Local government offices that administer and enforce building code statutes which provide minimum standards for homes, office buildings and other structures and help to ensure through a rigorous permitting and inspection process that buildings within the jurisdiction are safe and sanitary. Building codes regulate all aspects of construction projects including the structural design of buildings, sanitation facilities, environmental control, ventilation, light and building materials; and apply to new structures, renovations, demolitions and relocations as well as sheds and other storage structures, walls, fences, decks and swimming pools.

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Programs that are responsible for the construction, operation and maintenance of flood control dams, channels, storm drains, debris basins, retention and detention basins, retention ponds, grass-lined swales, pumping plants, spreading grounds and other facilities and structures that control and conserve flood, storm and other wastewater and inhibit siltation of public bodies of water. These programs may also investigate reports of clogged or full catch basins or other problems with the flood/siltation control system, and may offer information about flood, storm and other waste water conservation programs.

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Programs that are responsible for establishing an orderly process for evaluating and approving any of a wide range of land development projects, many of which involve modifications in the current or permitted use of property within a jurisdiction. They also provide information and other forms of support for developers who submit applications and may be in various stages of the approval process; establish mechanisms for community input on proposed development; and ensure access to an appeals process for individuals who are dissatisfied with land development decisions. Development proposals are evaluated in accordance with criteria established by the jurisdiction’s zoning ordinance, subdivision regulations and other applicable ordinances as well as the broader policies set forth the community’s official plan (also known as a general, master or comprehensive plan) and relevant secondary plans (sometimes called area, community, neighbourhood or specific plans).

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Programs that are responsible for researching, establishing, maintaining and overseeing the implementation of official and secondary plans for land use at regional, county, city and community levels; ensuring an appropriate level of community input during the planning process; regulating the current and future use of public and private lands through the establishment and enforcement of zoning regulations and other land use controls; and reviewing and ruling on requests for zoning alterations and other variances from established land development ordinances.

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Programs that are responsible for ensuring the availability and safety of adequate parking facilities for community residents. Activities include planning, developing and controlling the use and maintenance of metered parking, parking lots and garages; providing attendants, guards and meter monitors; maintaining equipment (e.g., meters, bicycle racks and elevators); and developing and implementing procedures for enforcing parking codes.

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Programs that enforce local ordinances that require the owner or occupant of property immediately adjacent to public sidewalks to remove snow or ice that accumulates on the sidewalk within a specified period of time following a snowfall.

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Programs that install and maintain roadside fixtures such as lamp posts, pedestrian lighting, street lights, traffic signs, direction signs, road nameplates, mailboxes, bus shelters, benches, trash receptacles, bicycle racks, newspaper boxes, water fountains and planters, generally in areas of a community where there is a high volume of pedestrian traffic.

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Programs that are responsible for maintenance and repair of streets, highways, bicycle paths, bridges, pedestrian overpasses and other public byways; placement and maintenance of pavement markings; curb and gutter repair; sidewalk repair; leaf and debris removal; street cleaning; street salting; snow removal; roadside landscape maintenance; roadside rest stop amenities; removal of traffic and pedestrian obstructions; and other similar street-related services.

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Programs that seek to provide safe and efficient access to destinations by regulating the speed, direction, volume and flow of traffic.

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Programs that provide information about the location of gas and electric lines, water mains, telephone lines or other utility piping or cabling to prevent people who are involved in construction or other activities requiring extensive digging from severing them and interrupting utility services. In most cases, the authorities come out to the property and mark the location of lines on site.

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Programs that are responsible for the collection, separation, storage, transportation, transfer, processing, treatment and environmentally safe disposal or recycling of solid and liquid waste materials that are produced by households, businesses and industry.

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Programs that are responsible for developing, maintaining and operating the system of aqueducts, reservoirs, channels, pipelines, mains, laterals, curb boxes and pumping and purifying equipment by which the community's water supply is obtained, treated, stored and distributed to consumers.

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Programs that are responsible for developing, restoring and otherwise maintaining rivers, canals, channels and other public waterways that are used for shipping and recreation.

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Programs that enforce the responsibility of property owners to clear hazardous weeds or chaparral from their yards and lots by notifying them when weeds and brush have reached hazardous proportions and performing the work themselves when owners fail to comply. Charges for the work are placed on the negligent owner's property tax bill.

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