California Building Code makes everything more expensive

[CodeWarrior]

This came out recently lamenting the expensive construction and real estate market in San Francisco.

http://thebaycitybeacon.com/32740/2...building-code-makes-everything-more-expensive

 

[conarb]

I've been telling you guys this for years, with average permit times for new homes at 7 years I retired, the fact is that AHJs are making it as difficult and expensive as possible because they don't want new homes, they are complying with One Bay Area that wants to stack people in urban cores with mass transit to mitigate the so-called "damage" humans do the the environment.

Sunday I drove to San Francisco vowing it would be the last time in my life, my wife wanted to go to the Modern Art Museum for her birthday, the streets are filthy and littered with drugged people passed out on the streets, walking around are sexual perverts many dressed in leather with pink hair and tattoos, above the squalor are hight-rise apartment complexes with cranes hanging over the tops, we are witnessing the "manhattanization" of San Francisco, the wealthy living over the drugged out masses of humanity.

Few builders object to its myriad requirements, but rather to the politics of it all - stringent design guidelines and unpredictable local implementation isolate California’s construction trades from innovation in the global market. When renowned architect Stanley Stainowitz sounded off to the San Francisco Chronicle about “obstruction” in the city’s planning department, he struck a nerve that resonated with many building industry professionals (while also drawing a strong rebuke from the department itself).

The question has extended much further than the planning phase. With construction costs reaching up to $800,000 for every new unit in San Francisco, local governments are increasingly strained to meet the dire need for affordable housing in the country’s most expensive urban cores. Is the staggering cost of housing in the city due to ballooning regulatory costs, as some research has claimed?

We are powerless to object, we do what we have to do to comply with the demands of the cities, they have us by the balls and they know it. Much of these regulatory costs consists of political agenda, insane things like accessibility, green, and energy codes, all political codes.

Once I was briefing a client on my progress and referred to the CBO, he asked: "What does CBO stand for, Chief Building Obstructionist?" Through all of this San Francisco has declared itself a sanctuary city so hordes more can invade drawn by the magnets of our entitlement society.

The difference is in the politics. Jeff Brinks, a structural engineer at DCI Engineers in San Francisco, put it thus: “local staff understands the political climate and knows what their leaders want. As opposed to saying ‘that’s wrong, go back and do it again,’ a city that actually wants more development may say, ‘how can we work to make this better?’”

Mr. Brinks noted that many projects, typically high-rise buildings, opt for Performance Based Design Review: rather than following the prescriptive mandates of the state building code, these developments are designed to meet specific performance metrics such as seismic load or energy efficiency.

Industry professionals are more focused on reforming the California Building Code to allow for cost-cutting, energy-efficient materials to enter the market, namely Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT). Buildings constructed with factory-made CLT panels, with layers of thick wooden beams crossed perpendicularly and glued together, can take advantage of the lower costs and smaller carbon footprint of wood construction while achieving the height and density normally reserved for concrete and steel construction.

Less emphasis should be placed on phony products that may not stand the test of time and more emphasis placed in eliminating rules and regulations.

“We need to go taller,” said Susan Jones, an architect at the Seattle-based firm Atelier Jones who advises on IBC updates. “The new code may allow for structures of up to 20, even 24 stories for CLT buildings. That’s huge,” she added. “This industry is growing by leaps and bounds, and I’m thrilled to be working on the cutting edge.”

Bull §hit, we don't need to go up and suffer the dehumanization of cramming people together, we need to go out but we are surrounded by parks and all kinds of government agency lands, what they don't stop zoning does.

 

[RLGA]

They're only figuring this out now?

 

[Mark K]

The article distorts. Compare the California Building Code (CBC) with the IBC. If the CBC is the source of the problem then I would expect that other jurisdictions using the IBC would have similar problems. Remember that the IBC is the result of a process the building officials control. If the problem is with the CBC then ICC must share the blame.

The focus of the complaints appear to have to do with the planning process which is separate from the building permit plan checking process.

