October 23, 2024 Minutes

Semi-annual Weld County Building Trades advisory Committee Minutes

Meeting Date & Time:  Wednesday, October 23, 2024 @ 5:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Jay Pier - Build West Construction (Large Independent GC)
Matt Wagy - Chief Building Official (City of Greeley)
Aaron Haas - master Plumbing Solutions (Plumbing Contractor)
Sam Gluck - APCO Electric (Electric Contractor)
Scott Dial - Windmill Homes (NoCO HBA Homebuilder)
Tom Potter - Commercial Plans Examiner
Rob Godin - Building Office (Weld County)

Absent: Taylor Kiser - Dynamic homes (Homebuilder), and John Duesing - (HVAC Contractor)

Minutes:

  • The meeting was called to order by Jay Pier at 5:38 pm
  • A quorum was established based on attendance
  • Rob Godin suggested introductions were in order since Matt Wagy has joined the committee, replacing Ken Haring as the City of Greeley Building Official
  • The meeting minutes from the 4/17/24 meeting was reviewed.  Aaron Haas made a motion to approve the meeting minutes as written.  Sam Gluck seconded the motion.
  • Since Matt Wagy is a new member, it was discussed that Jay Pier is the Committee Chairman, Sam Gluck is the Vice President, and Aaron Haas is the Secretary, all of whom were elected at the 10/18/23 meeting.

Old Business

  • Old business was derived from the 4/17/24 meeting.
  • Jay suggested as he did in the 4/17/24 meeting that we have a fire marshal from a Weld County fire district join the committee. Others on the committee agreed with Aaron.  Rob stated this would likely require an amendment of the Bylaws, but he had not talked with the County Attorney’s office yet.
  • Replacement water heaters were discussed again.  It was unanimous that water heaters should require a permit and inspections.  Rob indicated that water heater permitting is on a running list of proposed changes to Chapter 29 of County Code. Rob suggested that the BTAC do a full review of Chapter 29 to bring proposed changes to the BOCC for consideration.
  • Meeting frequency was discussed.  The members agreed that semi-annually works best.

New Business

  • Rob made the announcement that John Duesing could not attend the meeting as he was recovering from surgery.
  • Jay made the announcement that there are the following committee member vacancies at this time: Small General Contractor, Concrete Contractor, and a homebuilder.
  • Jay again suggested contacting Rob Shubert, or Jim Davis, both Weld County concrete contractors to ask if either of them have an interest in joining the committee to fill the vacated seat held by Izic Urbina. Rob said he did call Rob Schubert, but he and Rob were never able to speak directly about membership. Jay said he would speak to Rob Schubert. We need suggestions for an exteriors contractor that does replacement siding, windows, roofing, & gutters to fill the small general contractor seat. We also need a homebuilder with a reputation as a quality builder to fill the homebuilder seat.
  • Rob and Jay provided a recap of the Contractor Advisory Group meeting held on October 16th, 2024. This meeting was conducted to create a discussion between the building community and the building department. The intent was to solicit feedback from the building community on how the department was performing on behalf of the building community and to identify areas for improvement. It was a good, productive discussion.  The primary common themes were that permit turnaround times are too long, and that the County under-communicates with the Applicants on the status of their applications. Rob mentioned that the County intends to conduct this meeting again, ahead of the BTAC committee meeting so we can act on the feedback received. The Committee members all agreed that this was good timing, and a good idea.
  • Rob Godin informed the committee that Weld County did adopt the 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC) and the International Swimming Pool & Spa Code in late July, 2024 per Ordinance 2024-06.
  • Over-the-counter permits were discussed again.  Rob mentioned that the Express Permit is now available. More than 200 have been issued so far this year. Projects that qualify for an over-the-counter permit are projects that do not require a plan review. The Express Permit can be used for emergency service work as well, as this does not require a plan review. Rob indicated that the building code addresses emergency service work. This work can be done without a permit to minimize utility service downtime, restoring service as quickly as the repair can be made. The code does require the contractor to apply for a permit the following business day, then schedule inspection once the permit is issued.  Express permits are issued in 24 hrs., sometimes 48 hours if there are special circumstances.
  • Affordable housing was discussed once again. Rob mentioned that Weld County has revised Chapter 23 of County Code formalized pursuant to Ordinance 2024-04 to allow for accessory dwelling units (ADU) in some but not all zone districts. This is an effort to address affordable housing. 24 ADU permits have been issued so far in 2024.
  • Jay Pier announced that the Spring meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, April 16th, 2025.
  • Jay Pier made a motion to adjourn the meeting.  The motion was seconded by Sam Gluck and the meeting was adjourned at 8:32 pm.

End of Meeting Minutes

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