• The City's Building Code is codified as Title 17 of the Vancouver Municipal Code.  Chapter 17.08 of this title is the Administrative Code, which provides the rules and regulations for the administration and enforcement of the technical building codes adopted by the City.
• The focus of the proposed updates is to address some minor cleanup items and to capture a few larger and substantive items which help align VMC 17.08 with other sections of the VMC. 
• These changes have been reviewed and are recommended by the Building and Fire Code Commission.

The Community Development Department, which includes the building plan review, inspection and code compliance divisions, is responsible for administration and enforcement of the building codes ordinance. The "building official" for the city provides direct day to day management and oversight of the enforcement and administration of city building codes and ordinances codified in VMC Title 17, as well as for construction permits under Section 105 of the International Fire Code (IFC), adopted in VMC Chapter 16.04.

To advise the City Council regarding the technical codes and methods contained in VMC Title 16 and 17, and to provide for reasonable interpretations of the adopted technical codes, the City established the Building and Fire Codes Commission (BFCC). One of the primary duties of the BFCC is to review and make recommendations to the council prior to its action on all proposed new codes and proposed changes to existing construction codes and regulations relating to building and fire. The recommended changes to title 17 have been reviewed by the BFCC and forwarded with a recommendation for adoption.

SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSALS

The focus of the proposed updates is to address some minor cleanup items and to capture a few larger and substantive items which help align VMC 17.08 with other sections of the VMC. The following is a summary of the proposed changes:

• Update to the permit application process - from paper to electronic
• Update to the permit application deadline from 180 days to 1 year, which aligns permit application processing timelines with the requirements of VMC 20.915.020 Impact Fees
• Update to the plan review and inspection processes- to cover electronic plan review and remote inspections
• Update to the inspection scheduling language to allow a 3-day window to complete the inspections upon inspection request
• Update to allow remote inspections to be performed at the discretion of the building official
• Requires property owners and contractors responsible for completing the permit process (in addition to the permit holder)
• Adjust the minimum fee refund amount to $222 unless fees were applied/collected in error by the City
• To clarify violations for the purposes of enforcement
• General housekeeping items: Deletion of repetitive and redundant sections.

On October 6, 2022 the BFCC reviewed the proposed changes and unanimously recommended approval.  

After the October 6 BFCC meeting, staff discovered a minor clarification that was needed for VMC 17.32.040 Unfit buildings, dwellings and structures defined. The clarification highlighted below would make it clear that each itemized defect listed in this chapter will be considered a distinct code violation for the purpose of enforcement actions under VMC Title 22.

• For the purposes of this chapter, any dwelling, building or structure which has any or all of the conditions or defects described in this section shall be deemed to be an unfit dwelling, building or structure, provided that such conditions or defects exist to the extent that the life, health, property or safety of the public is endangered: Each itemized defect listed in this chapter is considered a distinct code violation for the purpose of enforcement actions under VMC Title 22.