The article then becomes a promotion piece for the wood industry's efforts to promote CLT

Conarb distorts. San Francisco is not as he describes it.

 

[conarb]

Conarb distorts. San Francisco is not as he describes it.

It is as It describe, Sunday we went to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, this sits next to Moscone Center, we parked in a garage three blocks away on Mission, we passed a Bloomingdale's on the way with druggies, black and white, passed out on the street so you had to step over or around them, the last time we were there was in September for my birthday and trying to get to Civic Center and the Opera House we were blocked by the Folsome Street Fair, they are one of the Qs in LBGQQ and were protected by the police behind barricades, behind the barricades you could see them beating each other with whips and chains, we've had Sunday tickets for years, our three tickets are now $900 performance and we had to drive around all that perversion now protected by the law. After that I said no more, then the wife collects Diebenkorns and the SFMOMA had a Matisse -Diebenkorn exhibit and I agreed to go one more time, but walking over all the druggies ruined the entire thing for us, along with the smell of feces, urine and marijuana. Sunday we saw some of the perverts walking the street in their leather harnesses, pink hair, black and purple lipstick, male, female, and other I suppose, also beggars all over the place.

The picture in the posted article shows new high-rises with cranes on top, during our walks you could look up in the air and see all these high-rise apartments going up, lot's more than the picture shows. As to not being a code problem, both we contractors and the general public don't care what any one fee is, it's what it costs us to walk our of city hall with a permit, but everyone refers to them as permit fees, you have to pay them and comply with all codes, be they building codes or other codes, they all cost a fortune and take years to get, in San Francisco you almost have to pay a permit expediter to navigate the system and grease the palms .

 

[ICE]

Conarb distorts. San Francisco is not as he describes it.

Oh it's much worse.....I've seen it and it is an embarrassment.

 

[Mark K]

While the San Francisco Bay Area is not perfect one of the problems is that there are too many people here. Why are there so many who want to live here if it is as bad as some have suggested?

Could it be that conarb and ICE part of a secret plan to help discourage more people from moving here thus making it a better place for those who live here?

 

[conarb]

While the San Francisco Bay Area is not perfect one of the problems is that there are too many people here. Why are there so many who want to live here if it is as bad as some have suggested?

Could it be that conarb and ICE part of a secret plan to help discourage more people from moving here thus making it a better place for those who live here?

There are too many people here because of all the benefits we freely give to lower class people, there are also many computer programmer types who are paid about $125,000 a year who displace the poor, Silicon Valley is bursting at the seems because the government won't allow expansion out, the hills are off limits for development because we have to have "open space", at one time we were moving towards the Bay (see Foster City and Bay Farm Island) by filling it in, now the environmentalists won't allow that to "preserve the wetlands". Apple, Google, Facebook and others are running air-conditioned, WiFi equipped buses on a daily basis from their headquarters to stack them in San Francisco or Oakland where they gentrify the flatlands pushing the poor blacks to the streets, under freeways, etc.

 

[conarb]

What places like the Opera House and Museum tell you is to take public transportation like the BART trains, this in today's paper:

A Karen was miffed over the group of thugs who terrorized BART riders recently, saying she would no longer take BART into San Francisco out of concerns for her safety. And she added:
“This, along with the removal of more seats, does it! … We are not living in Japan where riders are packed in like sardines.”

Back to Mr. Rodriguez.

Q I get it, Karen. The Bay Area is now crammed with people like me riding BART to make ends meet. BART’s removal of seats allows more “sardines” to get to work. It is your right not to ride BART, Karen. I wish I had the same luxury.

Daniel Rodriguez

A And now for some other views …

Q I understand that the incidents on BART have scared people. but they don’t scare me as much as San Francisco traffic and parking. … Karen, count your blessings about riding BART; at least you have a choice. Those of us on the Peninsula are stuck in godawful traffic with no option since the shortsighted decision not to run BART down here was made 50 years ago. … I’ll never drive to San Francisco again. I did it once and spent so long looking for parking, paid so much for parking, spent so much time stuck in awful confusing traffic! The ferry is nice, but BART is faster.

