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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04_AprilPLANNING & DEVELOPMENT SERVICES NEWSLETTER Building a Better Community with You PO P U L AT I O N : THE AP R I L P O P U L AT I O N E S T I M AT E IS 109,976 BUSH-WELLBORN INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT PROJECT 1 BUILDING PERMIT TOTALS 2 TRACKING THE NUMBERS 3 BUILDING PERMIT CHARTS 3 BUILDING INSPECTIONS 4 RESIDENTIAL PERMIT TOTAL 4 HOT WATER THERMAL EXPANSION CONTROL 4 WHO’S BIKING AND WALKING IN COLLEGE STATION 5 PLANNER-ON-CALL MYTH BUSTER 6 REMEMBER: ONLY RAIN DOWN THE DRAIN 6 Inside this issue: PO Box 9960 1101 Texas Avenue College Station, TX 77842 979-764-3570 Fax: 979-764-3496 www.cstx.gov APRIL 2017 Bush-Wellborn Intersection Improvement Project Take the Survey The Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) is working with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to identify improvements needed at the George Bush Drive-Wellborn Road intersection. Specific goals for the BWX, or Bush-Wellborn Crossing, include enhancing overall safety for the thousands of motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians pass- ing through the area daily while minimizing congestion at this critical inter- section. It’s a big challenge. Improvements proposed nearly a decade ago would re- quire a minimum of two years of construction to complete, with the Bush- Wellborn intersection partially or fully closed for at least six months of that time. TxDOT and TTI are partnering to explore ways to minimize this disruption, and community input will be a meaningful part of this effort. Over the next few months, TTI will be seeking comments, concerns and suggestions from the community regarding the Bush-Wellborn improvements. This input will be considered as the intersection design, construction timeline and work zone mobility plans are reviewed. Another round of community engagement will follow to share project de- sign options; construction staging and closure options; the impact on busi- nesses, adjacent neighborhoods the campus and the community; mobility strategies during construction; and other innovative opportunities. A brief online survey is now available to share your suggestions and prefer- ences before plans are drafted. All citizens are invited and encouraged to complete the survey at http://bwx-bcs.org. BUILDING PERMIT TOTALS Month of April 2017 Month of April 2016 Type of Permit Permit Unit Total Sq. Ft.Heat Sq. Ft.Amount Permit Unit Amount ACCESSORY 0 3 1 $194,000.00 ADDITION 0 2 1 $145,000.00 COMMERCIAL ACCESSORY 2 0 1,690 0 $138,928.06 0 COMMERCIAL NEW 4 0 212,747 86699 $22,901,888.00 1 0 $269,463.00 COMMERCIAL TENANT FINISH-OUT 2 0 4,110 4110 $113,000.00 3 0 $938,350.00 DEMOLITION 6 6 0 0 $0.00 10 3 $0.00 MULTI-FAMILY 2 90 109,318 85802 $3,603,684.00 9 51 $4,462,612.97 OTHER STRUCTURES 0 1 0 $26,650.00 POOL 5 0 0 0 $280,715.00 5 0 $262,509.00 REMODEL / RENOVATION 10 6 284,949 282586 $1,552,066.00 35 23 $1,355,392.00 REROOF 5 0 0 0 $49,300.00 11 0 $54,279.39 RESIDENTIAL 64 66 170,314 135244 $10,629,400.00 72 84 $12,453,358.00 RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY 6 1 3,061 446 $127,859.64 0 RESIDENTIAL ADDITION ATTACHED 1 1 3,270 2200 $50,000.00 0 SIGN 12 0 0 0 $0.00 19 0 $0.00 SLAB ONLY 1 0 49,952 0 $18,000,000.00 1 0 $25,000.00 TOTALS 121 170 839,411 597,087 $57,446,840.70 172 163 $20,186,614.36 January 01, 2017 - April 30, 2017 January 01, 2016 - April 30, 2016 Type of Permit Permit Unit Total Sq. Ft.Heat Sq. Ft.Amount Permit Unit Amount ACCESSORY 0 13 4 $370,704.16 ADDITION 0 17 11 $3,824,040.00 COMMERCIAL ACCESSORY 9 0 12,512 0 $521,583.06 2 0 $40,800.00 COMMERCIAL NEW 14 60 446,367 282,291 $74,831,488.00 16 1 $35,648,963.00 COMMERCIAL TENANT FINISH-OUT 9 0 27,422 16,666 $969,000.00 18 3 $5,203,799.00 DEMOLITION 36 93 0 0 $0.00 47 36 $0.00 MULTI-FAMILY 13 228 266,525 223,101 $15,041,632.00 54 768 $74,588,612.25 OTHER STRUCTURES 1 0 0 0 $7,790.00 2 0 $35,150.00 POOL 18 0 0 0 $1,083,715.00 26 0 $1,529,751.00 REMODEL / RENOVATION 53 33 462,176 421,858 $6,362,056.00 141 51 $6,955,149.00 REROOF 17 0 0 0 $155,414.47 26 0 $909,379.35 RESIDENTIAL 321 365 884,471 737,503 $54,253,087.84 395 460 $64,074,088.98 RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY 20 2 11,236 5,244 $743,459.64 1 0 $52,000.00 RESIDENTIAL ADDITION ATTACHED 10 4 6,004 4,547 $267,435.00 0 SIGN 39 0 0 0 $0.00 57 0 $0.00 SLAB ONLY 79 0 624,935 0 $33,936,988.57 71 0 $4,710,302.00 TOTALS 639 785 2,741,648 1,691,210 $188,173,649.58 886 1,334 $197,942,738.74 Page 2/April 2017/www.cstx.gov Tracking the Numbers New Single-Family Homes:New Commerical:Total Permits: YTD - 1 yr YTD - 2 yr - 16%- 24% YTD - 1 yr YTD - 2 yr - 13%- 33% YTD - 1 yr YTD - 2 yr - 28%- 6% Year-to-date, single-family home permits experienced a decrease in quantity when compared to last year at this time, April 2016, and decreased when compared with two years ago, April 2015. Year-to-date, new commercial permits experienced a decrease in quantity when compared to last year at this time, April 2016, and decreased when compared with two years ago, April 2015. Year-to-date, total permits experienced a decrease in quantity when compared to last year at this time, April 2016, and decreased when compared with two years ago, April 2015. Page 3/April 2017/www.cstx.gov Page 4/April 2017/www.cstx.gov With the new TRAKiT software our residential permit types have been combined. The table below provides additional details to show the Residential Subtypes. Residential Permit No. of Permits Issued Valuation Single-Family (Detached) 34 $6,898,720.00 Townhomes 29 $3,502,680.00 Duplex 1 $228,000.00 BUILDING INSPECTIONS: MONTH BUILDING PLUMBING ELECTRIC MECHANICAL LAWN SIGN POOL TOTAL JANUARY 434 283 251 267 39 13 7 1,294 FEBRUARY 508 353 314 225 46 23 11 1,480 MARCH 725 492 388 325 49 27 12 2,018 APRIL 661 424 388 270 53 23 13 1,832 TOTAL 2,328 1,552 1,341 1,087 186 86 43 6,623 Hot Water Thermal Expansion Control The last several editions of both the International Plumbing Code (IPC) and International Residential Code (IRC) have required a means to control the possible thermal expansion of hot water when applicable. If the cold water supply to a storage type water heater passes through a check valve, pressure reducing valve, or a backflow preventer, a means of thermal expansion control must be provided. According to the 2015 edition of the IPC, the means for thermal expansion control is limited to an expansion tank. In previous editions of the IPC, expansion relief was allowed to be provided by means of an expansion valve as well as the expansion tank method. Although the use of an expansion valve is still allowable by the IRC for residential applications, it is no longer recognized by the IPC. In areas where water pressure is exceeding 80 PSI a pressure reducing valve (PRV) must be installed, this is the case with virtually all new construction in College Station. With the use of PRVs being so wide spread, thermal expan- sion control is almost always required in new construction. Please contact the City of College Station Building Depart- ment at 764-3570 with any questions. Brian Binford Building Official Page 5/April 2017/www.cstx.gov Who’s Biking and Walking in College Station? College Station residents continue to be among those who lead the state in the number of people that bike and walk to work according to the most recent United States Census Bureau’s Journey to Work data (2011-2015 American Community Survey). College Station ranks #1 in Texas for having the highest percentage of people that bike to work and ranks #3 in Texas behind Wichita Falls and San Angelo for the percentage of people that walk to work. Want to join in!! Below are some safety tips to get started if you want to bike or walk to get to work, to exercise or just for fun. To choose a route, check out our bike map online by going to cstx.gov/bikepedgreenways and clicking on the bike map icon to the right. It highlights bike facilities and trails near you. Walking  Wear bright/light colored clothing and reflective materials especially when walking at night.  