............ 15
Board reappointments ............................... 15
Compliance Report ................................... 16
Interpretive ruling signed .......................... 22
Stakeholder meeting scheduled
for Jefferson and Crook counties ............... 22
Board meeting dates .................................. 23
Tri-County Service
Center update
by Joan Stevens-Schwenger
The Tri-County Building Industry Service
Board and its committees have been working
throughout the summer to meet legislative
deadlines and to brainstorm new avenues of
cooperation. Here are the newest develop-
ments.
Standard processes for recording
inspections and issuing permits
when no plan review is required
Contractors working in the Portland Metro-
politan tri-county region now have a simple
blueprint for recording inspections on all job
sites. The board recently approved a process
requiring the inspector to leave a job card or
some other form of written documentation at
the job site.
All contractors are asked to
leave a weatherproof container on site for
the record. (Examples include a mailbox, a
plastic real-estate brochure box, a secured
waterproof envelope, or a job shack.) Electri-
cians will be notified by inspectors after every
inspection. 2
If permits are not associated with projects
requiring plan review, applicants can quickly
find out if their application has been accepted.
The jurisdiction will notify them of acceptance
and issue the permit or let applicants know if
they must submit other information.
For more information, check the
Tri-County Service Center Web site:
http://www.oregonbcd.org/tricounty/
checklstprocedures.htm.
Permit application forms
On October 1, all jurisdictions in the tri-
county area began using a standard format for
electrical, plumbing, mechanical, and building
permit application forms, and the review
checklist for one- and two-family dwelling
plans. Each jurisdiction includes its own con-
tact information and fees, but contractors and
homeowners applying for permits in multiple
jurisdictions will find that all the application
forms look the same. If a jurisdiction has spe-
cific requirements, that information is re-
quested under Other or Jurisdictional
Specific Information.
Contractors can also print the forms from
the Tri-County Service Center forms Web
page, http://www.oregonbcd.org/tricounty/
triforms.htm, to use in any jurisdiction.
Our goal was to take the guesswork out
of the application process, said Clint Hilman,
City of Gresham building official and chairman
of the Tri-County Building Industry Service
Board Forms and Processes Advisory Com-
mittee. Through these forms, weve suc-
ceeded in standardizing the information we
require from permit applicants, he added. The
advisory committee is working on a commer-
cial-plan-review checklist and processes for
deferred submittals and phased permitting.
Commercial checklist, phased
permitting and deferred
submittals
The Forms and Processes Advisory Com-
mittee and several work groups have been
crafting a plan-review checklist for commer-
cial construction as well as a process for de-
ferred submittals and phased permitting.
Board and forms committee member Rob
Yorke Jr., Yorke and Curtis, said that while
the checklist is comprehensive, he believes it
will save architects, builders, and contractors
time, money, and frustration.
The checklist lets us know exactly what
we must provide for plan review, said Yorke.
The committee has held industry briefings
to find out what architects and developers
think of the checklist and process.
Some sessions have been rather lively,
said John Lape, board member and Portland
architect.
Lape organized a briefing in late Septem-
ber attended by about 100 architects.
Were receiving very constructive ideas
and suggestions, he said. Our goal is to
craft a checklist that meets the needs of all
affected parties: developers, plan reviewers,
and architects.
Those interested in reviewing and
commenting on the committees commercial
checklist should call Jim Muir, Washington
County Building Services supervisor,
503-687-6760. Muir chairs the plan review
work group that is drafting the check list.
Fee methodology
Tri-Countys uniform fee methodology be-
came effective October 1. While fees may still
vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, depend-
ing on the value of the property or equipment,
the method by which fees are calculated is
the same.
Tri-County Service Center update, continued
Please see Tri-County Service Center update, Page 3 3
Adopting the new system presents a num-
ber of challenges to building departments.
