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-PWMTC-23 Page 3 - July 7, 2020 <br />"cross-pollinate" and bring up the standards for both departments.- She looked forward to working <br />together to identify some means for accountability, certainty for no arbitrary decision making, and -to <br />ensure that timelines would be relevant. She asked Mr. Tanaka to - share efforts- on reducing permit <br />processing times. _ <br />Mr. Tanaka said that last year the Council approved additional positions for plan reviewers. Prior to <br />that,the department averaged 31 days at the Building Division in Hilo to review a plan and 24 days in <br />Kona. This year, after implementing those positions and working on training and consistency, the <br />department has reduced it to about eight days for Hilo and seven days in Kona. The Building Division is <br />willing to work with other departments such as Planning to achieve the transparency and accountability <br />that Ms. Villegas sought. <br />Committee Member Poindexter expressed concerns with the public comment period on the <br />pre -introduction draft bill as well as on Chapter 5A, Appendix L, relating to factory -built homes, <br />and said she would be bringing forward an amendment to remove the appendix from the bill. <br />Committee Member Tim Richards asked Mr. Tanaka to comment on Chapter 5A, Appendix L. <br />Mr. Tanaka first addressed Ms. Poindexter's concerns by acknowledging the seven days to comment <br />was a short period of time, but there was a large amount of engagement and valuable comments that <br />helped craft the bill. A public engagement process has not been attempted before this year's Energy <br />Conservation Code revisions (Ordinance No. 20-10), so the process is still new. <br />With regards to the factory -built housing, this has been in our Code since 2012 and it provides another <br />tool in the tool belt to address our dire need for affordable housing, Mr. Tanaka said. He heard the <br />concerns about balancing the economy on our island to support the local construction industry but the <br />bill allows people to continue to have an option to buy factory -built or custom homes. Those are all <br />avenues and tools that people can use to ensure that they can achieve housing. This is not an attempt to <br />promote factory -built homes, he said. It gives us an opportunity to regulate, permit it, and enforce it. No <br />one is being forced to take that opportunity, and it is not the position of the Building Division policy to <br />tell you what choices you can make, Mr. Tanaka said. <br />Mr. Richards asked about proposed Chapter 5A, Section 5A-3-3 (International Building Code, <br />Amendments to Appendix C, Section C 101.2), and why it was determined that horticultural buildings <br />with non -rigid plastic sheets are not required to conform to the requirements of IBC Chapters 4-9, 11-26, <br />28, 30, 31, 34, and 35 of the code when located in areas zoned for agricultural use and not part of any <br />other structure. Mr. Tanaka said this was carried over from existing language in Chapter 5, and the <br />upcoming revision to the building codes will consider this section to see how it can be clarified. - <br />Mr. Richards also asked about regulations for barbed wire (Chapter 5A, Section 5A-3-3, IBC Section <br />C 101.3.2, Exception (b)), which states "barbed wire may be used in premises used for pasturing cattle or <br />raising swine to keep pigs or other wild animals out." He expressed concern that the language might be <br />too "species-specific." Mr. Tanaka agreed there was room for an amendment. <br />Committee Member Karen Eoff called the bill "a pretty major accomplishment" and she thanked <br />everyone who worked to create a revision of this magnitude. She felt this is a major structural revision <br />that will help the County use the coming EnerGov software programs when up and running. Bills this <br />complex cannot be expected to be perfect, and in moving forward, in coming months other needed <br />PWMTC Report No. 23 <br />