Building & Fire Codes
The building and fire codes adopted by the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District provides minimum standards to safeguard the public safety, health, and general welfare relative to building construction, to provide a reasonable level of life safety and property protection from fire and other hazards in buildings, structures and premises and to provide safety to fire fighters and emergency responders during emergency operations.
The following codes are adopted and enforced by the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District:
- 2003 International Building Code and Ordinance No. 42
- 2003 International Fire Code and Ordinance No. 43
Before a permit is issued, projects are reviewed for compliance with the building and fire codes, as applicable.
Building Permits
Residential Construction
In 2003 the Fire District, in a cooperative effort with the City of Lake Saint Louis, discontinued the issuance of building permits and the conducting of inspections on residential new construction within the corporate city boundaries of the City of Lake Saint Louis, leaving these responsibilities strictly with the City to perform.
Commerical Construction
A building permit is required for all new construction and for certain alterations or repair of existing buildings.
A fee for plan examination, building permits and inspections must be paid in accordance with the following:
For all new construction, as well as all alterations or repairs affecting fifty percent (50%) or more of the building area, a fee equal to the estimated cost of the alteration or repair times (x) $0.0014, or the affected square footage times (x) a gross area modifier of 72 times (x) $0.0014, whichever is greater.
For alterations or repairs affecting less than fifty percent (50%) of the building area:
- For alterations or repairs affecting up to 2,000 square feet of building area, a fee of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00).
- For alterations or repairs affecting over 2,000 square feet of building area, a fee equal to the estimated cost of the alteration or repair times (x) $0.0007, or the affected square footage times (x) a gross area modifier of 72 times (x) $0.0007, whichever is greater.
Occupancy Permits
Whenever there is a change in the ownership or occupancy of a building or structure, or any portion thereof, the
owner must notify the Fire District at least two (2) business days in advance of the change in occupancy. The Fire District will then schedule and conduct an inspection of the building or structure for the purposes of ascertaining and causing to be corrected any violations of the provisions of the Fire Code of the Fire District.
The change in occupancy inspection of commercial and residential occupancies will be made upon receipt of a fee of Sixty Dollars ($60.00).
Change in occupancy inspections of residential apartments will be made upon receipt of a fee of Thirty Dollars ($30.00).
If no violations of the provisions of the Fire Code, or upon correction of all noted violations, the Fire District will issue an occupancy permit, which is valid until the next change of ownership or occupancy, unless revoked by the Fire District for reasons as set forth in the Fire Code or the Building Code of the Fire District.
View a list of the Most Common Issues found during residential occupancy inspections.
Annual Commercial Inspections
Each commercial structure or building, and each business occupancy within said structure or building must be inspected at least once each 12 month period by the Fire District for the purposes of ascertaining and causing to correct violations of the Fire Code or the Building Code of the Fire District.
The annual commercial inspection will be made without charge. One follow-up inspection to ensure that violations have been corrected will also be made without charge. Additional follow-up inspections to ensure that violations have been corrected will be made upon receipt of a fee of Twenty–Five Dollars ($25.00).
If no violations are noted, or upon correction of all noted violations, the code official will issue a Business Occupancy Permit, which will be valid until the next inspection is made or fourteen (14) months after issuance, whichever is greater. The Business Occupancy Permit must be prominently displayed in a public area within the occupancy.
Open Burning Permits
A permit is required for open burning on any public street, alley, road, or other public or private ground within the boundaries of the Lake Saint Louis Fire Protection District. Such open burning includes, but is not limited to:
- bonfires
- trash
- yard waste
- land clearing
- construction materials
Unauthorized open burning will result in fire personnel being dispatched to your location to extinguish the fire. A permit will not be issued on–site for unauthorized open burning.
An application for open burning must be submitted in writing not less than ten (10) business days before such burning is to take place.
A permit for open burning will not be issued until receipt of a fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00).
An inspector with the Fire District will call to schedule a time to come out to look at the area where you are wanting to burn.
The inspector will leave the burn permit with you after they have completed a satisfactory on-site inspection.