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Village of Green Island, NY
Albany County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Green Island 6-27-1994 by L.L. No. 1-1994. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire Department — See Ch. 16.
Flood damage prevention — See Ch. 87.
Insurance — See Ch. 101.
Unsafe buildings — See Ch. 155.
Zoning — See Ch. 169.
This chapter shall provide for administration and enforcement of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (Uniform Code) in the Village of Green Island. This chapter is adopted pursuant to § 10 of Article 2 of the Municipal Home Rule Law. Except as otherwise provided within this chapter, or within the Uniform Code, all premises, regardless of use, are subject to the provisions which follow.
The words and terms used in this chapter shall have the same meanings as those contained in Executive Law Article 18, as amended from time to time.
A. 
The Village of Green Island may, by resolution, enter into a contract with other governments to carry out the terms of this chapter.
B. 
There is hereby created the appointive office of Code Enforcement Officer. The Code Enforcement Officer shall be appointed by the Mayor with the approval of the Village Board of Trustees at a compensation to be fixed by it. In the absence of the Code Enforcement Officer to act for any reason, the Chief Executive Officer shall have the power, with the consent of the Village Board of Trustees, to designate a person to act for this officer. Compensation shall be as may, from time to time, be fixed by the Village Board of Trustees by resolution.
C. 
A schedule of fees shall be established by resolution by the Village of Green Island Board of Trustees.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. A177, Fees.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall administer and enforce all of the provisions of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code. The Code Enforcement Officer may promulgate rules and regulations subject to the approval of the Village Board of Trustees to secure the intent of this chapter and the Uniform Code. Such rules and regulations shall be published at least 10 days prior to their effective date. The specific duties of the Code Enforcement Officer shall be to:
A. 
Receive building permit applications and such fees as may be established by the Village Board of Trustees.
B. 
Approve or deny plans and specifications within 60 days, in writing, and issue permits for the erection and alteration of buildings or structures or parts thereof.
C. 
Inspect the premises for which such applications have been received, plans approved or such permits issued.
D. 
Approve or deny applications for certificates of occupancy within 10 days.
E. 
Conduct periodic inspections as required by the Uniform Code.
F. 
Maintain all records on file with the Village Clerk, consisting of applications, permits, denials, inspection reports, recommendations, complaints, violation orders, certificates of occupancy, correspondence and proof of payment of required fees.
G. 
Issue, in writing, all appropriate notices or orders to remove illegal or unsafe conditions.
H. 
Require the necessary safeguards during the entire course of construction or demolition.
I. 
Serve notices and orders upon a property owner or the owner's agent personally or by certified mail or by posting conspicuously on the premises to which the notice or order applies.
J. 
Report at least annually to the governing body all approvals, denials, permits and certificates issued, fees collected and turned in to the general fund, orders and notices issued and other matters as appropriate.
No structure, building or premises shall be erected, altered or rearranged, in whole or in part (excluding regular repairs or maintenance), nor converted from residential to commercial or industrial use or from one commercial or industrial use to another until plans and details, in duplicate, of the proposed work, together with a statement of materials to be used and the estimated cost of the same, shall have been submitted to the Village Planning Board or the Building Inspector, who shall, if in accordance with the provisions herein contained and of other pertinent and applicable village laws, issue a permit for the proposed construction. Where the work is to be performed by an individual or corporation generally engaged in the contracting business, there shall also be submitted proof of appropriate liability insurance in the sum of not less than $500,000.
A. 
Building permits shall be required for any work which must conform to the Uniform Code. The application for a building permit shall request sufficient information to permit a determination that the intended work accords with the requirements of the Uniform Code.
B. 
Upon the filing of an application for a building permit, fees, as set by resolution of the Board of Trustees, from time to time, shall be payable, which fees are nonrefundable.
C. 
Application for each building permit shall be made on forms obtainable from the Building Inspector.
D. 
Exceptions to the requirement for building permits may be allowed for:
(1) 
Necessary repairs which do not materially affect structural features.
(2) 
Alterations to existing buildings, provided that the alterations:
(a) 
Cost less than $10,000.
(b) 
Do not materially affect structural features.
(c) 
Do not affect firesafety features such as smoke detectors, sprinklers, required fire separations and exits.
(d) 
Do not involve the installation or extension of electrical systems.
(e) 
Do not include the installation of solid-fuel-burning heating appliances and associated chimneys and flues.
A. 
It shall be unlawful to erect, construct, enlarge, alter, improve, remove, demolish or use any building or structure or portion thereof in violation of any provision of law and the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code, as well as any regulation or rule of the municipality, or to fail in any manner to comply with a notice, directive or order of the Code Enforcement Officer or to commence the erection, construction, enlargement, alteration, improvement, removal, demolition or use of any building or structure or the installation of heating equipment without having applied for and obtained a permit. However, no permit shall be required for the performance of necessary repairs which are not of a structural nature and which are done in conformance with the Uniform Code.
B. 
Any person who fails to comply with a written order of the Code Enforcement Officer, within the time fixed for compliance therewith, and any owner, builder, architect, tenant, contractor, subcontractor, construction superintendent or their agents or any other person taking part or assisting in the construction or use of any building who shall knowingly violate any of the applicable provisions of law, or any lawful order, notice, directive, permit or certificate of the Code Enforcement Officer made thereunder, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $250 or imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or both. Each week that a violation continues shall be deemed a separate offense.
