CITY COMMISSION AGENDA ITEM

Department:	Planning & Development Services		Commission Meeting Date:  9/5/2017
Staff Contact:	Barry Walthall, Building Official
Recommendations/Options/Action Requested:
Authorize staff to convene the existing building code advisory boards and begin review of the 2018 I-Codes in collaboration with other Douglas County or regional code authorities.
Executive Summary:		Staff surveyed code officials in the Kansas City metropolitan area (KC metro area) and northeast Kansas to learn whether 2018 editions of the various International Code Council construction codes (I-Codes) are anticipated to be widely adopted or whether these jurisdictions intend to stand pat with currently adopted code editions.  The results of the survey indicate that the 2018 codes may become the most widely and concurrently adopted edition of the I-Codes in northeast Kansas since formation of the International Code Council and initial edition of the I-Codes were published in 2000.  Survey results are reported in the attached table. Currently, adopted codes among surveyed jurisdictions range from the 2003 editions of the I-Codes to the 2015 editions.  Including Lawrence in the KC metro area, the City is joined by only the Unified Government of Wyandotte County in adopting the most current codes available, the 2015 I-Codes.  The City of Manhattan has also adopted the 2015 I-Codes and the City of Topeka is currently reviewing the 2015 I-Codes for adoption.  Every jurisdiction surveyed except the City of Topeka indicates intent to proceed with review and adoption of the 2018 I-Codes. A common but unsolicited response received from code officials was interest in and encouragement of promoting consistency in codes throughout the KC metro area.  Wide adoption of the 2018 I-Codes is viewed as an opportunity to achieve a significant measure of consistency.  Code authorities consulted in Douglas County, Baldwin City, and Eudora expressed similar interest in promoting consistency within Douglas County and have proposed that the City of Lawrence join in a collaborative effort to review and adopt the 2018 I-Codes in a concurrent fashion with other Douglas County jurisdictions.  Staff supports working collaboratively with the other code authorities in Douglas County on review and adoption of the 2018 I-Codes. Another discussion point related to consistency of adopted codes is the code review and adoption cycle.  Many code officials are concerned about the three-year publication cycle of the I-Codes and have lobbied the International Code Council to extend the publication cycle to five or six years.  ICC studied the concept of extending the cycle but has tabled the issue for the foreseeable future.  Most of the KC metro code officials staff has consulted have expressed interest in adopting codes on alternating cycles but none have that specific direction from their governing bodies.  Adopting new codes on alternating cycles likely provides some benefit to all stakeholders, such as reduction in resources required to review and adopt new codes every three years and ability for designers, contractors and construction workers to become more proficient with codes before beginning a new learning curve.  Potential consequences are that changes are more pronounced and review may be complicated by skipping code editions.  Staff opinion is that the City should consider adopting codes on alternating cycles, but leave open the option to adopt every three years if deemed appropriate. A final discussion item relates to the City Commission’s direction to combine the building code advisory trade and fire boards into one board.  As staff begins to work on the framework to implement that direction, it should be noted that the projected 9- to 12-month review of the 2018 I-Codes (which will be published and made available in September 2017) will need to be initiated sooner than a draft outline for the framework of a combined board can be completed, authorized and subsequently codified.  To address this, staff proposes to review the 2018 I-Codes under the current trade board framework while simultaneously working to combine the boards into one Building Code Board. Staff requests approval to begin review of the 2018 I-Codes under the framework of the current advisory boards, and to work in collaboration with other Douglas County or regional code authorities on review and adoption where opportunity to do so arises.
Strategic Plan Critical Success Factor		Effective Governance/Professional Administration Safe, Healthy, and Welcoming Neighborhoods Collaborative Solutions
Fiscal Impact (Amount/Source):		The fiscal impact to the City is planned for and included in the PDS department budget.  Expenses for code review are primarily related to purchases of code books and other reference materials and any costs associated with advisory board meetings.
Attachments:		Results of survey of regional peer communities

Reviewed By: (for CMO use only)

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