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Council votes to update building codes, approves utility and billing ordinances
Summary
City staff advised moving from 2003 to 2021 building codes for residential and commercial construction; council approved the update and recommended local alterations. Public works also passed ordinances on electric rates and local government billing compliance and approved a $500,000 MFT resolution for street work.
City staff told committees the state of Illinois requires upgrades to local building-code adoption and presented a recommendation to move from the 2003 model codes to the 2021 International Residential and Building Codes with five local alterations.
“Right now, we were on 2003. I would like to jump to the 2021 codes,” Jeff said, summarizing the staff recommendation for both residential and commercial code adoption. Councilors discussed sprinkler requirements and the city’s practice of requiring architect‑sealed commercial plans; staff noted architects will attest on plan cover pages that they comply with the 2021 IBC.
The public works committee approved an ordinance (No. 15 66) to implement planned electric‑rate adjustments effective May 1, 2026, with a scheduled review period to May 1, 2028. The committee also approved an ordinance reflecting state limits on back‑billing for unbilled service (commercial 24 months; residential 12 months) and directed updates to sewer‑connection applications to require tracer wire on newly installed sewer mains and laterals beginning Jan. 1, 2026.
Public works passed the revised Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) resolution to allocate up to $500,000 for street patching and related maintenance work.
What happens next: staff will bring ordinance language for the building‑code adoption forward for formal enactment, enforce the updated billing limits and update sewer‑connection application forms to reflect the tracer‑wire requirement. The MFT resolution will be transmitted with signatures for project execution.
