This is due to the adoption of sustainable construction standards shortly before the fire.
They want the Louisville City Council not to enforce the stricter codes, adopted in October to combat climate change and reduce carbon emissions.
The area was ravaged by winds of 100 mph (161 km/h) and caused more than half a million dollars in damages.
On Sunday, more than 100 people opposed to the codes rallied at Louisville City Hall. The City Council may discuss the matter Tuesday.
Rex and Barba, who lost their four-bedroom, three bathroom home to fire, stated that the new building codes were well-intentioned. However, the city should exempt homeowners who were affected by the fire and waive permit costs.
Rex Hickman (retired financial advisor) said that “it’s a confluence a challenges just exacerbated city.” He bought the 3200-square foot (297-meter) home in 1999 with Barba for $298,000.
Ashley Stolzmann of Louisville, who led the effort to update building codes, stated that she believes the change is “fantastic” but that there are many options, including rebates and incentives to lower the cost of rebuilding.
She said, “I can understand that it puts a lot of pressure onto families in this situation.” “But, the largest sources of carbon emissions in our state come from transportation and buildings. We are currently in a climate crisis.”
The city hired a consultant to calculate the cost of rebuilding a 2,820-square foot (262-square-meter), home. This is the average size lost in the fire.
The Home Builders Association of Metro Denver sent a Friday letter to several groups, including insurance agents, builders, and fire victims. It stated that it would cost $77,000 more to build a 2,200-square foot (204-square meter) home according to the new codes.
Rex Hickman stated that he spoke with many builders and estimated that it would cost $100,000 more to rebuild his house. This was partly due to a severe labor shortage, increased costs of materials, and shortages in supply chains caused by the pandemic. He said that the couple’s insurance will only cover $700,000.
Stolzmann defended the study of the consultant, stating that it included detailed analysis of cost assumptions from local builders.
Stolzmann stated that each estimate she has seen is an average ballpark. She did not support any details. Stolzmann invited residents who received excessively expensive bids to send them to her office to be reviewed.
The 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (the updated rules) requires that all new homes have an electric vehicle charging infrastructure. They must also be more energy efficient and include all-electric systems and appliances. These can be easily upgraded from natural gasoline to electric systems.
If residential construction fails to meet the standard, homeowners will need to offset their carbon emissions by purchasing credits from community solar farms.
Ryan Colker, vice-president of innovation at The International Code Council which creates the rules, stated that many jurisdictions have adopted the new codes across the country.
The U.S. Department of Energy claims that the new codes result in a 51% decrease in energy consumption compared to the energy codes used in the early 1990s when most of those homes were destroyed by fire.
Rex Hickman said that the code was adopted into a “virtual vacuum” by city leaders, who believed it would only be applicable to a small number of people moving to Louisville to build. They didn’t know that hundreds of residents would soon go without homes.
The Hickmans would need to use retirement funds to rebuild the area or leave it. They pointed out that Superior, a neighboring town, which saw 378 homes destroyed, exempted its residents of stricter building codes.
Superior’s town board approved the 2021 building codes Monday night. However, it allowed residents who had lost their homes in the fire to choose out of rebuilding if they followed the existing building code at the time, Mayor Clint Folsom stated.
Folsom stated that the board supported giving firefighters a rebate on town sales tax and a portion of their building permit fees.
He stated that he wanted to eliminate as much uncertainty and cost as possible during the rebuilding process. “We are aware of the stressful situation many people are in, and the potential for an underinsurance gap that many people face, not having enough money to rebuild. We want to help people bridge this gap if we can.
Marci Sannes, whose Louisville house was destroyed, stated that she hopes the city will follow Superior’s lead.
“I keep reading online about how the city would lose this chance to be greener if it rebuilt in the old way. It’s so frustrating because it’s not an option, it’s just people wanting to return home,” she stated. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a green neighborhood if all our families move away.
Sannes, who purchased her home for $360,000 20 years ago, stated that she will pay $75,000 more to rebuild it according to the new standards, which would total about $1 million. She said that her insurance company will only cover $600,000. This leaves her with the option of either selling the property, building a smaller house, or increasing her debt by building back the same size home.
“It’s shocking that (the City Council), seeing the impact on people and continuing to work at it, it shocks me that they’re having this conversation.” She said that they didn’t immediately say “Our priority is to have our families in Louisville rebuild” and she agreed.
