There are hereby adopted and incorporated by reference herein the following portions of the State Building Code, as published by the International Code Council ("ICC") and adopted by the State Fire Commission at Title 87, Series 4, of the West Virginia Code of State Rules, to be known as the Building Code of the Town of Granville, West Virginia, for the purpose of regulating construction, alteration, addition, removal and demolition of buildings and structures. together with the additions and amendments hereinafter provided:
(a) The 2018 edition, International Building Code, with the following exceptions and additions:
(1) The section entitled "Fire Prevention" and identified as Section 101.4.5 is deleted and not considered to be a part of this section.
(2) The entire subsection entitled "Qualifications" and identified as Section 113.3 is deleted and replaced with the following:
"Section 113.3. Board of Appeals
113.3 Qualifications. The board of appeals shall consist of five (5) members, with up to three (3) alternates, who are qualified by experience and training to pass on matters pertaining to building construction and are not employees of the jurisdiction. They may include, but are not limited to a WV Registered Professional Architect or Engineer, or a WV Licensed General Building, Residential, Electrical, Piping, Plumbing, Mechanical or Fire Protection Contractor, with at least ten (10) years experience, five (5) of which shall be in responsible charge of work. No less than one of the members of such Board of Appeals shall be a WV Registered Professional Architect or Engineer, or a WV Licensed General Building, Residential, Electrical, Piping, Plumbing, Mechanical or Fire Protection Contractor."
(3) The following appendices are applicable:
Appendix E - Supplementary Accessibility Requirements; and
Appendix H - Signs.
(b) The 2018 edition of the International Plumbing Code
(c) The 2018 edition of the International Mechanical Code. The following shall be in addition to the current language found in the said edition of the referenced code and section:
(1) See International Mechanical Code, Section 908, Cooling Towers, Evaporative Condensers and Fluid Coolers.
A. 908.1 General - A cooling tower used in conjunction with an air-conditioning appliance shall be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. Factory-built cooling towers shall be listed in accordance with UL 1995 or UL/CSA 60335-2-40.
(2) Section 916 Pool and Spa Heaters
A. 916.1 General - Pool and spa heaters shall be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. Oil-fired pool and spa heaters shall be tested in accordance with UL 1251. Pool and spa heat pump water heaters shall comply with UL 1995, UL/CSA 60335-2-40 or CSA C22.2 No. 236.
1. Exception: Portable residential spas and portable residential exercise spas shall comply with UL 1563 or CSA C22.2 No. 218.1.
(3) Section 918 Forced-Air Warm-Arr Furnaces
A. 918.1 Forced-Air furnaces - Oil-fired furnaces shall be tested in accordance with UL 727. Electric furnaces shall be tested in accordance with UL 1995 or UL/CSA 60335-2-40.
(4) Section 1101 General
A. 1101.2 Factory-Built Equipment and Appliances - Listed and labeled self-contained, factory-built equipment and appliances shall be tested in accordance with UL 207, 412, 471, 1995, UL/CSA 60335-2-40, or UL/CSA 60335-2-89. Such equipment and appliances are deemed to meet the design, manufacture and factory test requirements of this code if installed in accordance with their listing and the manufacturer's instructions.
B. 1101.6 General. Refrigeration systems shall comply with the requirements of this code and, except as modified by this code, ASHRAE 15. Ammonia-refrigerating systems shall comply with this code and, except as modified by this Code, ASHRAE 15, HAR 2. High probability systems utilizing A2L refrigerants shall comply with ASHRAE 15.
(5) Chapter 15 REFERENCED STANDARDS
A. 1501.3 Referenced Standards - Table 1 shall be Table 1 as included at West Virginia Code of State Rules, Title 87, Series 4, Section 4.1.c.1.E.l.
(d) The 2018 edition of the International Fuel Gas Code, with the following exception:
(1) Section 404.10 Underground piping systems shall be installed a minimum depth of twelve (12) inches (305 tnm) below grade. If the minimum depth cannot be maintained, the piping system shall be installed in conduit or shielded in an approved manner.
(e) The 2018 edition of the International Property Maintenance Code, with the following addition:
(1) The following appendix is applicable:
Appendix A - Boarding Standards
(f) The 2015 edition of the International Energy Conservation Code for residential buildings, with the following exception:
(1) Section R402.4.l.2. Testing. The building or dwelling unit shall in lieu thereof have an air leakage rate not exceeding five (5) air changes per hour in Climate Zones 3 through 8.