Always walk on the sidewalk; if there is no sidewalk, walk facing traffic.  Cross streets at marked crosswalks or intersections, if possible. Don’t assume vehicles will stop; make eye con- tact with drivers. Obey traffic signals such as WALK/DON’T WALK signs. And don’t rely solely on pedestri- an signals; look before you cross the road. Biking  Learn the rules of the road. Bicyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as motorists.  Obey all traffic laws. Bicyclists are required to come to a complete stop at stop signs and red signal lights.  Use hand signals when turning and stopping to tell motorists what you intend to do.  Respect pedestrians’ rights. Pedestrians on sidewalks and in crosswalks have the right of way.  Never ride against traffic. Motorists and pedestrians are not looking for bicyclists riding against traffic on the wrong side of the road. Ride in the same direction as the flow of traffic, even on sidewalks.  If you are Texas A&M faculty, staff or a student, you can register your bicycle with Texas A&M Transporta- tion Services for FREE. For more information, visit transport.tamu.edu.  Wear a helmet. Helmets greatly reduce the risk of head injury and death. If you would like more information about biking and walking in College Station, please visit our website at cstx.gov/bikepedgreenways or contact Venessa Garza, Greenways Program Manager at 979-764-3674 or by email vgarza@cstx.gov. College Station Texas United States Biking 2.1% .3% .6% Walking 5% 1.6% 2.8% Page 6/April 2017/www.cstx.gov Planner-on-Call Myth Buster: Who hasn’t heard someone claim that College Station doesn’t allow businesses with the color orange on their building? How about that College Station requires businesses with predominantly orange ac- cents to add Aggie maroon to their façade? These are some of the most common circulating misconceptions about College Station ar- chitectural regulations. In actuality, College Station does not prohibit orange, nor is maroon required to be added to comply with any standards. So no, Whataburger was not required to add their famous maroon roof panel. In fact, the City of College Station does have an approved color palette from which Applicant may choose the hue of their choice. Each individual building is allowed to utilize a limited percentage of accent colors so that businesses may exhibit that indi- viduality and flare. This is where you see the vibrant colors come into play. So next time you hear someone sharing that College Sta- tion doesn’t like the color orange, feel free to bust that myth open and let them know that you know better! Remember: Only Rain Down the Drain Stormwater runoff is any rainfall that flows over the ground. As it flows, it can pick up debris, chemicals, dirt, and other pollutants and deposit them into a storm sewer system or local water body. Anything that enters a storm sewer system is discharged untreated into the local water bodies, used by the public for swimming, fishing, and other recreational activities. To keep the stormwater leaving your worksite clean, follow these sim- ple guidelines:  Reduce erosion on site with erosion control methods such as hay bales and silt fences  Maintain the chosen erosion control methods by checking on them after rain events and thorough out the length of the project  Large areas of disturbed soils should be covered with mats or seeded to prevent winds from picking up loose dirt.  When seeding and beginning the vegetation process, use pesticides and fertilizers sparingly.  Check equipment including tractors, trucks and skids for any leaks and repair promptly.  Dispose of hazardous waste, such as used auto fluids (antifreeze, oil, etc.), and batteries at designated loca- tions.  Sweep up and properly dispose of construction debris like concrete and mortar and trash rather than hosing down areas.  Clean paint brushes within a designated area or dispose of properly. Note that cleaning paint brushes and dis- posing of excess paint into the municipal storm sewer system in illegal.