HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning November 22 2016WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
Planning and Development Committee
November 22, 2016
CALL TO ORDER
Committee Chair Carl Weimer called the meeting to order at 3:17 p.m. in the Council
Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington.
ROLL CALL
Present: Carl Weimer, Barbara Brenner, and Todd Donovan
Absent: None
Also Present: Rud Browne, Barry Buchanan, Satpal Sidhu, and Ken Mann
COMMITTEE DISCUSSION
1. DISCUSSION REGARDING A PROPOSED ORDINANCE ADOPTING THE
CURRENT STATE BUILDING CODE AND REPEALING THE EXISTING TITLE 15
OF THE WHATCOM COUNTY CODE (AB2016 -289)
Wain Harrison, Planning and Development Services Department, gave a staff report
beginning on Council packet page 227. He answered councilmember questions about how
much effort is put into fighting a fire in the rural area once life safety isn't an issue; finding
a balance between economics and safety, whether unpressurized systems should be
allowed; and the difficulty of making sure all existing unpressurized systems are functional,
making them unreliable.
Harrison continued his staff report on information and response to issues raised by
Roger Axelson. He answered questions about why the County should protect property when
property owners and insurance companies aren't willing to protect their properties
themselves; the challenges of fighting fire with an unpressurized system versus a
pressurized system; unlisted pumps that don't work, and; all the factors that have to be
considered when designing a fire flow system, such as access and unusual terrain.
Brenner asked for information on how other counties treat unpressurized systems.
Harrison continued to answer questions about fire districts that can decide if they
want to require a hard pipe carried on a pumper truck, the County Council and Fire Marshal
lack of authority to dictate how the fire districts conduct operations, whether the County can
retroactively charge fees to test unpressurized systems, and a fire district that still trains to
do drafting.
Planning and Development Committee, 11/22/2016, Page 1
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Gary Russell, Fire District 7 Chief, spoke about the County liability through local and
State codes, the fire district's authority to decide how they operate, responding to locations
with private fire flow systems that don't work.
Weimer stated this item will be held in Committee until January.
OTHER BUSINESS
There was no other business.
ADJOURN
The meeting adjourned at 4:14 p.m.
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Dana Brown -Oyes, Council Clerk
Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription
WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
WHATCOM COUNTY, WASHINGTON
Carl Weimer, Committee Chair
Planning and Development Committee, 11/22/2016, Page 2