Building Codes

Why is it so important to Mineral County whatever Nye County does about its codes and where they are enforced? If we are concerned about what other counties are doing, why not check out all the other Nevada rural counties and see what they do? This is Mineral County and we should be concerned about doing what is best for us and what will encourage future growth. Businesses looking at us will expect strong codes because of insurance costs and the need for financial backing. Codes are designed for the safety of everyone and are not written to be against individuals.
When I designed and we built my house back in the early 80s, it was built to the existing code and was regularly inspected at various stages and it is good to know that it is well built and safe. My family built it and were not contractors and the only licensed contractor used was the cement deliveries.
The reason the commissioners passed the Ordinance is to allow Mineral County to amend the state adopted codes so that we aren’t forced to use codes that do not fit the rural situation of our county. If there was any power grab it was to put the design of those amendments to be addressed by the volunteer citizens committee in meetings with county officials. Anyone interested is welcomed to become part of that committee to study the code and suggest what needs to be part of the adoption of codes. It appears to me that the power is to the interested citizens in the county and isn’t that what people wanted? I serve on two advisory committees in the county and my experience is that the commissioners rely on our recommendations and very rarely oppose them. I have every reason to believe that the same will be true with the code advisory committee’s findings and suggestions.
When deciding about a recall election I would hope that instead of focusing on just one situation, people will consider the complete picture of costs to the county of a recall election. These funds are out of the General Fund and that amount means when making up the budget for next year, something for the county that is needed will have to be dropped and the county is already short of funds. We just lost jobs and people from a mine closing. In addition, the election is in November and the voters can decide then what they want without the added expense to the county of a special election.
It was my opinion in the December 10 meeting that the commissioners did listen to what was said and even though a 3 minute time limit for each speaker had been set, they allowed certain individuals to go far beyond the time limit and made every effort to answer their concerns. It is difficult for me to understand why some people are so upset about the county officials trying to better how codes will work for Mineral County and without the new ordinance, we would have been bound by codes that are mainly written not for rural use, but for urban areas.
If you have questions about things, please contact the commissioners directly. They are willing to discuss issues with individuals.

Betty Easley

Hawthorne