Any electrician can now do inspections
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
By Bruce Eggler
Staff writer
New Orleans' handful of city electrical inspectors, perhaps the most in-demand people in town for the past four months, could be about to find out how the Maytag repairman, "the loneliest guy in town," felt in all those TV ads.
The city has suspended requirements that
city inspectors must sign off on all electrical work
done by contractors, whether on permanent buildings or
on temporary housing such as trailers.
Mayor Ray Nagin also has agreed to suspend the
requirement that the city's Housing Conservation
District Review Committee review the proposed demolition
of many buildings in older neighborhoods.
The actions all are designed to eliminate the red tape
that officials said has been holding up the city's
recovery from Hurricane Katrina.
An online form, available at the city's Web site,
www.cityofno.com, allows any licensed electrician or
electrical contractor to certify that work performed or
inspected meets all requirements of the International
Building Code.
Nagin's office announced two weeks ago that the city
would no longer require permits for electrical
inspections of individual trailers, "to expedite the
trailer process and to offer more temporary housing for
returning residents." In some cases, residents said they
had to wait weeks for a city inspector after getting a
temporary utility pole for their trailer.
That suspension now has been extended to buildings as
well as trailers, in accordance with an ordinance passed
Jan. 19 by the City Council and signed Friday by Nagin.
In all, Nagin signed four ordinances the council passed
unanimously Jan. 19 under an emergency procedure that
lets members vote on an ordinance the same day it is
introduced. Normally, they have to wait until the next
meeting before voting.
The four ordinances:
-- Authorize any licensed electrician or electrical
contractor "to conduct electrical inspections on
commercial and residential properties" and certify that
the work was done properly, eliminating the requirement
that city inspectors must OK the work. This provision
will remain in effect "for the duration of emergency
procedures."
-- For one year, authorize the three large companies in
charge of installing travel trailers in the city -- the
Shaw Group, Fluor Corp. and CH2M Hill -- to inspect and
approve electrical connections to the trailers,
eliminating the need for city inspections before Entergy
can turn on the power.
-- For one year, suspend the requirement for city
inspections and allow Cox Communications to certify that
connections to its cable TV or other communications
equipment were done by certified, licensed electricians
and in compliance with the city's building code.
-- Eliminate the requirement that the city's Housing
Conservation District Review Committee must review the
proposed demolition of any buildings that "have been
determined by the Department of Safety and Permits to be
substantially damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita,
and where the damage is defined as 50 percent or more of
the replacement value prior to the hurricane damage."
The housing committee normally must review all proposed
demolitions in older neighborhoods not under the
jurisdiction of the Historic District Landmarks
Commission or the Vieux Carre Commission. But it is
accustomed to handling fewer than a dozen requests a
month, not the hundreds or thousands it might have to
deal with in the aftermath of Katrina.
Safety and Permits Department officials had warned
earlier that it would not be safe to allow electricians
and contractors to certify their own work. But the
council and administration said they were responding to
a torrent of complaints that the dearth of city
inspectors has been preventing people from getting power
to their trailers and getting other work done.
Nagin and the council also agreed a few weeks ago to
waive fees for city building, mechanical, electrical and
gas permits through March 31 if the applicant applies
for them online or by fax.
That move was intended to encourage more people to apply
for permits by those methods, thus helping to reduce the
long lines at the Safety and Permits Department in City
Hall.
The free online access to permits is available on the
city's Web site and through electronic kiosks on the
seventh and eighth floors of City Hall.
Citizens applying by fax must use a special permit form
available on the Web site or at the Safety and Permits
office. The fax line is (504) 658-7210.
. . . . . . .
Bruce Eggler can be reached at beggler@timespicayune.com
or (504) 826-3320