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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1969 CS to Begin Enforcing Minimum Housing CodeCS to Begin Enforcing Housing (Continued from Page 1) have housing, building, plum - b i n g , ,electrical and fire prevention codes, and an ef- f e c t i v e code enforcement Minimum Housing Code' By KATE THOMAS Eagle Staff Writer College Station will begin enforcement of its housing code as soon as a survey of unoc- cupied houses is complete, according to Ran Boswell, city manager. A sign reading, "This structure does not meet minimum housing standards of the City of College Station and is unfit for human habitation," will be posted in front of each. . "The housing code must be passed and enforced for six months for Workable Program certification," B o s w e 11 ex- plained. The College Station building inspector is conducting the survey and filling out three cards on each each unoccupied house. One card is a checklist on conditions such as means of egress, room sizes, freedom of infestations, ceiling heights, foundation walls and piers, floor framing and flooring, exterior walls and columns, exterior steps and columns, roofing, roof rafters, exterior steps and stairs, and various plumbing, electrical, and water checks. These may fall into the category of adequate, inadequate — need minor repair, need major repair, need to be installed or need to be increased. The housing inspector's report calls for a condition report to conserve, rehabilitate or demoli h. A master control card is alsekept. Boswell said that College Station was in a good position because the city "hasn't existed long and we've had zoning since around 1940." "I don't think we'll have many houses that will have 1 be torn down," he explainer Payment for tearing down ti house will be a legal angle th city will have to check with ft city attorney, Boswell said. The city used a modifie version of the Southern Star dard Housing Code as a guide It was passed by the Counc May 24. Boswell said that he, Lloy James, the city engineer, ar Lee Roy George, city planner, would go to a workshop spon- sored by the U.S. Department o f Housing and Urban Development in Fort Worth Aug. 12 on Workable Programs. The College Station City Council passed a resolution July 28 authorizing Boswell to apply for Workable Program cer- tification. To be eligible, a city must (See HOUSING, Page 4) Station must still passl e One has been under' several weeks and will be adopted by the L the next meeting, he Boswell said that from now in order to receive federal oney, a city must have a orkable Program. Once a city is certified, it is igible for all "the things the wernment will participate in," Boswell said. "That includes parks sewage treatment facilities recreation facilities, water low income housing," he plained. and and and ex. Boswell said he couldn't speak for the city council on what area they would be particularly interested in, once the program . is certified. Nor is he sure of how long certification will take. "That's something we'll find out Aug. 12," he said. When and if the Workable Program is certified, Boswell said applications for particular grants and aid will be made through the Brazos Valley Development Council.