the definition of "unsafe condition", and substitute:

4. To Article 1A.2.1.4., immediately before "involved" in the first line, add:

6. To Article 1A.8.2.1., add:

7. After Article 1A.8.3.3., add:

8. To the end of Section 2 of Part A of the Schedule of Fees, add:

9. This By-law is to come into force and take effect on the date of its enactment.

ENACTED by Council this day of , 2002


Mayor


City Clerk

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ag020528.htm

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