Burr Ridge adopts 2021 model building and property-maintenance codes with local amendments

The Village of Burr Ridge Board of Trustees voted unanimously Monday to adopt revised building regulations that update the village's technical codes to the 2021 model codes and to adopt the 2021 International Property Maintenance Code with local amendments.

Janine, a village staff member who led the code update presentation, said the change is required by recent state law and keeps the village within the required update window. "In accordance with state law, the village is seeking to adopt the 2021 model codes with local amendments for the villages building ordinance," Janine said. She told trustees the update was undertaken with input from local fire districts, community development staff and third-party plan reviewers.

The board and staff said the updates are primarily an administrative and technical modernization; they do not represent major departures from Burr Ridge's existing requirements. Janine noted that staff adopted most 2021 provisions and selectively included some 2024 International Fire Code language addressing lithium-ion batteries because that topic was of particular concern to local fire districts: "...we took some of the 2024 provisions, but defaulted to the 2021 because that was more tested in the past 3 years," she said.

Trustee Francis, who thanked staff and the volunteer task force for the months-long effort, pressed staff on enforcement details and penalties. Francis raised a prior case where a property owner continued work after a stop-work order and said a $750 fine felt inadequate. Janine explained statutory limits for non-home-rule communities: the $750 figure is the maximum fine per violation; however, staff can pursue daily citations, revocation of permits, adjudication and other remedies. "So we can issue citations every day... We can take these individuals to adjudication," Janine said, describing the enforcement tools available in addition to the single-instance fine.

Trustees also asked staff to provide clearer public references to the adopted codes. Francis asked staff to post live links and to add units to technical tables (for example, snow load, elevation and wet-bulb temperature) so residents and contractors can read tables without cross-referencing other documents. Janine and staff agreed to add links to the village website and clarify table units.

The board approved the two ordinances by roll-call vote (6-0). The measures now appear in Burr Ridge's municipal code as the adopted local building and property-maintenance standards with the stated local amendments and the limited IFC provisions on lithium-ion batteries.

The adoption takes effect January 1, 2025, aligning Burr Ridge with the state's required code currency timeline and avoiding an automatic fallback to an older model code, Janine said.

Trustees and staff said the updates aim to keep construction, renovation and maintenance standards current for safety and to ensure the village's permitting and enforcement tools remain aligned with peer jurisdictions.