State lawmakers visited Tamaqua Wednesday to hear from developers who say they face overly restrictive building ordinances and cost prohibitive issues when trying to build or renovate properties.

At times, developers said, placement of a light switch or the width of a staircase can become so expensive and time consuming that it’s enough to stop a project from ever getting off the ground.

The hearing of the Pennsylvania House Republican Policy Committee brought legislators from across the state to the Tamaqua Arts Center.

“This theme that we are here to discuss today has come up in many different industries and many different spaces,” explained Rep. Joshua D. Kail, R-Beaver/Washington, who chairs the committee. “This issue is creating an obstacle for progress, for people who are developing, people in the manufacturing industry, and yesterday we heard from those in the agricultural committee having problems with permitting and regulation.”

Concerns included permitting processes, exorbitant prevailing wages, and the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code, which sets codes and regulations for building projects.

Nicholas Boyle, a developer and Tamaqua School Board member, called for “common sense” zoning and code enforcement.

“Local municipalities adopt generic zoning and planning plans that are made for open canvas communities and not communities that were built pre-automobile,” he explained.

He used an example of a 2,250 square foot building on Mauch Chunk Street in Tamaqua.

“If that was a blank lot today, we would only be allowed to build a 900-square foot footprint because of the generic setbacks contained in the zoning ordinances,” he explained.

Expensive delays

Developers can apply for variances in a situation like that, however, it can cost them a substantial amount in filing, attorney, engineering and surveying fees. The process also means pushing back intended project start dates by at least 90 days, he noted.

And in some instances, Boyle said, developers are required to bring buildings up to current codes. For example, he said, it might mean ripping out a 42-inch wide antique staircase, to replace it with one that measures 48-inches in width.

The requirement is meant to make the staircase safer, he said.

“That will cost more than the purchase price of the property,” he said. “That six inches is not going to play a major factor (for safety) at the end of the day.”

Boyle said he’d like to see practical code enforcement for renovations on older downtown structures.

Another flaw, Boyle said, is requiring prevailing wages for some projects.

“Prevailing wage restricts the distance an investor’s dollar will go. Programs like this would work fine in Philadelphia where rents are three times what they are here,” he said. “The government shouldn’t be in the business of helping unions be competitive. The market will set compensation rates.”

He also suggested creating different types of zoning for urban, suburban, pre-1900s communities and new developments - instead of the blanket zoning in place.

Renovations and other building projects could be stalled - or not even considered - given the stringency of the guidelines or the costs associated with trying to make them happen.

Roadblocks to safety

Mike Tobash, a former state representative and principal with Tobash Financial Solutions, said he’s working on a revitalization project in Pottsville.

“We have reached a point in time where safety requirements have become roadblocks to allowing buildings, neighborhoods and towns from actually becoming safer,” he said. “Safety regulations are causing some buildings to remain unsafe” by prohibiting their redevelopment.

Tobash explained that the problem lies when uniform construction codes are not applied uniformly - or are misinterpreted by architects, engineers and code enforcement agencies.

“I think we ended up at a spot right now where common sense guidelines, the intent of the legislation to make sure communities are safer, and buildings are safer, have become points of contention,” he said.

Tobash said costs associated with renovation and safety requirements have gotten “so out of hand” that projects are unprofitable without subsidies and tax breaks.

“I think a lot of these projects are dead on arrival because the costs have been driven up so much by the idea that the legislature wants a safe community and the interpretation by code enforcement has become so contentious that projects never get off the ground,” he said.

James Moore, manager and principal engineer for Lehigh Engineering, said regulatory approval processes are difficult.

“If you’re trying to develop a surface mine on (private) properties, the process wouldn’t be that much different from if you were trying to build a mine in a national park,” he said.

He said applications must contain “thousands” of pieces of information on hundreds of pages, and it could be years until they’re approved. Forms are also frequently changed, requiring manual input of information even though it might not have changed since a previous application.

Moore touched on other issues, including a requirement to monitor mine water.

“Mine water needs to be consistently monitored and reported on, however, water quality never changes,” he said. “Water monitoring costs hundreds of thousands of dollars per year but the benefit is very unclear.”

Representatives addressed the developers on the issues they raised.

Building elsewhere

State Rep. Jamie Barton, R-Schuylkill/Berks, said lawmakers know the need for affordable housing, and hoped that the codes weren’t keeping high-quality developers from creating new living spaces.

Rep. David Rowe, R- Union/Juniata/Mifflin/Snyder, said red tape in Pennsylvania is forcing some to take their business elsewhere.

He said he’s spoken to developers who have moved job-creating projects to Ohio or West Virginia.

“They say it will take half as much money and half as much time” if they complete their projects elsewhere, Rowe said.

Rep. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon) said he introduced legislation that would amend the UCC to allow property owners to have the choice between two or more UCC inspectors for property inspection services. He said he’s continuing to push for the legislation.

Also on hand for the hearing were Reps. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon); Jim Rigby (R-Cambria/Somerset); Joanne Stehr (R-Schuylkill/Northumberland), and Dane Watro (R-Schuylkill/Luzerne).

The committee frequently travels to different parts of the commonwealth to hear input on a variety of topics impacting residents.