PRESS ROOM
NEWS
RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT
Monday, April 21,
2003 Edward Segal
Director of
Communications
415-507-1011
MARIN ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® CALLS FOR
COUNTY-WIDE BUILDING PERMIT AMNESTY PROGRAMS
SAN RAFAEL - Citing the success of
Novato's building permit amnesty program which generated $180,000 in
revenue for that city, the Marin Association of
REALTORS® (MAR) today called on other
county, city, and town governments across Marin County to implement
similar programs for homeowners and property owners within the next
18 months. MAR also said it has launched a year-round public service
campaign to educate the public about the criteria for obtaining
building permits in their communities, and extended an offer to all
local governments to help promote and publicize their amnesty
programs to the public and the real estate community. MAR President
Dave Fahrner said "our reason for supporting these important
projects is simple: we want to work with all local governments to
help improve the quality of life in Marin County."
Novato's Amnesty Program
The
purpose of the Novato project was to encourage compliance with state
building codes by offering homeowners a financial incentive.
According to Novato officials, more than 850 people participated in
the city's two amnesty programs, which were conducted between 1998
and 2000. The city collected $180,000 in fees and evaluated more
than $3 million worth of work.
Under
provisions of the Novato program:
* Residents who
had made repairs or improvements without first getting the necessary
building permits could have the work legalized without paying the
triple-penalty fee
* The program did not sanction or grandfather
in code violations or waive standard building permit
fees
Amnesty Program Benefits and Advantages
Fahrner
said "we encourage every mayor, council member and county supervisor
to take a serious look at Novato's successful building permit
amnesty program and, if appropriate, customize and implement it in
their own communities. We look forward to working with elected
officials and government agencies to educate all residents about
current building permit regulations."
"Building permit amnesty
programs may generate additional revenue for local governments, make
properties more marketable, and provide peace-of-mind to prospective
home buyers," said Fahrner. He also noted that communities could use
amnesty programs to encourage homeowners to bring second units up to
local legal standards, thus adding needed code-approved housing to a
tight housing market. "It would be beneficial for all parties if
property owners set things right with their local governments, and
we hope elected officials and their staffs will agree to provide
taxpayers with a clean slate. When government agencies notify MAR
about any building permit changes, we will immediately pass on this
important information to the public and our members," Fahrner said.
For local governments concerned about utilizing staff resources to
implement their own building permit amnesty programs, Fahrner asked
elected officials to consider hiring qualified temporary workers or
contracting out the projects to appropriate companies and experts.
MAR's Public Service Campaign
A focal point of MAR's public
service campaign is its new Internet-based "building permit
information center." Located at www.buildingpermitsmarin.com, the
site serves as a gateway to provide visitors with details about
their local building permit policies, regulations, and application
procedures.
The MAR site features links to appropriate
government Web pages, scanned pages of local building permit
regulations provided by city or town officials, and phone numbers
for people to call for more information or answers to their
questions.
The campaign includes:
* A new Web site
www.buildingpermitsmarin.com. The home page serves as a portal for
the building permit regulations of 11 Marin communities and the
unincorporated areas of the county. The list includes Belvedere,
Corte Madera, Fairfax, Larkspur, Mill Valley, Novato, Ross, San
Anselmo, San Rafael, Sausalito, Tiburon, and the unincorporated
areas of Marin County
* A public information outreach effort to
the members of more than 300 homeowner associations and local labor
unions.
* E-mail updates to residents who subscribe to MAR's new
"Building Permit Alerts"
* A series of briefing activities and
materials for MAR's 1,350 members.
About the Marin Association
of REALTORS(r)
MAR was founded in 1920. It provides a broad range
of political advocacy, member education, and professional standards
activities and services to its 1,350 members across Marin County.
.