CITY PERMIT RULES GARNER BUSINESS COMPLAINTS, IRE

To those involved, the stories resemble something of a construction nightmare.

-- The Cape Girardeau businessman who was forced to delay the opening of a newly remodeled store until permit misunderstandings were corrected.

-- The unhappy businessman who said if he had it to do over, his new business building would have been constructed in the county, well out of city limits.

-- A local restaurateur who had to move a fire wall that was previously approved by the city's inspection department.

When it comes to residential and commercial development, expansions and construction, more and more Cape Girardeau businesses and individuals have expressed unhappiness with the Cape Girardeau Inspection Services Division.

The complaints run the gamut of permit costs to seismic requirements. And others list problems with inspections and misunderstandings or miscommunications or poor customer service.

Harry Rust, a Cape Girardeau businessman, agreed there were some misunderstandings about permits when he attempted to finish a remodeling project. Rust & Martin will open its newly decorated and remodeled store a couple of months later than anticipated -- because of permit misunderstandings.

"Our store has remained open throughout the remodeling stage," said Rust, "but we have been heavily handicapped during the process."

What was anticipated as a monthlong project has turned into a summerlong project, Rust said. The full store is expected to be open later this month or in early September.

The misunderstanding concerned installation of some walls and room dividers inside an existing building. The same electrical fixtures were being used, with no new circuits. The contractors did not think this necessitated permits, but city code requires electrical permits for installing new wiring or adding to existing installations.

Construction was under way when permit officials became aware of the project. The construction was delayed a full month before everything was resolved on permits, including a set of remodeling plans submitted by an architect.

"My biggest complaint was the delays that came with the permit process and the way we were treated during the process," said Rust.

Inspection Services Director Rick Murray interpreted the store's remodeling plans differently.

"Our literature plainly outlines that a permit must be obtained when you construct, enlarge or alter or change the occupancy of a building," said Murray.

But to the Cape Girardeau Inspection Services Division, problems like those Rust encountered aren't horror stores. They are simply rules.

The permit office deals with all facets of building, which includes everything from new structures to demolishing old ones, expanding and remodeling, excavating, stormwater and floodplain development, Murray said.

"Building permits are issued for the protection of all concerned," he said. "It helps guarantee the construction work will be inspected, thus preventing shoddy work, poor materials or deviation from the plans."

In a new building, that means up to 14 inspection trips, and sometimes more. Some major construction projects could take up to 100 inspection trips before project's end.

And with the number of inspections, come a large number of complaints.

Chamber of Commerce President John Mehner has heard a lot of complaints from businesses ranging from problems with plan interpretations to an inconsistency among inspectors working on a building project. To deal with these problems, the chamber established a building task force committee three years ago.

After the chamber received an inspection complaint, the city permit office changed its system to alleviate future problems. Now if a particular inspector does the initial inspection, he also follows up on those inspections.

Another frequent complaint to the chamber committee is poor customer service, with permit recipients saying they are "not treated as though they are customers building a new structure." This is not a good situation, said Mehner.

"I think the city of Cape Girardeau has a tremendous opportunity to have explosive growth from the building standpoint," said Mehner. "We need to see good customer relations with people who seek permits or information about their projects."

The chamber's special building committee was formed after a chamber survey indicated city building permits were "one of the most pressing issues builders encountered," Mehner said.

Mayor Al Spradling III said the city does receive some permit complaints and investigates every complaint. "We want to know about any problems," he said.

Typically, the city will find the complaint is a misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the building code.

"Most of the time we find that the city has valid justification for its actions, according to codes," said Spradling, who added that the city seldom experiences problems with major companies. "They just ask us what BOCA Code we have, and submit their plans accordingly."

Many people question the seismic requirements, which increases the cost, or why a new deck may require a permit. It's all part of the building code, the mayor said.

And once you decipher the building codes, things work better, builders and developers say.

Construction plans for commercial buildings, structures with more than 20,000 square feet and buildings that house more than 10 people, must be submitted to the permit office by architects.

Once plans are in order and contain information about electrical outlets and all plumbing information, Murray and his staff will issue a building permit.

Inspections will continue periodically throughout the project to check footing, foundation walls, plumbing and electrical work.

Unlike Cape Girardeau, Paducah, Ky., a city of about 30,000, experiences few complaints with its permit office.

"Our biggest complaint is on turn-around time for reviews," said Tommy Larrison, director and chief building inspector. "We have a small staff which includes only one plan reviewer."

Larrison added, however, that often a temporary permit is issued so groundwork could be started.

In Cape Girardeau, reviews are usually completed in 48 to 72 hours for residential sites and within 14 days for commercial sites.

The Paducah permit office has no problems with different inspectors on the job. "We have only one inspector," said Larrison.