GreenTree Council adopts International Property Maintenance Code, sets Aug. 15 effective date

GreenTree Borough Council voted Monday to adopt Ordinance 1909, establishing the 2021 International Property Maintenance Code as the borough’s property maintenance and housing standard, to take effect Aug. 15, 2025.

The code adoption follows a public hearing at which Jake Leland, the borough solicitor, and Christopher House, GreenTree’s building inspector and zoning officer, explained the measure and responded to questions. "What you have before you is the modern, matching international property maintenance code," House told the council as he outlined the code’s scope and enforcement processes.

The ordinance replaces piecemeal local provisions and supplies technical standards for interior habitability, boarding of vacant buildings and other maintenance items that the borough currently handles through broader "dangerous" or subjective language, House said. Leland opened the hearing and noted it was advertised pursuant to sections 505 and 506 of the Borough of GreenTree Charter.

Council discussion centered on which version to adopt and how the borough would handle appeals. House and members of council debated differences between the 2021 and 2024 editions; House said he recommended the 2021 edition because it permits a simpler appeals process he considers workable for GreenTree. Several council members urged taking time to compare editions; others said adopting a widely used, tested version now would close current regulatory gaps.

Public commenters asked about timing and enforcement if the borough did not yet have an appeals board in place. "Would there be a period of time that we wouldn't be able to enforce the code until the appeals board was constructed?" asked Al Delar during public comment. Counsel and staff said the code would be adopted on the ordinance book on the effective date, but enforcement actions that must be appealed would require an appeals board or an interim process (for example, council hearing appeals) until a board was appointed.

To address that concern, council amended the motion to set the ordinance’s effective date to Aug. 15, 2025, allowing staff and the planning commission time to solicit and vet applicants for a three-member appeals board and finalize administrative steps. The amended motion passed on a roll call vote; all voting members voted to approve the ordinance with the Aug. 15 effective date.

Councilmembers and staff detailed next steps: the planning commission will help recruit and review candidates for the appeals board and provide a recommendation to council; the borough solicitor will advise on whether appeals may temporarily be heard by council if the appeals board is not yet constituted; and staff will publish application materials and timelines. House said the IPMC’s technical provisions would supply clearer, court-tested standards for inspectors and reduce subjectivity in enforcement.

Supporters of adoption pointed to clearer standards for boarded buildings, interior habitability and code-enforcement due process. Critics pressed for more time to compare specific edits in newer ICC editions and to ensure the appeals process suits a borough of GreenTree’s size; the planning commission had not recommended adopting the IPMC appendices relating to a larger-city appeals board.

Ordinance 1909 will be posted in the borough ordinance book and come into effect Aug. 15, 2025. Council directed staff to begin the appeals-board recruitment and to return with administrative steps so enforcement actions requiring appeal can proceed after the board is seated.

A summary of the ordinance text and the planning commission’s recommendation are available through the borough manager’s office and on the borough website.