(g) The ANSI/ASHRAE /IESNA Standard 90.1 2013 edition for commercial buildings.
(1) Using building energy benchmarking in all commercial structures means measuring a building's energy use and then comparing it to the energy use of similar buildings, its own historical energy usage, or a reference performance level, and is an allowable option for improved energy efficiency and performance.
(h) The 2018 edition of the International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings, with the following additions and exceptions:
(1) The following appendices are applicable:
Appendix D - Safety inspections of existing appliances
Appendix E - Manufactured Housing used as Dwellings.
Appendix Q - Tiny Houses
(2) Chapter 11 of the 2018 edition of the International Residential Code for One-and Two-Family Dwellings, Seventh Printing, entitled Energy Efficiency," is exempt from this section.
(3) Section G2415.12 (404.10) Minimum Burial Depth. Underground piping systems shall be installed a minimum depth of twelve (12) inches (305 mm) below grade. If the minimum depth cannot be maintained, the piping system shall be installed in conduit or shielded in an approved manner.
(4) Section M1402 Central Furnaces.
A. M1402.l General - Oil-fired central furnaces shall conform to ANSI/UL 727. Electric furnaces shall conform to UL 1995 or UL/CSA 60335-2-40.
B. Section M1403 Heat Pump Equipment
1. M 1403.1 Heat-pumps - Electric heat pumps shall be listed and labeled in accordance with UL 1995 or UL/CSA 60335-2-40.
C. Section Ml412 Absorption Cooling Equipment
1. M1412.1 Approval of equipment-Absorption systems shall be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. Absorption equipment shall comply with UL 1995 or UL/CSA 60335-2-40.
D. Section M1413 Evaporative Cooling Equipment
1. M1413.l General - Evaporative cooling equipment and appliances shall comply with UL 1995 or UL/CSA 60335-2-40 and shall be installed in accordance with 4401.3 Referenced standard list.
E. Chapter 44 Referenced standards.
1. 4401.3 Referenced standard list -Table 2 shall be Table 2 as included at West Virginia Code of State Rules, Title 87, Series 4, Section 4.1.h.1.E.l.
(5) Section R311.7.5 Stair Treads and Risers
A. 311.7.5.1 Riser Heights -- The maximum riser height shall be eight and one-quarter (8 1/4) inches.
B. 311.7.5.2 Tread Depth- The minimum tread depth shall be nine (9) inches.
(6) Section R403.l.7.1: Building Clearances From Ascending Slopes is not applicable to this section.
(7) Section R403.1.7.2: Footings Setbacks From Descending Slope Surfaces is not applicable to this section.
(8) The frost line specified in Table R301.2.(1), as directed by Section R403. l.4.l of the 2018 International Residential Code shall be 30 inches.
(i) The 2017 ICC/ANSI A117.1 American National Standards for Accessibility & Usable Buildings & Facilities.
(j) The 2018 International Existing Building Code, with the following exception:
(1) Omit reference to International Fire Code and substitute NFPA Life Safety Code 2018 edition.
(k) The 2020 edition of the National Electrical Code, NFPA 70, with the following exception:
(1) Section 2l0.8(F) GFCI Protection shall not be required on all new minisplit heating/ventilation/air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment and other HVAC units employing power conversion equipment as a means to control compressor speed systems including but not limited to mini-split and A/C units until January 1, 2023.
(2) For renovations in one- and two-family homes where no new square footage is involved, arc-fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) protection shall not be required, except for in bedrooms. For renovation in one- and two-family homes where square footage is added but no electrical service is installed, arc-fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) protection shall not be required.
(1) The 2018 edition of the International Swimming Pool and Spa Code.
(m) Wherever referenced in the several ICC codes adopted in this Section, any reference to the International Fire Code should be substituted with the NFPA Life Safety Code 2021 edition.
(n) Whenever a certificate of occupancy is required of a commercial structure greater in size than 7,600 feet, the project documents shall be designed by an Architect licensed by the WV Board of Architects, or a professional Engineer licensed by the WV State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers.
(o) Fire Protection of Floors in Residential Buildings.
