Jewett discusses hiring building inspector

Tod Thompson attended Jewett’s village council meeting Aug. 18 as a guest to talk about possibly becoming Jewett’s building inspector.

“First of all, thanks for coming in,” said Mayor George Baillie. “We’re looking for a new inspector.”

“It’s probably a good idea,” Thompson said. “I don’t know how in depth you want to get. Some places like Cadiz have a code, it’s not super strict but it keeps an eye on what’s going on. The only reason I bring Cadiz up is I’ve done it there before… They require certain distances from property lines and such. It’s not a full blueprint per se, but it’s a sketch of what you’re allowed to do.”

“Can you explain a little about what you used to do for Jewett?” Baillie said.

“Well, it was typical work,” Thompson said. “If somebody had something they wanted to do, they were supposed to have a little drawing. I would go out and see where it was going to be and just put the information down. There was a minimal fee. It was just something to get an idea of what was going to happen. There were no inspections after the fact… It was pretty lax.”

“Did you feel it was enough?” Council President Steve Stewart asked.

“Probably not,” Thompson said.

“We need something. It’s a fire thing,” Stewart said, referring to a newer building standing close to others, “If one goes and ctahces fire, they’re both going.”

Council briefly discussed the possible costs involved with reintroducing inspections and how it would affect the village. 

“So you would be interested in being our building inspector?” Baillie said.

“Probably yes,” Thompson said. He raised personal concerns about being a burden to residents, which could risk his business.

“It’s really about common sense and safety,” Village Administrator Rick Meneely said.

Council will need to follow proper procedure to formally hire Thomspon at a later date and will continue working on the process.