Monterey’s Board of Aldermen approved a contract Monday night for a candidate interested in serving as the town’s codes director.
The candidate only has a residential license currently. Mayor Alex Garcia said the state allows a codes director to work without a commercial license as long as the director gets the license within a year. Alderman Bill Wiggins said the state allows it, but questioned if Monterey should allow it. Garcia said he believes the town needs to proceed.
“I think we need to do it,” Garcia said. “Again, my opinion. Monterey has been looking for a long time, and this is knocking on our door, and I think we need to do it.”
The codes inspector will be paid $1,200 a month plus 50 percent of the permit fees collected by the town. Wiggins said the new codes director will have plenty of residential work to do when he starts.
Garcia said he received good recommendations Monday about the candidate.
“I spoke to the Putnam County codes inspector, and he made a few calls and said this guy comes highly recommended, which is good to hear,” Garcia said.
Garcia said there is a plan in place to transition the workload from the county’s codes inspector to the town’s codes director.
“They are going to continue with what is already in the pipe, cause that is the simplest way to do it,” Garcia said. “And then he told me to let me know as soon as we sign contracts so that anything new coming would come to us and not to them.”
Garcia said the only difference in this contract from the town’s previous codes director contract is the difference in pay schedule.
In other business, the aldermen approved the third reading of an ordinance to rezone approximately 5.6 acres located on Peter Avenue from I-1 to C-2 General Commercial.