Committee advances Bill 45 to adopt International Property Maintenance Code

The Allentown City Community and Economic Development Committee on an aye voice vote agreed to forward Bill 45, which would repeal chapter 455 of the city code and adopt the International Property Maintenance Code, to the next stage for consideration.

The recommendation came after Miss Kessler introduced the measure, saying, “we come before you tonight to ask if we can please adopt the International Property Maintenance Code, which is considered to be the gold standard in our inspection program.” She told the committee staff from the law department and the Department of Building Standards and Safety had reviewed the text line-by-line.

The nut graf: Adopting the International Property Maintenance Code would replace a local property-maintenance ordinance the city says has been inconsistent and vague, and staff described several programmatic changes intended to standardize inspections and reduce administrative burdens on some property owners.

Heidi Westerman, bureau manager for the Department of Building Standards and Safety, said the previous ordinance contained contradictory language and that the city eliminated that text and began “from scratch, adopting the code and then making some changes.” Westerman described two categories of change committee members discussed: exemptions for limited circumstances and transferable licensing.

As described by Westerman, the proposed ordinance would: eliminate inconsistent local language by adopting the International Property Maintenance Code as the baseline; allow specified exemptions for certain short-term vacation properties in locations referenced in the discussion as “Adams Island”; and permit a rental license purchased and issued in a given year to transfer to a new owner for the remainder of that licensing year if the property was already inspected and in compliance. Westerman said those changes are intended to reduce owner pushback and administrative duplication.

Committee members asked whether third-party reviewers use the same standard. Westerman replied the property-maintenance code is separate from the building code but said adopting the International Property Maintenance Code “will partner better” with building-code standards so outside reviewers and the city’s processes are more aligned.

There was no public comment on the bill at the committee meeting. A motion to move Bill 45 forward with a favorable recommendation passed on a voice vote; the committee chair announced, “Bill 45 will move, favorably.”

The committee’s favorable recommendation sends the ordinance to the full council (or the next required legislative step) for further consideration. The transcript does not record a detailed vote roll-call or an ordinance number beyond the local reference to Bill 45 and chapter 455.