C. 
Except as provided otherwise by law, such a violation shall not be a crime, and the penalty or punishment imposed therefor shall not be deemed for any purpose a penal or criminal penalty or punishment and shall not impose any disability upon or affect or impair the credibility as a witness, or otherwise, of any person found guilty of such an offense.
D. 
Appropriate action and proceedings may be taken at law or in equity to prevent unlawful construction or to restrain, correct or abate a violation or to prevent illegal occupancy of a building, structure or premises or to prevent illegal acts, conduct or business in or about any premises, and these remedies shall be in addition to penalties otherwise prescribed by law.
A. 
Requirements.
(1) 
A completed application for a building permit must include:
(a) 
The full name and address of the owner and of the applicant and, if either shall be a corporation, the names and addresses of their responsible officer.
(b) 
A description of the site on which the proposed work is to be done.
(c) 
A statement of the use of occupancy of all parts of the proposed building or structure.
(d) 
A brief description of the proposed activity.
(e) 
The estimated cost of the proposed work, with appropriate substantiation.
(f) 
Such other information as may reasonably be required by the Code Enforcement Officer to establish compliance of the proposed work with the requirements of the Uniform Code and Ch. 169, Zoning.
(g) 
The signature of the owner or authorized agent.
(2) 
Each application for a building permit shall be accompanied by three sets of plans and specifications, including a plot plan, drawn to scale, showing the location and size of all proposed new construction and all existing structures on the site (the nature and character of the work to be performed and the materials to be incorporated), distance from lot lines and to structures on adjoining property, widths and grades of adjoining streets, walks and alleys and, where required by the Code Enforcement Officer, details of structural, mechanical and electrical work, including computations, stress diagrams and other essential technical data. Plans and specifications shall bear the signature of the person responsible for the design and drawings and, where required by §§ 7209 and 7307, as amended, of Articles 145 and 147 of the Education Law of the State of New York, the seal of a licensed architect or a licensed professional engineer. The Code Enforcement Officer may waive the requirements for filing plans and specifications for minor alterations and issue a building permit so stating.
(3) 
Amendments, if any, to the application or to the plans and specifications accompanying the same shall be filed with the Code Enforcement Officer, and approval shall be received from the Code Enforcement Officer prior to the commencement of such change of work.
B. 
Display. The building permit must be prominently displayed on the property or premises to which it pertains.
C. 
Expiration. A building permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall expire one year from the date of issuance. The permit may, on written request, be renewed for successive one-year periods.
A. 
Certificates of occupancy or certificates of compliance shall be required for all work for which a building permit is required to be issued under this chapter and for all buildings which are converted from one general occupancy classification to another, as such classifications are defined in Part 701 of Title 9 of the Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York. No building or structure shall be occupied prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy.
B. 
The Code Enforcement Officer shall conduct:
(1) 
Construction inspections where a building permit has been issued, at such times during the course of construction as will permit the observation of the foundation, structural elements, electrical systems, plumbing systems, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, fire protection and detection systems and exit features.
(2) 
Inspections where a certificate of occupancy or a certificate of compliance is required, prior to its issuance.
(3) 
Firesafety inspections of "areas of public assembly," defined in Part 606 of Title 9 of the Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of New York[1] at least once per year.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said Part 606 of Title 9 of the Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of New York was repealed by the enactment of the Uniform Code effective 1-1-2003. The current administrative regulations for the Uniform Code, at 19 NYCRR Part 1203, no longer include a definition of "area of public assembly."
(4) 
Firesafety inspections of all multiple dwellings and all nonresidential occupancies at intervals consistent with local conditions, at the discretion of the Fire and Building Inspector/Code Enforcement Officer.
(5) 
Inspections in response to bona fide complaints regarding conditions or activities allegedly failing to comply with the Uniform Code.
A. 
Work for which a building permit is required shall be inspected for approval prior to enclosing or covering each stage of construction, including building location, site preparation, excavation, foundation, framing, superstructure, electrical, plumbing and heating and air conditioning. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to inform the Code Enforcement Officer that the work is ready for inspection.
B. 
Existing buildings, not subject to inspection under Subsection A, shall be subject to periodic inspections for compliance with the Uniform Code. Notwithstanding any requirement of this section to the contrary, no regular, periodic inspections of occupied dwelling units shall be required or performed without the consent of a unit's custodian. This shall not be a limitation on inspections conducted at the invitation of the occupant or where conditions on the premises threaten or present a hazard to the public health, safety or welfare.
A permit for installation of a solid-fuel-burning heating appliance, chimney and flue in any dwelling unit shall be obtained as provided in § 82-8. If the enforcement official, after inspection, determines that the installation is in compliance with the Uniform Code, he shall issue a certificate of compliance on a form to be prescribed by resolution of the Village Board. A violation of this section and of Subdivision 5 of § 378 of the Executive Law[1] shall be punishable as provided in § 82-7B.
[1]
Editor's Note: Subdivision 5 of § 378 of the Executive Law was renumbered by L. 2006, c. 94. See now Subdivision 5-c of § 378 of the Executive Law.