Land Development Services

In May 2018, Fairfax County is participating in the 38th annual Building Safety Month, a worldwide campaign presented by the International Code Council, its members and partners to promote building safety. First observed in 1980, Building Safety Month raises awareness about critical safety issues from structural to fire prevention, plumbing and mechanical systems, and energy efficiency.

Building codes and the officials who enforce them are making our families and communities safer and more resilient. Homes and buildings that are built in compliance with building safety codes result in resilient structures that minimize the risks of death, injury and property damage. In the wake of a disastrous hurricane season, rampant wildfires and devastating earthquakes, building safety is even more important. Building safety affects everyone, and modern, updated building codes save lives.

This year’s themes are:

• May 1–5, Partnering with Code Officials to Build Stronger, Safer Communities;
• May 6–12, Advancing Resilient Communities through Science and Technology;
• May 13–19, Protecting Communities from Disasters;
• May 20–26, Safeguarding Our Water; and
• May 27–31, Improving Education and Training Standards for a Safer Tomorrow.

Local events to celebrate Building Safety are being organized by the Department of Land Development Services throughout the month of May. A full agenda can be downloaded here. You can hear from one of LDS’s Building Division Supervising Combination Inspectors about the importance of Building Safety Month on this episode of the podcast Code Talk. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors are scheduled to proclaim May as Building Safety Month on May 15.

Fairfax County Land Development Service’s Building Division has been awarded the highest achievable rating for building code effectiveness under the current Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.

The division has been given a 1 / 2 (commercial / residential) rating by Insurance Services Offices, Inc. (ISO) on the Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS). Working on behalf of insurance companies, ISO uses the BCEGS to evaluate a jurisdiction's current building codes and how they are enforced. The evaluations place special emphasis on mitigation of losses from fire and natural disasters.

The Building Division’s achievement is remarkable especially considering the volume of work the division handles. In fiscal year 2017, its staff reviewed nearly 25,000 building plans and conducted more than 158,000 building inspections.

A Class 2 rating is the highest achievable rating for Fairfax’s residential code enforcement because a key factor in ISO ratings for residential construction is whether sprinklers are required. The Virginia Board of Housing and Community Development does not mandate sprinklers in single family dwellings and townhouses less than four stories, and Fairfax County is not permitted to enforce a higher standard than that set by the state.

This latest ISO survey result shows an improvement in both the commercial and residential sectors. When last surveyed in 2014, Fairfax County received a Class 2 rating for building code enforcement in the commercial sector and a Class 3 for building code enforcement in the residential sector.

The high rating has positive fiscal implications for property owners, who have the potential to pay lower property insurance premiums on structures in Fairfax that receive their initial occupancy permit after this ISO classification. Insurance premiums for existing properties will not be affected.

Media Contact:
Anne Cissel
Public Information Officer
Fairfax County Land Development Services
12055 Government Center Pkwy., Suite 659
Fairfax, VA 22035
T: 703-324-2743
Anne.cissel@fairfaxcounty.gov

Fairfax County is proud to honor development projects that offer both economic development and environmental protection. The county recognized winners of the 2017 Land Conservation and Tree Preservation Awards during a public ceremony held in the Fairfax County Government Center board auditorium on January 29, 2018. The winners included land development firms that have demonstrated best practices in preserving the county’s soil and water resources and protecting trees during development projects.
 
The annual awards program is sponsored by two Fairfax County departments: Land Development Services and Public Works and Environmental Services, in cooperation with the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District and the Fairfax Tree Commission.

The Land Conservation Awards program was established in the early 1970s to provide an incentive for developers to reduce erosion at their construction sites and to publicly recognize erosion and sedimentation plans that are correctly implemented and maintained. Winners were selected by judges from the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

The Fairfax County Tree Commission celebrated the winners of the Tree Preservation Awards, which recognizes developers who preserve trees and incorporate landscaping into their sites. The top inspectors and plan reviewers from Land Development Services were also recognized.

Best practices from the winning projects were highlighted during the awards presentation.

By Brian Foley
 

Two questions that often plague architects when designing a tenant improvement plan in an existing building are: 1) What’s the type of construction?  2) What code was the base building designed under? With regards to Question 1, the Building Division suggests the following tools:

• Land Development Information History.  Since automating permits in the early 1980s, types of construction have been recorded.  Use this link and search by address to view past permits for type of construction.  Caution is advised as there may be inconsistencies caused by input errors (and the perpetuation thereof), permits to change the type of construction and building code changes (see below).
• Quick Reference: Evolution of Construction Types.  In 1984 and again in 2000, the code’s type of construction changed, and in the case of the latter, the nomenclature was completely replaced using the current roman numerals.  Use this Quick Reference to track the changes through code editions, i.e., 2C to IIB or 3A to IV.

Question 2 is easily answered if you use the USBC adoption table in the Quick Reference.  Remember that a year’s grace period has been standard when adopting a new code in Virginia.  Add one year to the effective date to determine the absolute adoption date of the technical provisions.  Do note that during the one-year grace period, permits are able to be issued under both the incoming and outgoing codes.