Help needed for town code enforcement

A sharp increase in complaints about violations has Building Department personnel hard pressed to handle the amount of work coming their way.

That word came from Town Attorney Stephen Kiely and Senior Building Inspector Reed Karen at a recent Town Board work session.

Mr. Kiely suggested hiring a part-time, experienced code enforcement officer from a neighboring community to work nights and weekends to investigate complaints. That person would be paid on an hourly basis and not receive benefits.

Among the person’s responsibilities would be identifying failures to meet safety standards in structures for which the town could bear a liability for injuries stemming from structural insufficiencies.

The only concern about hiring came from Deputy Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams, who questioned where the money would come from to pay for a part-timer, since it’s not in the current budget adopted last November.

Mr. Kiely promised to provide more information to the Board on possible availability and cost of hiring the right candidate.