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 Chan Recipient of CALBO Building Official of the Year AwardLos Angeles Department of Building and Safety General Manager Raymond S. Chan was the recipient of the California Building Officials (CALBO) Victor L. Taugher Building Official of the Year Award during the ICC Chapter's 52nd Annual Business Meeting held earlier this month in Anaheim. Chan was honored for his significant achievements on behalf of all building officials and for his extraordinary commitment to helping others in the building code administration profession. Chan is licensed as a Structural Engineer, Civil Engineer, General Building Contractor, and Real Estate Broker in the state of California. He has held various positions for the city of Los Angeles for 29 years and has successfully initiated and implemented over 60 enhancement programs that have led to more attentive and efficient customer service, improved productivity of department staff, and better communication among city, county, and state agencies on development projects. Chan also is a Broadway Trustee for Bringing Back Broadway, a 10-year initiative to revitalize the Historic Broadway corridor in downtown Los Angeles, a National Register Historic District. Read more |
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Sheila Roark Miller, Clallam County Community Development Director, recently was recognized by the Washington Association of Building Officials (WABO) as an Accredited Code Official. Miller is the 27th professional in Washington state to earn a WABO accreditation, and the third woman. Miller was the first female building inspector in Clallam County, having worked in the Department of Community Development since April 1990. |
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 District of Columbia to Publish New Construction CodesDistrict of Columbia Mayor Vincent C. Gray announced that Washington, D.C., will adopt the 2013 DC Construction Codes. The new codes, based on the International Codes, reflect some of the most modern, sustainable, and energy- and water-efficient building practices, and will replace the District's 2008 Construction Codes. By adopting the 2013 DC Green Construction Code and the 2013 DC Energy Conservation Code as mandatory codes applicable to public- and private-sector buildings, the District has achieved a national leadership role in fostering green-building practices. Both codes will fundamentally transform the way buildings are constructed in the District. The 2013 Energy Conservation Code will require that new buildings perform as much as 30 percent more efficiently, and the District's inaugural Green Construction Code will extend the building practices legislated by the DC Green Building Act of 2006 to most construction projects. The new codes will result in energy and water savings as well as a greener and healthier city environment. Continue reading story |
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 Rancho Cucamonga Honored for Its Sustainable and Green DevelopmentThe Inland Empire Economic Partnership in Southern California, the region's largest economic development organization, held its first-ever "Red Tape to Red Carpet" awards in Redlands. The program was started to note government entities and individuals that make it easier for businesses to navigate complex regulatory waters. The city of Rancho Cucamonga was the winner in the Sustainable and Green Development category for its development and implementation of a simplified permit process for photovoltaic solar projects. The city's Building & Safety Department was cited for clearing the way for solar installations and developing a very efficient permit process for photovoltaic projects. The simplified permit process reduced the cost of the permit fees; a great benefit to the city's homeowners and the construction industry. The Foothill Chapter and Citrus Belt Chapter endorsed and supported the city's simplified permit process for photovoltaic solar projects. Read more |
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| Birmingham, Ala, Adopts New, Stronger Property Maintenance Code to Replace Housing Ordinances, Address Blight The Birmingham City Council voted to adopt standards from the International Property Maintenance Code to update existing - and outdated - housing codes. The city currently uses building codes derived from the International Code Council's International Building Code. Many of the current standards for property maintenance in the city's array of housing ordinances were passed in the 1950s and 1960s, and are out of step with those modern building codes, causing conflicting or confusing problems. "Some of the thresholds of the current ordinances are more stringent than the technical codes," a release from the city states. "This causes a conflict when we approve building a structure one way, then requiring maintenance of a more stringent method." The new standards include maintenance of some areas currently excluded in Birmingham's existing ordinances - including swimming pools, sidewalks, driveways and parking areas - and excludes areas that the City of Birmingham no longer regulates, such as county sewers and boarding houses permits. "Adopting the IPMC is the first stage in expanding the city's enforcement against non-conforming structures within the city, the major goal being to remove blight within the city," Birmingham Mayor William Bell said. "The portion of the IPMC code that will assist in the implementation of RISE (the city's blight removal plan) is the enforcement section. This will give the city authority and leverage to repair structures, place liens and/or foreclose on property that has become dilapidated and/or a public nuisance." Continue reading story |
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 Assistant Fire Chief Tony Collins Comes to Aid of Heart Attack Victim on Dance FloorA night of dancing at a pub turned into a lifesaving event for Assistant Fire Chief Tony Collins. As a cover band at Kenny's Pub began playing Neil Diamond's classic "Sweet Caroline", 83-year-old Don Roese suffered a heart attack and collapsed to the floor while dancing. Collins, a past president of the Hawkeye State Fire Safety Association, was celebrating his 53rd birthday at the pub with friends when he saw Roese collapse. He rushed to the stranger's aide as he turned blue, and checked for a pulse. Not finding one, Collins began to administer CPR for 15 minutes with the help of his friends as Roese's family watched and waited for an ambulance. "Doing something is better than doing nothing," Collins said. "He shouldn't even be here right now. He beat every odd imaginable." Roese technically died on the dance floor due to a major heart attack. He suffered a heart attack Collins called a "widow maker." Less than one percent of victims survive heart attacks as bad as these, Collins reported, but it was a lucky day for the two men who had never met before. After applying about 100 chest compressions per minute, the medical team found a pulse and Roese gained consciousness as an ambulance arrived to take him to a local hospital. Days later, Roese called the Iowa fire chief to thank him for saving his life. They met at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines for the second time. Roese had triple heart bypass surgery where doctors found two major coronary arteries with total blockage, which they say they believe caused the severe heart attack. In addition, Roese had several cracked ribs and a fractured sternum from the CPR that saved his life. Read more |
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