Californian Rehabilitating Huntington Structures Compliments City of Huntington
A San Francisco woman will be returning to Huntington on October 17th to continue what she refers to as "my grand experiment." She contacted me after viewing our blog for several months. Here are some comments she made regarding her project to rehabilitate two houses here in Huntington. She was complimentary of the City of Huntington. Here are some of her comments:
Lessons Learned About Huntington, WV
By Michele Foose
In Huntington, don’t be afraid of permits or building inspectors. It is easy and affordable to get a building permit in Huntington. Although you have to troop down to their offices, once you get there [Huntington City Hall] Nita, the woman who issues permits, is very helpful and informative. In fact, she gave me several good tips to reduce my permitting costs.
The building inspectors I met with were informative, reasonable, and mostly friendly. I had one surprise visit from a building inspector and he started out by being officious and very authoritarian. However, after he saw that I was really trying to do a good job, he was supportive and helpful.
Here is a suggestion I would like to offer: For a novice like me, it was difficult to learn just what was required for a major rehabilitation of a residential structure. For homeowners trying to do work for themselves, or for a community group trying to do a quality job on a tight budget, it would be helpful if the City of Huntington’s Department of Building Inspection would put together a code guide pamphlet for Do-It-Yourselfers (DIY). The pamphlet should list key areas of concern, general guidelines, and best practices presented in a simple, user-friendly layout. It should include guidelines for window and electrical outlet placement, requirements for appliance venting, fire and safety issues, tips for grounding electrical systems, etc. This one-source guide should be readily available to people trying to do a good job with their DIY projects.
Lessons Learned About Huntington, WV
By Michele Foose
In Huntington, don’t be afraid of permits or building inspectors. It is easy and affordable to get a building permit in Huntington. Although you have to troop down to their offices, once you get there [Huntington City Hall] Nita, the woman who issues permits, is very helpful and informative. In fact, she gave me several good tips to reduce my permitting costs.
The building inspectors I met with were informative, reasonable, and mostly friendly. I had one surprise visit from a building inspector and he started out by being officious and very authoritarian. However, after he saw that I was really trying to do a good job, he was supportive and helpful.
Here is a suggestion I would like to offer: For a novice like me, it was difficult to learn just what was required for a major rehabilitation of a residential structure. For homeowners trying to do work for themselves, or for a community group trying to do a quality job on a tight budget, it would be helpful if the City of Huntington’s Department of Building Inspection would put together a code guide pamphlet for Do-It-Yourselfers (DIY). The pamphlet should list key areas of concern, general guidelines, and best practices presented in a simple, user-friendly layout. It should include guidelines for window and electrical outlet placement, requirements for appliance venting, fire and safety issues, tips for grounding electrical systems, etc. This one-source guide should be readily available to people trying to do a good job with their DIY projects.
Bottom Line: The City of Huntington Building Inspectors must be stretched-thin, as it was sometimes hard to get in touch with them, but they were helpful, reasonable, and for me, they were a valuable resource.
posted C. Richard Cobb, Sr. @5:31 PM 
