[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Riverside as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 6-7-2004 by Ord. No. 6-04]
This municipality hereby elects to administer
and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act,
Act 45 of 1999, 35 P.S. §§ 7210.101 to 7210.1103, as
amended from time to time, and its regulations.
The Uniform Construction Code, contained in
34 Pa. Code, Chapters 401 to 405, as amended from time to time, is
hereby adopted and incorporated herein by reference as the municipal
building code of this municipality.
Administration and enforcement of the code within
this municipality shall be undertaken in any of the following ways,
as determined by the governing body of this municipality from time
to time by resolution:
A.
By the designation of an employee of the municipality
to serve as the municipal code official to act on behalf of the municipality.
B.
By the retention of one or more construction code
officials or third-party agencies to act on behalf of the municipality.
C.
By agreement with one or more other municipalities
for the joint administration and enforcement of this Act through an
intermunicipal agreement.
D.
By entering into a contract with another municipality
for the administration and enforcement of this Act on behalf of this
municipality.
E.
By entering into an agreement with the Pennsylvania
Department of Labor and Industry for plan review, inspections and
enforcement of structures other than one-family or two-family dwelling
units and utility and miscellaneous use structures.
A Board of Appeals shall be established by ordinance
or resolution of the governing body of this municipality in conformity
with the requirements of the relevant provisions of the code, as amended
from time to time, and for the purposes set forth therein. If at any
time enforcement and administration is undertaken jointly with one
or more other municipalities, said Board of Appeals shall be established
by joint action of the participating municipalities.
A.
All building code ordinances or portions of ordinances
which were adopted by this municipality on or before July 1, 1999,
and which equal or exceed the requirements of the code shall continue
in full force and effect until such time as such provisions fail to
equal or exceed the minimum requirements of the code, as amended from
time to time.
B.
All building code ordinances or portions of ordinances
which are in effect as of the effective date of this article and whose
requirements are less than the minimum requirements of the code are
hereby amended to conform with the comparable provisions of the code.
C.
All relevant ordinances, regulations and policies
of this municipality not governed by the code shall remain in full
force and effect.
Fees assessable by the municipality for the
administration and enforcement undertaken pursuant to this article
and the code shall be established by the governing body by resolution
from time to time.
[Adopted 9-6-2005 by Ord. No. 9-05]
The municipalities of the Montour County Council of Governments,
which participate in the UCC program, do hereby create and establish
the Montour County Board of Appeals, hereinafter referred to as the
"Appeals Board."
[Amended 3-2-2015 by Ord.
No. 2015-2[1]]
Riverside Borough establishes, designates and does hereby confirm
that the Montour County Council of Governments Uniform Construction
Code Board of Appeals shall be the proper, sole and official forum
for resolving disputes arising out of the following:
A.
The codes and standards promulgated in the most current version of
the Uniform Construction Code (Act 45 of 1999)[2] of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as amended by the
participating municipalities, and as subsequently adopted in Title
34 PA Code Chapters 401, 403 and 405.
[2]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. §§ 7210.101
to 7210.1103.
B.
The rules and regulations contained in 34 Pa. Code Chapters 401 to
405, adopted by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
C.
The International Code Council Property Maintenance Code, as amended
by the participating municipalities that have adopted this code.
D.
The International Code Council Fire Code, as amended by the participating
municipalities that have adopted the code.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance further authorized the Borough
to execute Joint Articles of Agreement for the establishment of the
Board of Appeals. Said Joint Articles of Agreement are on file in
the Borough offices.
The Appeals Board is established to provide
a process for the resolution of code grievances derived from the decision
of the Code Official in order to insure the health, safety, and general
welfare of the citizens of the Montour County Council of Governments
Region.
A.
Any resident of the Montour County COG Region having the qualifications according to § 125-11D or 125-11E shall be eligible for appointment to the Appeals Board regardless of whether the resident's home municipality participates in the code administration program. The intent of the regional Appeals Board is to provide uniform interpretation of the codes and to recruit persons who are well qualified professionally, regardless of residence. Therefore, it is not expected that representation will necessarily reflect any sort of balance among the municipalities.
B.
