Local

County to enforce new ordinance

By COURTNEY MARTIN, LTN Staff Writer

Jan. 2, 2002 - A new Lincoln County ordinance concerning fire and building codes took effect Jan. 1 with the new year.

The ordinance will enable Lincoln County authorities to bring more enforcement to regulations relating to construction safety and burning.

The measure was passed by the Lincoln County Commissioners to go into effect with a few new codes from the state.

“Our plan is to work with people so we can make a smooth transition to meet the new requirements,” said Mike Futrell, Lincoln County Fire Marshall.

“The importance of the ordinance is that it gives us a way to enforce (the codes),” he said.

Fire codes on burning tires, plastics and garbage were already used but not enforceable. In such cases, authorities would have to rely on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Normally, the EPA would refer a call about such burning to local authorities, unless it was extensive.

The new ordinance in Lincoln County allows local authorities to issue citations and take care of the problem.

“Most of the time, the first time we go out, it’s educational,” said Futrell. “A second or third time, we’ll give citations.”

The new ordinance and codes will also be involved in new construction..

 “We want every building to be safe,” Futrell said.

The new ordinance allows inspectors to be involved during the building rather than just at the end of a buildings construction.

Existing buildings would only have to comply if doing a major overhaul or a large enough addition to fall under the new codes.

The new building codes will not affect residential buildings, said Futrell. The codes are for more industrial buildings.

Permits pulled before Jan. 1 will also not be affected.

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Staff writer Courtney Martin can be reached at 704-735-3031 or courtneymartin@ltnews.com

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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