(Spirit Lake)– With one member absent, the Spirit Lake city council Tuesday voted three-to-one to repeal the city’s building codes.
The council took the action after hearing from several contractors who called on the city to keep the codes in place…saying the problem wasn’t with the codes themselves, but how they were being enforced.
That wasn’t enough to sway the majority of the council to keep the codes. Councilmembers Jerry Harbst, Kevin Bice and Steve Balm voted in favor of the repeal, while Clyde Ihrke cast the lone no vote. Councilman Jeff Thee was absent.
Harbst says the fact the city had to dip into its general fund to the tune of some 25-thousand dollars to help fund the code program was a factor behind his vote for the repeal.
Harbst added the repeal isn’t necessarily a permanent thing. He says they’re planning to revamp the program by getting input from a committee of local contractors.
Harbst says they’re also hoping other cities and the county will come on board to help share the costs of inspections. But fellow councilman Clyde Ihrke says Tuesday’s vote will make that more of a challenge.