Q BART has quite a few apps at the Apple Store. The one people may want to download is “BART WATCH.” That will get right to their cops.
Marlene Lerner-Bigley¹

What they are referring to is that recently 40 to 60 black youth jumped fare gates and started robbing and beating passengers, they are adding new cars to the trains but accessibility and bicycle activist groups created a storm demanding the removal of seats for wheelchairs and bicycles. BTW, Sunday I had booked parking two weeks in advance, it cost me $85 for two hour parking. The foul odors come from foul smelling people, blacks in dreadlocks, bicyclists in sweat stained spandex, and many smelling of marijuana.

Not only are these cities declaring themselves sanctuary cities in defiance of federal law but now they are giving free legal representation to illegal people.

SAN FRANCISCO — Immigrants facing deportation have no right to a lawyer if they can’t afford one, but Bay Area governments are leading a movement — which could take hold throughout California — to ensure there’s an attorney by their side anyway.

Facing President Donald Trump’s pledge to crack down on illegal immigration, officials in San Francisco, Alameda and Santa Clara counties are hiring public defenders and pro bono lawyers for U.S. immigration courts. Critics call the trend a flagrant misuse of local tax dollars, but immigrant advocates say it’s a way to make these courts more just.²

If cities and states are going to disregard federal law why do any of us have to obey local laws, codes etc.?

Maybe you are going to have to enforce codes at the barrel of a gun, then maybe the citizens can carry guns and fight back, have we come to that? This is just the start, we are ruled by One Bay Area, or Plan Bay Area (an unelected body), they impose the United Nations agenda on us, the UN wants us to triple the population of the United States with immigrants and refugees from all over the third world, San Francisco is a sign of things to come.



¹ http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05/10/roadshow-what-do-bart-police-do-during-their-patrols/

² http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05/08/california-bay-area-immigrant-legal-defense-deportation/

 

[tmurray]

wow...just...wow...

I can't honestly remember the last time I've seen this level of racism and intolerance.

It certainly wasn't on this board.

 

[RLGA]

Getting back to the original issue...yes, California uses the IBC; h o w e v e r...

The state heavily modifies the IBC by layering more regulation upon the code and eliminating some of the original content, such as not allowing height and area increases for installation of a sprinkler system. All of that adds cost. I understand the seismic modifications, but other modifications are made based on questionable reasoning in my opinion; some of it is just carryover from the UBC days ("That's the way it was, and we're not going to change" kind of attitude) while others perceive it as state arrogance to be "better" or more "progressive" than the other 49 states. Either way, it's a state issue and not necessarily a San Francisco issue. Personally, I try to avoid working on projects in California.

 

[conarb]

wow...just...wow...

I can't honestly remember the last time I've seen this level of racism and intolerance.

It certainly wasn't on this board.

You think it's racism and intolerance to object to gangs of black thugs beating people on trains? Today's paper:

OAKLAND — A Pleasanton man and his family who were beaten during a mob robbery aboard a BART train last month plan to seek $3 million from the agency for gross negligence.

Rusty Stapp, his wife, Patricia, and 19-year-old daughter, Amanda, were on the train and say they were beaten and robbed when 50-60 teens jumped fare gates at the Coliseum station on April 22 and rushed a Dublin-bound train.

Police say seven people were robbed of cellphones, a duffel bag, and a purse.

“It’s the closest I’ve ever been to feeling like I might die,” Stapp said.

Stapp and his family each filed a claim against BART for $1 million apiece, saying they’ve uncovered 11 areas of emphasis in which the agency failed to protect its customers, including the conductor’s choice to open the doors to the mob in the first place.