(1) Pursuant to Title 87, West Virginia Code of State Rule, Series 4, Section 5.1, New One and Two Family Dwellings over one level in height, New One and Two Family Dwellings containing a basement, and New One and Two Family Dwellings containing a crawl space containing a fuel burning appliance below the first floor, shall provide one of the following methods for fire protection of floors: (1) A one-half (½) inch (12.7 mm) gypsum wallboard membrane, five-eighths (5/8) inch (16 mm) wood structural panel membrane, or equivalent on the underside of the floor framing member; (2) Wood floor assemblies using dimension lumber or structural composite lumber equal or greater than two (2) inch by ten (10) inch (50.8 mm by 254 mm) nominal dimension, or other approved floor assemblies demonstrating equivalent fire performance: or (3) An Automatic Fire Sprinkler System as set forth in Section R313.1 or R313.2 of the 2015 edition of the International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings: Provided, That floor assemblies located directly over a space protected by an automatic sprinkler system as set forth in section R313.1 or R313.2 of the 2015 edition of the International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings are exempt from this requirement.
(2) Pursuant to Title 87, West Virginia Code of State Rules, Series A, Section 5.2, Townhouses meeting the Fire Resistant Construction Standard R302.2 will be treated as New One- and Two-Family Dwellings and shall comply with the referenced Section 5.1 immediately above.
(p) Exceptions.
(1) The following structures are not subject to inspection under this section:
A. Group U utility structures and storage sheds comprising an area not more than 200 square feet which have no plumbing or electrical connections and are used only for residential storage purposes. (Examples include sheds that are for the residential storage of lawnmowers, tools, bicycles or furniture.) Not included, are those utility structures and storage sheds which have plumbing or electrical connections are a non-residential use or for the storage of explosives or other hazardous or explosive materials.
(q) Exemption for Agricultural Purposes.
(1) If a property owner or other responsible party claims exemption from the applicable Building Code based on the agricultural purposes exemption identified in subsection 1.6 of Title 87, West Virginia Code of State Rules, Series 4, they shall submit the question to the Commissioner of Agriculture for a determination of eligibility.
(2) The property owner or responsible party shall submit to the Commissioner of Agriculture sufficient information to allow the Commissioner to determine the primary use of the property. This information shall include, but is not limited to, the location of the property and buildings, the types of agricultural use or uses, the percentage or frequency of use, and any other information that the Commissioner requires to make a decision.
(3) The Commissioner of Agriculture shall provide a Copy of their decision to the property owner or responsible party, and to the entity that has adopted and is enforcing the Building Code.
(r) Miscellaneous Provisions.
(1) Savings. Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any suit or proceeding pending in any court, or rights acquired or liability incurred, or any cause or causes under any act or ordinance repealed; nor shall any just or legal right or remedy of any cbaracter be lost, impaired or affected by this section; and to that end of the provisions of any prior enactment are hereby saved; provided, however, that all building codes previously adopted by the Town of Granville, West Virginia and inconsistent with the State Building Code then in effect are null and void.
(2) Conflicting Ordinances.
A. Any existing municipal ordinance that is more stringent or imposes a higher standard than is required by the above referenced codes shall govern, provided such ordinance is not inconsistent with the laws of the State of West Virginia and are not contrary to recognized standards and good engineering practices,
B. Any existing municipal ordinance that is less stringent or imposes a lesser standard than is required by the above-referenced codes, is hereby amended to comply therewith.
(3) Severability. If any section, sentence, clause or phrase of this article shall be declared invalid for any reason whatsoever, such decision shall not affect the remaining portions of this article which shall continue in full force and effect, and to this end the provisions of this article are hereby declared severable.
(4) Enforcement.
A. In addition to any other Town personnel, officer, or official authorized to investigate and enforce the provisions of this article, the Town's Code Enforcement Officer shall have authority to enforce the provisions of this article.
B. Subject to any all right of appeal, whenever reasonable grounds exist to believe that a violation of this article has occurred, the investigating officer may forthwith summon, by the issuance of a citation, the owner, tenant, occupant, and/or other person or persons responsible to appear before the Judge of the Municipal Court for the Town of Granville and to answer said charge on or before a date therein stated.
C. Each day an unabated condition continues shall be deemed a separate offense.
The State Building Code and its application shall be subject to Legislative Rules adopted by the West Virginia State Fire Commission and authorized by the West Virginia Legislature.
(Passed 6-28-22.)