The message was clear: Sedona is behind the times in terms of many of its building codes, but the Sedona City Council plans to change that in the near future.
During a two-and-a-half hour discussion on Tuesday, council gave direction to staff regarding the updating of the city’s National Electric Code and others issued by the International Code Council.
These building codes are designed as templates to establish the rules by which most construction activity can occur within the city.
Chief Building Official Steve Mertes said the city is currently operating under the 2006 ICC codes and the 2005 NEC, all of which were adopted in 2007. The proposal to adopt the 2018 ICC codes and the 2017 NEC is an effort to address the most current construction practices, products, materials and allowances, he said.
It’s also an effort to be consistent with the surrounding counties and communities and to address council priorities relating to housing and environmental sustainability.
“These current codes are extremely outdated,” Mertes said. “As you can imagine, construction practices and products have passed up this code exponentially. We’ve been falling behind in our ability to review and inspect these new products.”
He said Coconino and Yavapai counties, as well as Cottonwood, Clarkdale, Camp Verde and Flagstaff are in the process of updating their codes. But he noted most of them last updated theirs in 2012. He stressed the importance of there being consistency among the neighboring communities.
International codes are updated every three years. Mertes recommends that Sedona adopt updated codes every six years. The most recent ICC and NEC codes make up several volumes and are more than a foot tall when stacked.
Examples of the dozens of codes being considered for updating include:
- Eliminate fire separation requirements between dwelling units and their accessory structures.
- Proposed amendment to reduce the height above adjacent grade at which guards are required from 30 inches to 20 inches.
- Add carbon monoxide alarm requirements.
- Proposed amendment to require all wiring governed by the IRC or NEC to be copper conductors.
- Solar-ready provisions.
- Tiny home allowances.
- Better reflecting new safety requirements, technology, products and installation procedures, especially in the realm of sustainable energy systems.
- Replacing Sedona code for pool barriers with comprehensive pool requirements.
When deciding on what Sedona codes needed to be updated, Mertes formed a community focus group made up of area contractors, architects and designers as well as members of the green and sustainability community.
“It was nice to see how this group of people from different sides of the table were able to not only have a good discussion but understand each other’s sides. What came out of that meeting is that there were no objections to the adoptions. They understand these are needed and that we’re handcuffed by the antiquated codes right now.”
Later in the meeting, Councilman John Currivan asked that before council approves the updated codes, it gets to see the current, outdated ones for comparison. He also brought up a concern in regard to encouraging affordable housing in Sedona and what kind of higher construction costs may be associated with newer codes.
“One of our big issues here is providing workforce housing,” he said. “Housing that’s affordable to people who work in Sedona. We’re told by developers, who try and develop workforce housing, that things don’t pencil out because things are expensive in Sedona. We need to be aware of the extent to which we are making that issue worse.”
Ron Eland can be reached at 282-7795, ext. 122 or by email at reland@larsonnewspapers.com