The attack occurred as Stapp and his family were returning from dinner to celebrate Amanda’s birthday. According to Stapp, the mob beat on the train as it slowed down and rushed in when the conductor opened the doors.¹

It's intolerant to objecting to thousands of people virtually naked in leather harnesses beating each other with whips and chains? It's intolerant to object to stacking people in high-rises because codes and regulations are so restrictive? It's intolerant to object to allowing more illegal people into this area when we don't have the water or energy to support their existence because environmental activist groups won't let you build dams to protect the fish?

In San Francisco $105,000 a year is considered low income:

If you're among the Bay Area residents complaining about the rising costs of living, here's another report to solidify that view: In parts of the Bay Area, a six-figure income qualifies as "low income."

That report comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which helps determine who's eligible for subsidized housing.

In HUD's latest numbers, San Francisco, Marin and San Mateo show that an income of $105,350 for a family of four can be counted as low income. In those same counties an income of $65,800 is "very low," while $39,500 is "extremely low."²

¹ http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05/09/bart-mob-robbery-pleasanton-man-to-sue-agency/

² http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/artic...3125207&cw_peln=san25&pbrd=2099944227&em=true

 

[tmurray]

where does it say black?

 

[tmurray]

Additionally, are you saying that these people's right to assemble in public should be revoked because of their chosen lifestyle? Provided they are complying with all applicable laws, how do propose that it is lawful to deny their rights. Would this not be a violation of your constitution?

 

[conarb]

where does it say black?
Additionally, are you saying that these people's right to assemble in public should be revoked because of their chosen lifestyle? Provided they are complying with all applicable laws, how do propose that it is lawful to deny their rights. Would this not be a violation of your constitution?

Other articles have said "black youths".

At one time we had vagrancy laws prohibiting laying around on the streets, I don't know what's happened to that. In the case of the Folsom Street Fair people having sex on the streets has always been prohibited, I've never been interested enough to look at the constitutionality of such behavior. It would seem that people lying in their own feces and urine would be a public health concern.

Black and Hispanic gangs are now shooting people driving on the freeways, this is the subject of today's editorial:

Finally, movement to help stem the rash of Bay Area freeway shootings.

After dragging their feet for a year, state officials have kicked into action and are now moving forward rapidly to fund surveillance cameras from Richmond to Antioch.

It would be the first such state-funded project in California — and it can’t come soon enough.
Since November 2015, there have been 87 shootings, stretching from San Jose to the East Bay. Thirty-nine people have been injured. Eight have been killed, all in Contra Costa County, which is why this pilot project will be launched there.

Last year, we called for such a camera surveillance system. This year, in March, we upped the ante, calling out state officials who had failed to act.

Assemblyman Tony Thurmond, D-Richmond, took exception to our criticism but, to his great credit, rose to our challenge, working with the California Transportation Agency to secure needed support and funding.

Local planning for the cameras has been in the works for a year now. Pittsburg offered money for cameras on their section of Highway 4. West Contra Costa County mayors, led by Hercules’ Dan Romero, pressed Gov. Jerry Brown for action.

Meanwhile, Senior Deputy District Attorney Mary Knox spearheaded the logistical planning. But they were all stymied by lack of money. Until now.

The transportation agency has pledged the necessary funds and Caltrans is now providing critical technical expertise. More meetings are scheduled for this week, and everyone seems to have a needed sense of the urgency.

Law enforcement officials say freeway shootings are tough crimes to solve. The assailants are already in their getaway cars, traveling at 70 mph. Which is exactly why the cameras are needed.

Many of the shootings are gang-related, which seems to be a wrong-headed reason that law enforcement officials often downplay them. Moreover, the shooters can often miss their targets.

DeMarcus Doss, a 24-year-old college student with no gang affiliation, was fatally shot in March while driving with a friend on Interstate 80 in Richmond.

Shanique Marie, a 25-year-old mother of four, was killed a year ago on Highway 4 in Pittsburg. Her family believed she was not the intended target.