A non-Montour County COG Region resident may fill
a position on the Appeals Board when the Montour County COG cannot
find a person within the county region who satisfies the requirements
of 34 Pa. Code § 403.121(c)(1).
A.
The Montour County COG representatives shall recommend
to the Montour County COG appointments to the Appeals Board. The Montour
County COG shall consider the appointments and shall recommend a slate
of nominations to the participating municipalities for appointment
by the participating municipalities.
B.
The Appeals Board shall consist of five members, with
two alternate members.
C.
Members of the participating municipalities' governing
boards and their code officials may not serve on the Board of Appeals.
D.
The Board of Appeals shall consist of members who
are qualified by experience and training to pass on matters pertaining
to building construction and are not employees of the jurisdiction.
E.
Members of the Appeals Board shall serve for the period
as follows:
F.
The Appeals Board shall elect a Chairman and Vice
Chairman from the Board at the January organizational meeting of which
date and time is set by the COG. The Appeals Board at the organizational
meeting shall establish meeting dates, times, and locations for the
year. The Chairman, or Vice Chairman in the absence of the Chairman,
shall have the authority to call the Appeals Board into a special
session.
G.
The Director of the Montour County COG Code Administration
or the Director's designee shall be the Secretary to the Appeals Board.
A.
The Appeals
Board shall only consider the following factors when deciding an appeal
under 34 Pa. Code § 403.121, Board of appeals:
B.
The Appeals
Board may consider the following factors when ruling upon a request
for extension of time or the request for variance:
(1)
The reasonableness of the Uniform Construction Code's
application in a particular case.
(2)
The extent to which the granting of a variance or
an extension of time will pose a violation of the Uniform Construction
Code or an unsafe condition.
(3)
The availability of professional or technical personnel
needed to come into compliance.
(4)
The availability of materials and equipment needed
to come into compliance.
(5)
The efforts being made to come into compliance as
quickly as possible.
(6)
Compensatory features that will provide a degree of
protection equivalent to the protection of the Uniform Construction
Code.
If the owner or owner's agent requests a hearing, the Appeals
Board shall schedule a hearing and notify the owner or owner's agent
and the Building Code Official of the date, time and place of the
hearing. The Appeals Board may:
A.
All appeals shall be legally advertised and conducted
according to the Pennsylvania State Sunshine Act (65 Pa.C.S.A. § 701
to 716), as amended. The Appeals Board shall adopt formal rules for
its proceedings.
B.
The appellant wishing to appeal the decision of the
Code Official shall do so within 30 calendar days upon receipt of
the written decision.
C.
The Appeals Board may request and obtain legal counsel
through the Montour County Council of Governments or the legal counsel
of the district where the appeal has been made.
D.
The appellant wishing to appeal the decision of the
Appeals Board shall do so to the Court of Common Pleas in accordance
with, as far as practicable, the rules of civil procedure of the Supreme
Court regarding appeals from administrative agencies.
E.
The Appeals Board shall also retain in its files a
copy of the decision, which files shall be available for inspection
by the public. Each decision shall set forth fully the reasons for
the decision of the Appeals Board and the finding of the facts on
which the decision was based. The Appeals Board shall make an order
on its decision, and the Code Enforcement Officer shall take immediate
action to carry out said order.
F.
The Appeals Board shall provide a written notice of
its decision to the owner and to the Building Code Official.
A.
A participating municipality shall withdraw from the
Appeals Board if it withdraws from the Montour County COG in accordance
with the Articles of Agreement and the Montour County COG Articles
of Agreement.
B.
A participating municipality shall have the right
to withdraw from the Appeals Board and to establish its own by following
the COG Articles of Agreement for withdrawal. Withdrawal will not
affect membership in the Montour County COG.
Amendments to these Joint Articles of Agreement
may be recommended by the Code Administration Committee, by the Montour
County COG, or by the participating municipalities. Any amendment
or change to these articles shall be approved by the Montour County
COG General Forum, participating municipalities, and shall take effect
upon passage of appropriate municipal ordinances.
The effective date of this agreement shall be
upon enactment by ordinance of this agreement by the participating
municipalities.
The Montour County Council of Governments (governing
body) shall set the fee schedule and Appeals Board member compensation
as needed by resolution.
