Draft ordinance would create notice period, clarify do‑not‑occupy orders and align penalties

City legal and building staff reviewed proposed changes to the code to allow the building official to enforce portions of the building code, issue stop‑work orders and, in narrowly defined circumstances, issue do‑not‑occupy orders. Under the draft, enforcement for occupying a structure without a certificate of occupancy would begin with a notice; if the occupant continues to occupy the structure seven days after the notice, the matter would become an infraction.

"They have to have certificate of occupancy... and then it's not until if they continue occupying after that notice for 7 days, then it would be an infraction," Director Center said, explaining the switch from a knowledge requirement to a notice requirement. The draft also allows the fire marshal to be involved in determining whether a violation poses an immediate life‑safety hazard that would escalate the violation to a misdemeanor and proposes aligning local misdemeanor penalties with the state (maximums discussed included up to 90 days in jail and a $300 fine for specific state code misdemeanors).