Official Says Building Board in ‘Shambles’

The city Board of Appeals is “in a shambles,” has not met since March 26 and has not rendered a decision on a building issue in more than 17 months, according to the board’s lone remaining active member.

The board, which meets when needed on the last Thursday of each month to review appeals of decisions by the city’s Building Division, most recently convened nine months ago to hold its annual reorganization meeting and has not met since.

“It’s in a shambles,” said board member Chris Buckett, the last remaining active panel member on the five-member board. “It’s a farce. We’re supposed to hear all appeals, and I don’t even know who’s hearing them. Apparently, somebody in the city government has decided to handle the appeals without passing it on to the board.”

Under city law, the board has the authority to review appeals of Building Division decisions on construction projects. It may also grant variances to projects that meet or exceed building standards, even when they do not comply with city codes. The terms of three of its members expire this month, and one more recently tendered his resignation, leaving four open seats.

Ordinarily, the city staff notifies the board when an appeal is pending, and the board convenes. But according to Buckett, city staff has apparently decided to handle such appeals itself, without bringing them before the board.

David Hueners, the city’s deputy director of community development, confirmed that city staff now handles most construction disagreements internally but said that the appeals board was never intended to meet more than once or twice a year.