Adjusting our current fee tables to corre-
spond to the new structure was more prob-
lematic than we first thought, said Ricky
Icenogle, the acting building official for the
City of Hillsboro. For example, we currently
calculate commercial mechanical fees per
piece of equipment. Tri-Countys methodology
is based on the valuation of the equipment.
Its like comparing apples to oranges.
According to Kevin Wing of the
Homebuilders Association, comparing apples
and oranges has been precisely the problem
for contractors and developers. Builders
working in multiple jurisdictions had to deal
with multiple fee tables and methodologies,
said Wing. Having a standard methodology
makes it possible for contractors to accurately
compare and predict what fees they will have
to pay in a jurisdiction. The boards goal was
to introduce uniform fee methodologies
throughout the region without raising fees.
Jurisdictions must maintain revenue neu-
trality when converting their methodologies
meaning that the conversion cannot result
in fee increases. Nearly every jurisdiction
must convert one or more categories of fees
to reflect the new method. More information is
available on the Tri-County Building Industry
Service Board Web site.
Qualification review and training
for structural and mechanical
plan reviewers and inspectors
At the September Tri-County Building In-
dustry Service Board meeting, the group ap-
proved recommendations from the task force
that examined the qualification-review pro-
cess available to applicants for structural and
mechanical inspector and plan reviewer certi-
fications and in-training programs for certified
inspectors and plan reviewers in those fields.
The recommendations include allowing appli-
cants denied certification the opportunity for
board review of their application packets and
providing for tri-county-wide approved in-
training programs, the approval of instructors
and field evaluators, and the enrollment of
students through the Tri-County Building In-
dustry Service Board. A planning panel has
been assigned the task of working with staff
on an implementation proposal for the recom-
mendations. The group is scheduled to report
back to the board in December.
On the horizon
Beginning January 1, 2001, the board will
turn its attention to studying how it can better
facilitate the consistent application of code in
the tri-county region. It will also examine ways
to resolve disputes between contractors or
developers and local building officials that
have to do with site-specific application of
one or more provisions of the state building
code.
For more information, interested persons
should check the Tri-County Building Industry
Service Centers Web site or call Joan
Stevens-Schwenger, the Tri-County Service
Center manager, (503) 872-6731, ext. 22.
Tri-County Service Center update, continued 4
Chief plumbing inspector plumbing
code interpretation
Subject:
Definition of Furred Space
Code sections:
Oregon Plumbing Specialty
Code (OPSC) Section
510.7 and Oregon One-
and Two-Family Dwelling
Specialty Code (DSC)
Section 3310.7
Code edition: 2000
Date:
August 14, 2000
Question:
What is the definition of the term furred
space used in the 2000 Edition, Oregon State
Plumbing Specialty Code, Section 510.7 and
in the context of that definition, when and
where will a water heater pan be required?
Answer:
The model code provider, the International
Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Offi-
cials, (IAPMO) interprets furred space to be
either attic/ceiling assemblies, floor/ceiling as-
semblies, or floor/subfloor assemblies requir-
ing protection from structural damage should
a water heater leak occur.
This definition does not address many
other aspects of the code requirements spe-
cific to the question asked. For example, water
heaters are often located in a garage with a
concrete floor, on a stand, in a basement with
no floor drain, under a counter, or in a cabinet.
Some other factors to be considered are that
there are no code definitions or standards for
water heater pans or the size or capacity of a
water heater itself. It would not be reasonable
or practical to apply this code provision to a
small instantaneous water heater or a very
large water heater containing thousands
of gallons.
Therefore, the definition of furred space
should be based on a determination of when
or where damage is expected to result from a
leaking water heater and in a manner that will
afford uniform enforcement and consistent
installation practices throughout the state
of Oregon.
As used in Section 510.7 of the OPSC
and the comparable Section 3310.7 of the
DSC, the term furred space means the wa-
ter heater is located on a wood-framed floor
or ceiling in a concealed space, or in an area
that is not accessed or observable on a regu-