From the
Board of Commissioners
| miss
the
“gentle giant”, who made an impression on all he met .Emory
had a special gift for making friends everywhere he
traveled. From
those of us who got to spend time with him – “Emory,
thanks for the wonderful times and the memories!” |
 |
| Emory
W. Driscoll |
|
Back on the job –
Code Enforcement is scrambling in the midst of a fury of building
activity. After all ‘tis the season.’
As homeowners scramble to attack their seemingly endless
repair chores and builders delve into the new home construction, an
endless stream of paper comes flying out of printers in the form of
permits, occupancy certificates and inspection reports. Oh yea -
‘tis the season!’ . Behind every sheet of paper printed at
blinding speed, there‘s a process. Review, assist, inspect,
report, counsel, comment, discuss, correct then issue!
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No exceptions –
everyone wants it yesterday - no matter what ‘it’ is.
Last
year the Code Enforcement Department issued 1206 permits and 366
certificates of occupancy, and monitored 2206 inspections. Well
that’s pretty normal, after all, they are ‘building
inspectors,’ aren’t they? Yes, they are, but as in most things
– it’s not that simple!
The Board of Commissioners, in pursuit of
their mission to maintain and improve the “health, safety and
welfare” of the township’s residents, have, over the years
passed, modified and adopted township ordinances. The Code
Enforcement Department’s primary mission is seeing that
those ordinances are adhered to, thereby creating a
safer, healthier, and more beneficial place to live for all
of us.
That’s no small job! As a matter of
fact, Code Enforcement is not what it
was ten years ago. Layers upon layers of new state requirements
have changed a once casual approach to a complicated maze. Local
building codes have been replaced with state mandates. Code
Enforcement Officers are required to spend as much time studying
newly mandated rules as staying focused on their primary mission.
As if that were not enough, technology has introduced new
materials and techniques that require in-depth review and analysis
to determine safety standards in each proposed application. A
constant review of ‘best practices’ for all construction
trades is a daily chore in Code Enforcement.
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In
the midst of this
seemingly chaotic setting, Ralph Maiden, Senior Code Enforcement
Officer has maintained his sanity and
composure. Ralph’s nature is to be a good neighbor – he is
instinctively friendly and down to earth. He spends a good portion
of his day helping people with their construction plans, or their
‘repair problems,’ or trying to avert conflict rather than
create it. A graduate of Williamson Trade School, Ralph has acquired numerous
certifications, all of which position him to accomplish those
tasks while focusing on the Department’s primary responsibilies
to the Board of Commisioners.
In
2006, in order to provide a means to detect Code Enforcement
problems and resolve them, the
Department established its ‘code enforcer hot line’ by phone
at 610-494-0384 and extended it’s contact capability to the
Township’s Web site at www.astontownship.net.
This capability creates another avenue for township residents to
report problems and ask questions of the Code Enforcement
Department. If the subject is a problem or a complaint, it is
recorded in a database, remedial action is also recorded and
reported to the applicable elected officials. Over its intial
period of implementation, 151 issues have been recorded and
resolved. If the subject is an inquiry such as seeking advice, it
becomes a matter of discussion among staff members before a return
call or written response is implemented. With all this activity in
the daily routine, thankfully Ralph has a dedicated staff. “You
never know what to expect on any given day,” Ralph states.
“Prioritizing can be a challenge but
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