Home Buyers Will Be Affected If Codes Adopted, Contractors Say

Home buyers will pay more and wait longer for new houses if the city of Coeur d’Alene adopts new building codes, area contractors say.

That’s why the North Idaho Building Contractor’s Association asked the City Council to delay adopting the new codes Tuesday, members say. The council agreed to do so.

But this is about confusion and miscommunication, not onerous new regulations, city officials counter.

Chief building inspector Mike Jacobs will meet with builders Friday at 7 a.m. at Pioneer Title Co. to try and clear the air.

The issue revolves around city plans to adopt a section of the 1994 Uniform Building Code that requires more substantial walls. That’s designed to ensure houses can withstand stronger winds and meet earthquake standards for this area.

The city now uses the 1991 version of the code - as do more than half of the cities in the state, according to the Idaho Department of Labor and Industrial Services.

“If adopted, the city would require all of the walls to have considerably more bracing,” said John Johnson of Crescent Homes. It would mean re-engineering house plans, which translates into delays and homes costing $500 to $5,000 more, he said.

Kootenai County has adopted the 1994 code. That has not caused problems because county inspectors are giving builders more latitude, Johnson said.

Meanwhile, “nobody’s been able to find a (building) failure in Kootenai County in the last 100 years for these things,” Johnson said.

In any case, the city isn’t required to adopt the new code, Johnson said.

Wayne Larsen, who runs the state’s building division, confirms that local governments don’t have to have building codes. Only about half of the cities and counties have adopted some version of the Uniform Building Code, according to a February survey by his department.

The city argues that state law requires at least some version of the Uniform Building Code, City Attorney Jeff Jones said.

Still, city officials are sympathetic to builders’ concerns. “I can appreciate them not liking the requirement,” said Jacobs, the city’s top building inspector.

“They still have to come up with a building that is structurally sound,” he said.

Most of the complaints about the new wall-bracing requirements have risen because contractors are trying to build smaller garages.

That’s a way of cutting costs and reaching entry-level buyers, Jacobs said.

That’s smart business. In the process, though, builders are proposing walls that aren’t sufficiently braced, he said.

The houses themselves aren’t usually a problem because, 95 percent of the time, wall construction already exceeds the proposed codes, Jacobs added.

Where there are problems, the solution generally is as simple as moving the location of a door or a window - not something as complex as rebuilding the entire house, he said.

, DataTimes MEMO: These 2 sidebars appeared with the story: 1. MEETING Chief inspector Mike Jacobs will meet with builders Friday at 7 a.m. at Pioneer Title Co.

2. BUILDING CODES About half the cities and counties in Idaho have no building codes, according to the state Department of Labor and Industrial Services. Under state law, that’s legal. A February survey by the department found the following: Ninety-nine Idaho cities - about 50 percent of all cities in the state - use a version of the Uniform Building Code, the nationwide standard for residential and commercial building. Fourteen of those cities aren’t sure which version they adopted. Thirty-two cities use the 1994 version of the code. However, one city still operates under the 1957 UBC. About half of Idaho’s 44 counties use some version of the UBC. Just nine counties have adopted the 1994 version. A strong majority of cities and counties - 68 percent - use certified building inspectors. But only 33 Idaho cities and counties - 13.5 percent - had adopted building guidelines established under the Americans with Disabilities Act.