ACTION REQUESTED:
Title
Communication from the City Manager and Community Development Director with a Recommendation from the Construction Commission to ADOPT an ORDINANCE AMENDING of the Following:
A. An ORDINANCE Amending CHAPTER 5 of the City of Peoria CODE Pertaining to BUILDING CODES Based on the Recommendation of the Construction Commission to Adopt the 2018 ICC International Building Code, the 2018 International Fuel Gas Code, the 2018 ICC International Mechanical Code, the 2018 ICC International Property Maintenance Code, the 2018 International ICC Fire Code, the 2018 ICC International Residential Code, the 2018 ICC Existing Building Code and the 2017 National Electrical Code (City-Wide); and
B. An ORDINANCE Amending CHAPTER 13 of the City of Peoria CODE Pertaining to BUILDING CODES Based on the Recommendation of the Construction Commission to Adopt the 2018 ICC International Property Maintenance Code (City-Wide).
Body
BACKGROUND:
Building codes are among the most ancient of all human regulations with the earliest codes introduced in Babylon in 1758 BC and in the Book of Deuteronomy. Building codes experienced dramatic updates after tragic events such as the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Building codes are also updated to address new building technology such as steel-framed skyscrapers, elevators, and modern electrical, gas, and water service to buildings.
Cities have for millennia enacted rules that protect the health, safety, and welfare of their residents. Building codes are a core element of those protections. The steady and ongoing reduction in the number of total-loss fires, building collapses, and other structural failures in modern buildings is a testament to the protection of human life through better regulatory codes. While some may see building codes as a damper on economic growth and competitiveness, the reality is that the codes are the minimum requirement to construct a safe building and the vas...
Click here for full text