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Le Mars building inspector: residential permits steady, Overlook addition drives housing numbers
Summary
Code enforcement building inspector Luke Bernhardt told the council residential permits were up slightly while commercial activity slipped; the Overlook addition accounted for about 100 of the roughly 122 housing units added in the most recent year.
Luke Bernhardt, the city's code enforcement building inspector, told the council a two-year comparison shows residential building activity rose slightly while commercial construction decreased.
Bernhardt said the Overlook addition accounted for roughly 100 of the 122 housing units the city recorded in the most recent year; even excluding Overlook, he said the city would have added about 22 housing units.
He reported 2023 had an unusually large number of miscellaneous permits (77), of which he said about 55 were fence permits. Bernhardt said urban revitalization tax-exemption activity has declined from previous years and that roughly 200 homes that entered the program since 2012 have since rotated out and are now paying full property taxes.
Bernhardt also described outreach done to more than 200 addresses about tree trimming and noted three special assessments filed for property maintenance; those assessments are expected to be collected via the next tax cycle. On sidewalks, Bernhardt said the city does not maintain a blanket replacement program and addresses trip hazards on a case-by-case basis when they are reported.
