Supervisors receive building code inspector proposal
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LEWISTOWN -- The Derry Township Board of Supervisors received a proposal from a Building Code Inspector during its meeting Monday evening.
Officials claim they have been looking into available building code inspection services for permitting residential and commercial construction in the township.
Although they currently use a third-party inspection service with Bureau Veritas, the board is investigating other companies that provide the same inspections.
"We look at costs for permitting, turnaround time for issuance of permits, and quality of the services provided," explained Township Manager Kelly Shutes.
According to Shutes, under current building code law, each municipality in the state can provide in-house inspection services or contract with private companies that provide inspection services. The Department of Labor & Industry regulates the licensing of such inspectors.
Mike Gensemer, manager of Building Inspection Underwriters of Pennsylvania, located in New Bloomfield, attended the township meeting with a proposal explaining their fees and circumstances for both commercial and residential building code inspection services.
Chairman Ronald Napikoski Jr. expressed concerns noting some issues in the past.
Napikoski said, "Once things are built, we don’t always have to follow up to make sure they’ve been built appropriately. Is this something you guys do?"
Gensemer assured officials that that is his sole purpose.
Roadmaster Justin Allen asked Gensemer about residential turnaround time from when an application is submitted and all information is provided. Gensemer stated that a building permit could be issued within four days which in his opinion was a bit long.
Gensemer also noted that when someone calls for a building code inspection you will hear from an inspector within 24 hours. Inspectors also provide their cell phone number to provide their customers with full transparency.
In other news, the board approved a change order addendum for the Kish Park splash pad in the amount of $3,000.
Shutes explained that this extra expense is to extend electrical service to the splash pad and other areas of the park.
The original contract was for electrical engineering services in the amount of $4,950.
The addendum added $3,000 for a total of $7,950.