Any experts on HOA / PA Uniform Construction Code?

[Philliefan33]

I'm looking for ideas how to push back / fight a ruling by our township building code officer.

Background: The property in question is an undeveloped lot owned by the HOA. Our community comprises ~1000 lots, each zoned for single family residence. It is a private community, the association owns the roads, and only members (homeowners) and their guests may use the common facilities. We have pins that must be worn when using a common facility. We even have signs that prohibit thru traffic -- you are only allowed to use our roads if you live here or are visiting someone who lives here.

I am spearheading an effort to erect an 8' tall fence to enclose a community garden. According to township rules we need a zoning permit (for any fence) and a construction permit (for a fence over 6' tall). I applied for each in July. We were rejected for the zoning permit (fence too tall), applied for a variance, and were granted the zoning variance a few weeks ago.

Now the holdup is the building permit. The person who grants the permits for the township has deemed that this is a commercial project, thus we need to submit plans with an official stamp from an architect or engineer. The plans provided by the fence contractor are not enough. This requirement would cost us time and money. We have experience here; last year we tried to have a gazebo erected and needed the engineer drawings with stamp. We paid $1000 for the plans but the project fell through for other reasons. Money wasted. The fence installation was quoted at about $5K, if we need stamped drawings it is increasing the cost by 20%!

The building code officer insists that since the garden will be "open to the public", it is a commercial project. I argued that since it is a private community and we only allows members to access the amenities, it is not a "public" garden but rather a private garden, jointly owned by all members of the HOA. She isn't buying that.

I've scanned the PA Uniform Construction Code but could not find anything that mentions HOAs. It defines a commercial structure as anything that is not residential, but doesn't mention fences at all. The code seems to use "building" and "structure" interchangeably; but a fence is not a building.
Does that mean if the statute says "building" it does not apply to a fence (which I think would be a "structure"). Agricultural buildings (no mention of structures here) have their own rules, but again there is nothing regarding fences.

I am no longer on the BOD (hooray!), but last year when our gazebo project blew up because of the "commercial" designation we debated fighting the code officer about her ruling. We decided not to spend the money at that time, but worried about the precedent being set. It appears that was a valid concern and we face having any future project deemed commercial and having to meet the higher requirements/cost.

I know there is a breadth of knowledge among posters here. Does anyone have experience with the PA UCC? Do we have a hope of overturning this decision? Is there any case law that states that HOAs are not automatically commercial? How do we fight this / where do we start?

 

[Dash man]

You could always hire a real estate attorney, but of course that will drive the costs up. The easy option is to build a six foot fence.

 

[Philliefan33]

You could always hire a real estate attorney, but of course that will drive the costs up. The easy option is to build a six foot fence.

The purpose of the fence is to prevent/deter deer from getting to the gardens. A six-foot fence is not sufficient. We want the fence, we just don’t agree that it is a commercial fence.

 

[Dash man]

The purpose of the fence is to prevent/deter deer from getting to the gardens. A six-foot fence is not sufficient. We want the fence, we just don’t agree that it is a commercial fence.

Then you need an attorney that specializes in real estate. He can find case law in PA that would tell you if there is a precedent for this to show the code enforcement person. It might be less cost than drawing up the plans. But if it doesn’t go your way, it will obviously increase the cost.

ETA: For the four years I served on our township’s Planning Commission, we never dealt with a Residential/HOA fence issue, except for once: building a fence too close to a road intersection.

 

[OldShooter]

First step, if you have not checked, is to find out what the township rules might be. Typically (in my limited experience) a government entity will adopt the state building code but then add its own rules and regs. For example, our suburban city has a fairly elaborate set of rules on where and how trashcans are stored between pickup days, screened from view from the street, etc. Boats, motor homes, etc. may be stored on residential lots but must be on permanent concrete or asphalt pads. You township may have some of its own rules on fences. In our city all the ordinances are available and searchable on line.

That said, the most powerful person in the world is a clerk who has a piece of paper that you need. Direct confrontation is dangerous. Direct confrontation would, for example, including going over her head to boss or, worse, boss's boss.

I think I would start with elected officials. Try to figure out who are the most networked and the most influential and talk to them individually over coffee. Best case you get enough of them to express concern to your official and she begins to see the reasonableness of your request. Another option would be for your new friends on the township board to grant you an exception. Another might be to pass a local modification.