The City of Warsaw’s Building Department seeks to make Warsaw a safer place to live. Pictured, from left: Code Enforcement Officer Dana Hewitt, Building Commissioner Ray Behling, Administrative Assistant Angela Lundy and Building Inspector Rob Hurford. InkFreeNews photo by Brianna Pitts.

By Brianna Pitts
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — Behind the scenes, there are four individuals dedicated to making Warsaw a safer place to live.

Categorized under the building and planning department, Code Enforcement Officer Dana Hewitt, Building Inspector Robert Hurford, and Building Commissioner Ray Behling, work together as a team to ensure safer living spaces for Warsaw residents. Hewitt and Hurford tend to work on more residential spaces while Behling works on commercial buildings.

“What the public may not know or understand is there is a whole process behind the scenes before a building or house is summoned to code hearings,” said Hewitt.

“First, a complaint must be filed on a house, or building. This complaint could be brought by a neighbor, tenant or concerned citizen. Once the house is brought before the Building Department, then I will go to inspect for building code violations,” Hewitt continued. “There are two kinds of situations we walk into, one where life safety measures need to be taken and the second being an issue that can be resolved quickly.”

“In both of these situations, the owners are notified by two separate letters sent by Hewitt,” offered Hurford. “If these people do not comply, then they are called to the code hearing.”

Hewitt described two different categories of people they often deal with: the unwilling and the unable. “With the unwilling people, we give warnings to them and they simply do not care and continue on without resolving the issues. However, the unable are people who physically cannot make the improvements without help. We are willing to work with the unable and help them by providing resources and assistance in order to keep everyone involved safe,” explained Hewitt.

This is where administrative law judge Thomas Earhart hears from both the owner and the building department and then makes a decision on if further action needs to be taken.

“One action relatively new to the city’s toolbox is the idea of receivership I brought with me from my past job as a building inspector in Marshall County,” said Hurford. “Receivership gives someone else the right to take possession of the house through the Kosciusko County Superior Courts and get it back to livable standards. This is, of course, one of the last resort options before demolition, but is still a helpful tool for the city to get unsafe buildings up to code while also keeping houses in the city.”

The city’s building department will continue to educate both owners and tenants on each individual’s responsibilities. Owners have the responsibility of inspecting the properties regularly and making sure everything is up to code.

“We will regularly work with the Health Department and the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory to ensure the best service to the city possible,” said Behling.

“As the city grows, our team also grows. We have just recently welcomed Angela Lundy to our team as our administrative assistant,” said Hewitt.

“Our priority is to improve the living standards of Warsaw,” said Hurford. “We strive for the best for our city.”

Behling spoke highly of his cohorts, saying, “Hewitt and Hurford are the heart of this operation. They care so much about people and take action to ensure their safety and the safety of others.”

Warsaw City Codes and permits for building can be found here.