mtlogcabin
SAWHORSE
http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/city/article_84f6d3fa-d684-11e0-8d60-001cc4c002e0.html
Bozeman homeowner says city denied him a permit to install egress windows
Bozeman Daily Chronicle Website
When Barton Churchill’s home caught fire Aug. 27, it wasn’t just his tenants who lost everything.
“I lost clothes, climbing equipment, my bed, family heirlooms, furniture, appliances,” said Churchill, 36.
Churchill lived in the two-story home on the 1100 block of South Willson Avenue, upstairs from the basement apartment where the fire started.
He has been criticized for not having smoke alarms and proper escape windows in the basement rental unit.
The city’s top building official has said that two Montana State University students living in the basement might not have been able to get out if they had been sleeping at the time.
Churchill maintains, though, that he tried to install egress windows in the home’s basement six years ago. He said the city denied him a permit.
“They required a contract to bring the entire house up to code,” Churchill said.
He said he would have had to install separate heating, plumbing and electrical systems for the rental unit and the rest of the house.
“That would have cost tens if not into the hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Churchill said.
Bob Risk, chief building official, said it’s possible that happened to Churchill. But the policy has since changed.
“I know that if he came in for a permit for the egress windows now, I’d let him do it,” Risk said. “If (someone’s) just doing windows, we will give them a permit for just windows.”
If the property is located within a historic district, however, as is Churchill’s, the owner also must comply with city historic preservation standards.
Historic Preservation Officer Allyson Bristor said the property owner would need a certificate of appropriateness from the city to install egress windows.
The property owner would need to submit drawings showing their plans for the house, she said. Then, city planners would look at the style of the house and size and location of the proposed windows to evaluate each application on a case-by-case basis.
But Bristor said she couldn’t recall any applications being denied.
On Friday morning, several of Churchill’s former tenants gathered on the home’s front lawn to show support for him during a, Chronicle interview.
When the house burned, Churchill had been planning a reunion for all the people who had lived in his house during the eight years he has owned it.
Kevin Ewing rented a room upstairs in the home. He was in the process of moving out when the fire occurred.
Ewing said he doesn’t fault Churchill for not having smoke alarms or egress windows. Though, he said, he plans to pay attention to whether or not they’ve been installed in his next apartment.
Former tenant Amelia Musgjerd said Churchill had purchased smoke alarms to replace the missing ones in the basement just prior to the fire.
Churchill didn’t deny the alarms were his responsibility, but he noted that tenants take them down all the time. He had planned to put new ones up after the MSU students moved out the next day.
“Ironically, he had smoke alarms to replace the ones that got taken down sitting on the martini bar,” Musgjerd said.
Bozeman homeowner says city denied him a permit to install egress windows
Bozeman Daily Chronicle Website
When Barton Churchill’s home caught fire Aug. 27, it wasn’t just his tenants who lost everything.
“I lost clothes, climbing equipment, my bed, family heirlooms, furniture, appliances,” said Churchill, 36.
Churchill lived in the two-story home on the 1100 block of South Willson Avenue, upstairs from the basement apartment where the fire started.
He has been criticized for not having smoke alarms and proper escape windows in the basement rental unit.
The city’s top building official has said that two Montana State University students living in the basement might not have been able to get out if they had been sleeping at the time.
Churchill maintains, though, that he tried to install egress windows in the home’s basement six years ago. He said the city denied him a permit.
“They required a contract to bring the entire house up to code,” Churchill said.
He said he would have had to install separate heating, plumbing and electrical systems for the rental unit and the rest of the house.
“That would have cost tens if not into the hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Churchill said.
Bob Risk, chief building official, said it’s possible that happened to Churchill. But the policy has since changed.
“I know that if he came in for a permit for the egress windows now, I’d let him do it,” Risk said. “If (someone’s) just doing windows, we will give them a permit for just windows.”
If the property is located within a historic district, however, as is Churchill’s, the owner also must comply with city historic preservation standards.
Historic Preservation Officer Allyson Bristor said the property owner would need a certificate of appropriateness from the city to install egress windows.
The property owner would need to submit drawings showing their plans for the house, she said. Then, city planners would look at the style of the house and size and location of the proposed windows to evaluate each application on a case-by-case basis.
But Bristor said she couldn’t recall any applications being denied.
On Friday morning, several of Churchill’s former tenants gathered on the home’s front lawn to show support for him during a, Chronicle interview.
When the house burned, Churchill had been planning a reunion for all the people who had lived in his house during the eight years he has owned it.
Kevin Ewing rented a room upstairs in the home. He was in the process of moving out when the fire occurred.
Ewing said he doesn’t fault Churchill for not having smoke alarms or egress windows. Though, he said, he plans to pay attention to whether or not they’ve been installed in his next apartment.
Former tenant Amelia Musgjerd said Churchill had purchased smoke alarms to replace the missing ones in the basement just prior to the fire.
Churchill didn’t deny the alarms were his responsibility, but he noted that tenants take them down all the time. He had planned to put new ones up after the MSU students moved out the next day.
“Ironically, he had smoke alarms to replace the ones that got taken down sitting on the martini bar,” Musgjerd said.
