Page 6 - GSABA Builder Brief May 2020 Issue

JEFF CZAR President
We are all
In This Together
These pasts few weeks have been very difficult and an uncertain time for our families, friends, colleagues, and our community. I want you to know that the Greater San Antonio Builders Association (GSABA) is working hard for you during this pandemic and fighting for the residential construction industry.
Several people have asked me why residential construction is deemed an essential service. When the Department of Homeland Security and Governor Abbott listed residential building as essential, they likely recognized that stay-in-place orders meant that people would need shelter to do so, and the building trades must be able to provide new residential construction, repairs and renovations to help ensure that citizens have a safe and reliable place
to shelter.
In residential construction, social distancing is inherently built in: it is rare for more than 10 workers to be on site at any given time, the various trades work independently of each other and provide their own tools, much of the work is done outside and not in confined spaces, and the various best practices for dealing with COVID-19 are easy to implement.
In fact, our industry has provided those safe practice guidelines to our members through various avenues, including conference calls, electronic means and as links on the Greater San Antonio Builders Association (GSABA), Texas Association of Builders (TAB) and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) websites. The practices are based on the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration OSHA guidelines.
If you need COVID-19 information, please visit www.sabuilders.com. You will be able to access posters in English and Spanish for your offices and construction sites that outline the best practices for workplace prevention. You can also find the COVID-19 Exposure Prevention, Preparedness and Response Plan for Construction that you can modify to meet your company’s needs.
We have been in touch with the cities you are building and working in and keeping abreast with their emergency declarations. We communicate with several development services departments on a regular basis to confirm if there have been any changes in the permit and inspection process. We have heard of a few slowdowns, particularly on inspections. Our objective is to help cities and counties continue their residential construction operations, inspections and reviews.
The Government Affairs Team and your Executive Vice President, Kristi Sutterfield, recently hosted a call with Michael Shannon, director of the City of San Antonio’s Development Services Department (DSD). The lobby at DSD is closed, however tents are set up outside to take permits and inspection requests submitted in person. Their on-site portal is being used by 80 percent of the residential construction industry and there have not been any significant delays. Michael Shannon shared with us that the City of San Antonio initiated virtual inspections in April to keep residential construction jobs moving, and it is working very well.
Your leadership team and the GSABA staff will continue to explore creative ways to meet your needs during this time. We are all in this together. Please don’t hesitate to call on me or any member of the GSABA leadership team or staff if we can be of help in any way.
Stay Safe,
6
MAY 2020 | GREATER SAN ANTONIO BUILDERS ASSOCIATION
FROM THE PRESIDENT