BOARD OF CODE STANDARDS AND APPEALS MINUTES November 5, 2007 Members: Francisco Banuelos, Randy Coonrod, Randy Harder, Richard Hartwell, Bernie Hentzen, Ed Murabito, Warren Willenberg, John Youle Present: Banuelos, Coonrod, Harder, Hartwell, Hentzen, Murabito, Youle Staff Members Present: Kurt Schroeder, Deb Legge, Penny Bohannon, Sharon Dickgrafe, Elaine Hammons The regular meeting of the Board of Code Standards and Appeals was called to order by Chairman Murabito on Monday, November 5, 2007, at 1:31 p.m. in the Metropolitan Area Planning Department Director's Conference Room, 10th floor, City Hall, 455 N. Main, Wichita, Kansas. 1. Approval of the Minutes of the October 1, 2007, meeting. A motion was made by Board Member Coonrod to approve the October minutes as submitted. Board Member Hentzen seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. 2. Approval of the Contractor License Examination Applications for November. NAME CLASS TEST DATE Eric McRae Roofing & Siding November 2007 Board Member Coonrod made a motion to approve the contractor license examination application for testing. Board Member Hartwell seconded the motion. The motion carried. 3. Contractor License Review Hearing - Tim Henry d/b/a American Builders, L.L.C. a. 5207 S. Mosley b. 1209 Maus Ln. c. 117 N. Anna The license review was postponed at the request of Mr. Henry's attorney. 4. Condemnation Hearings Review Cases: 1. 1147 N. Green There was no one present to represent this property. This property was before the Board for the first time on December 4, 2006. The Board reviewed the property again on March 5, 2007, and again on June 4, 2007, and September 10, 2007. At the June 4, 2007, hearing, the Board granted an extension of sixty days to complete the exterior repairs or BCSA Meeting November 5, 2007 Page Two report back to the Board with an update. The siding and roofing has been completed, and new windows and doors have been installed. The staff recommendation is that the property be returned to regular code enforcement. Board Member Coonrod made a motion to return the property to regular code enforcement. Board Member Harder seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. 2. 1430 S. St. Francis Attorney Jim Lawing was present as the representative of the estate. Ms. Legge told the Board that Central Inspection had been in contact with the stepfather of the minor children who inherited this property. Central Inspection has made an interior inspection of the house. At the last site inspection, the roof was completed and the first coat of paint had been applied. The premises have been cleaned and the windows and doors have been repaired. The staff recommendation is that the property be returned to regular code enforcement. Board Member Hentzen made a motion to return the property to regular code enforcement. Board Member Banuelos seconded the motion. The motion was approved without opposition. 3. 713 N. Minneapolis There was no representative for this property in attendance. When this property first appeared before the Board on August 6, 2007, the owner was present, accompanied by her brother. At that meeting, a motion was made and approved to allow an additional ninety days to make the exterior repairs, keeping the premises clean and secure in the interim; and keeping the taxes current. The owner told the Board that the roofing would be started as soon as the siding was completed. The taxes are current; there is some miscellaneous debris on the premises; no repairs have been made. The structure is open. Board Member Harder made a motion to refer the property to the City Council for demolition action, with ten days to begin wrecking the structure, and ten days to complete the wrecking. Board Member Coonrod seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. 4. 1007 E. 12th There was no representative present for this property. Originally before the Board for the first time at the September 2007 hearing, the taxes for this property are current; there is a special assessment for emergency board up levied against the property in the amount of $300.04; the premise condition is fair. The structure is being rebuilt. The staff recommends that the property be returned to regular code enforcement. Board Member Hentzen made a motion to return the property to regular code enforcement. Board Member Coonrod seconded the motion. The motion carried. BCSA Meeting November 5, 2007 Page Three 5. 2409-11 E. Murdock No one appeared before the Board as a representative for this property. When this property was Initially before the Board at the October 2007 hearing, a motion was made and approved to allow thirty days for the exterior violations to be repaired; the premises were to be kept clean and secure in the interim; permits and inspections were to be obtained as required or the owner was to reappear before the Board. Upon the last site inspection, Central Inspection staff noted that a new roof has been installed on the house and the garage; new windows had been installed; the siding was almost complete. The basement window was still open; there were some piles of brush still on the site. The recommendation by Central Inspection staff was to allow an additional thirty days for completion of the repairs. Board Member Banuelos made a motion to grant thirty days for the exterior repairs to be finished. Board Member Youle seconded the motion. The motion was approved without opposition. Sharon Dickgrafe, City of Wichita Law Department, provided a brief review of the Open Meetings Laws. As a public Board, Ms. Dickgrafe reminded the Board Members that the Open Meetings Act governs the Board of Code Standards and Appeals. The act entails that generally all the decisions and all discussions regarding any items that come before the Board should occur at the Board meeting in public. The following items are generally considered a violation of the Open Meetings Act: 1) When there is the majority of a quorum (in this case, three or more Board Members) discussing a subject; 2) a conversation before or after a meeting regarding matters addressed by the Board, or during a recess; 3) e-mails that include the entire Board where a matter is discussed. An Executive Session would be an exception to the act, which allows the Board to consult with its attorney on legal issues. Although the Board is not required to go into an Executive Session, doing so allows the information exchanged during the session to remain privileged between the Board and the Board's attorney. Ms. Dickgrafe also provided a handout outlining the provisions of the Open Meetings Act and encouraged the Board Members to contact her with any questions. The Board discussed the option of Board Meeting dates for the months of July 2008 and December 2008. A consensus of the Board was that the meeting dates for the months of July and December 2008 should be the 14th and 8th, respectively. With no other business to conduct, Board Member Hartwell made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Board Member Harder seconded the motion. The motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 1:52 p.m.