To be sure, freeway cameras raise legitimate privacy concerns that must be respected. In this case, the video will be erased after 90 days unless it’s needed for evidence.

There’s no guarantee that the cameras will stop all the shootings. But this is an experiment that must be tried. The alternative is unacceptable.¹

It's getting so bad that people are trying to get concealed/carry permits:

News of 60 thugs robbing BART patrons is no surprise in light of the fact that it occurred in Oakland, where savage, barbaric, cruel thieves abound.

My tenants repeatedly tell me about how dangerous it is to park their cars in the evening after dark — there are so many stories of young thugs driving around looking to rob people it’s impossible to keep the details in sequence.

People constantly ask me, because they know I’ve lived here for a long time, why there is so little police presence when you need a cop? I say ask Mayor Libby Schaaf.

Oakland is a paradise for the indolent barbaric thugs, the thieves and savage cretins who wander the streets, and I blame Oakland’s leaders for providing us with an appallingly insufficient number of police in a town where there is a prevailing culture that just enables all of these thugs to proliferate.

Schaaf’s representation of Oakland to the public is a fiction and a gross prevarication. She lies with impunity and couldn’t possibly be so stupid as to not know it. Schaaf is not really acquainted with civilized life. She’s had minimal experience in the civilized world and wouldn’t know how to comport herself. She is quite comfortable in the pathetic savage dysfunction and perpetual deviance that is Oakland. This is her milieu.

Oakland is extremely dangerous, in daytime and after dark — she knows it yet chooses to minimize this fact and propagate the delusional absurdity that Oakland is part of the civilized world. People are afraid to walk after dark, and Oakland municipal government’s complete and unrelenting ineptitude is disgraceful; appallingly so.

Jonathan Breault
Oakland²

Inspectors are so concerned here about reinforcement of codes that may or may not someday save a life while people are dying in the streets, to say nothing of enforcing strictly political codes like Energy, Green and Accessibility. How does a guy in a wheelchair get around people lying on the streets?

¹ http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05...eway-camera-funding-to-stop-deadly-shootings/

² http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05...iders-packing-heat-not-the-answer-to-attacks/

 

[ICE]

Why are there so many who want to live here if it is as bad as some have suggested?

I have heard an argument that it is driven by genetics.

 

[ICE]

Other articles have said "black youths".

At one time we had vagrancy laws prohibiting laying around on the streets, I don't know what's happened to that. In the case of the Folsom Street Fair people having sex on the streets has always been prohibited, I've never been interested enough to look at the constitutionality of such behavior. It would seem that people lying in their own feces and urine would be a public health concern.

Black and Hispanic gangs are now shooting people driving on the freeways, this is the subject of today's editorial:



It's getting so bad that people are trying to get concealed/carry permits:



Inspectors are so concerned here about reinforcement of codes that may or may not someday save a life while people are dying in the streets, to say nothing of enforcing strictly political codes like Energy, Green and Accessibility. How does a guy in a wheelchair get around people lying on the streets?

¹ http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05...eway-camera-funding-to-stop-deadly-shootings/

² http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05...iders-packing-heat-not-the-answer-to-attacks/

In the 70's I lived in Redwood City. There was a Hofbrau down the street. One day a man walked in and shot the pretty young cashier in the face. She died where I liked to have dinner. Days latter a trucker shot a bicyclist in front of my house. The guy died in my yard. I moved to Nevada City. Carrying a gun in Nevada City is considered respectable.

So what was the topic of this thread? Did it get hijacked?

 

[conarb]

So what was the topic of this thread? Did it get hijacked?

Answer: "This came out recently lamenting the expensive construction and real estate market in San Francisco."

Why even bother to have codes to supposedly "protect the health and safety" driving the costs of construction up exponentially when you have unhealthy and unsafe conditions laying all around on the streets? I know it's not your job, but you are part of a government that has it's priorities all screwed up. Why have a wheelchair accessible entrance to a store when druggies are lying on the sidewalk blocking entrance?