Aaaahhhh, the public servant with attitude. How nice!!!! Things in the Bay will never change.

Bureaucracy is its own reward

Why not bring in some qualified inspectors from other less busy cites to help with the backlog. The backlog is only temporary. If they are qualified, they can appove the work without Carrigee's personal approval. I do side with Carrigee on the safty issue but he is a public servent and should be held accountable for behaivor/attitude with his Boss aka the public tax payer. The sooner houses are built, the sooner the tax payers get let off the hook for recovery and aid etc.

I know the area is devastate, but it;s good there is a "Watchdog" so to speak for issues like this. If thre wasn't in 5-10 years when houses are falling down, people would say, "well THEY approved it..If it wasn't safe, THEY shouldn't have approved it". Can't win for losing.. Let the man do his job.:-)

Maybe he can keep things from going wrong like happened here in Jackson County ... a couple built a $250K home ... they went through all the hoops, building permits, inspections, etc. Then came the last inspection to get the utilities turned on so they could move in. GASP ... Someone forgot to tell them their house had to be raised 4 feet! No one bothered to mention this throughout the entire building process! Now they have a $250K concrete home they can't live in because someone in the county scr*wed up! Maybe a Bill Carrigee is needed throughout the coast!

who are they gonna cry to first when their building falls down with the first lil breeze?

The best bet with all inspectors is to get to them early, telling them what you are intending to do and asking for input. The worst way is to tell them what you have already done [or begun] and asking for a retroactive OK.

A house was bought "as is" in my neighborhood. The people who purchased this house had come down to help with recovery (religious group). They decided this would be a good place to buy. I'm almost sure that this work is being done without the proper permits. I have wondered if a lot of this construction is being done properly and won't come back to haunt us at a later date.

I built a couple of restaurants in N.O. back in the late 70s. "Inspections" were a hoot ! Fortunately my foreman was from LA and understood the procedure.

Keep in mind that these were restaurants! Once a plumbing inspector showed up. My foreman slipped him $50, said, "Let me buy you lunch." The inspector never entered the building and signed the inspection sheet in the parking lot.

Now, the other property. We were ready to open for business and the electrical inspector walked in, inspected NOTHING and proceeds to tell us that the project is shut down til futher notice and for EVERYONE to vacate the premises. My foreman picked up the phone and called "someone" that was out at the race track. He explained what had happened and the inspector was back within the hour, apologizing for the misunderstanding. He signs off on our final inspection and leaves, NEVER having looked at the electrical system.

Corruption ? You think ?

Quit your complaining and do what you need to do in the first place and you wouldn't have these problems.

From the Sun-Herald article from this past weekend: "Carrigee, 51, has become one of the most decorated building officials in Mississippi, with several dozen accreditations from the International Code Council and other state and national agencies. He is the 59th person in the nation certified as a floodplain manager." Does he have an attitude? Maybe. Does he know what he's doing? Absolutely.

If he lets the people do this work without the proper inspections and approvals, when the next storm rolls through and the house gets damaged or destroyed again the they will point the finger at him, saying he let substandard construction pass inspection. Do it right or do not do it at all. Follow the law. I for one applaud this inspector for doing his job right.

It’s great that Mr. Carrigee has been working for the city for 13 years and has 30 years of construction experience. However, these people are building homes not skyscrapers. As an Architect, Details / Construction from home to home are basically the same. Your right, home owners do not want to be told what to do with there homes. That’s why Mr. Carrigee should concentrate not on the design of the homes, but the bigger details and make sure that proper / typical details are shown and carried through such as hurricane strapping which is a general detail that all town and city’s require to have on your drawings to be approved for a building permit.

I'm a commercial construction superintendent and I've dealt with inspectors like Carrigee. A few of the charicteristics they seem to share are arrogance and lack of common sence.
When you deal with city or county building inspectors who like to use their authourity accountability will be non existant. So if your house falls down guys like Carrigee or any other inspector will absorb zero accountability. Same holds true if your house is built 4' too low.
That responsibility is between the homeowner and the contractors, mostly the homeowner. It's the homeowner's responsibility to understand the details of their project. That's why most people hire general contractors so they are dealing with one person instead of ten plus contractors.
From what I got out of this article it sounds like Carrigee likes to use his authority and if he is dealing with someone that let's him ignore common sense and doing the obvious right thing he'll take advantage of it.
My advice to those of you who end up dealing with someone like him is to shove the burden of any accountability at his door step as much as you can. Two things an arrogant beaurcrat fears are work and accountability. If you can push any accountability at them it will create work for them that is your best chance of getting them off your back.
Currently I'm dealing with the City of Burnsville in MN and they have been great to work with. So there are good local government people to deal with out there and I hope there numbers increase especially where storms have created extensive damage.
Bottom line if a building inspector is using his authority, especially in America's storm damaged areas, to make your life miserable simply because he can he amounts to nothing more than un American scum and he should be treated as such. If you go down the road of appeasement with someone like that it will only get worse. I have been there.

the bottom line is the mayor is sending a man who went to prison for felony burglary into our homes and businesses. Yeah, he has a bad attitude and is proud of it. this guy is a public menace not a public servant!

The more laws we impose on people, the more everyone will resent the local and state governments. Most of the building departments I have worked with are slow, unorganized, and a typical power hungry government organization/bureaucracy. In a Katrina like situation, I personally would just build no matter what anyone said. I would do it myself and punch every inspector and government official in the face for the disgraceful way they handled the entire situation in that area. You would have to shoot me before I would stop working on my home and my land. That inspector would find his life very difficult with me in his town. (Ask the building department in Lake County IL. I am known by name there.) In that situation everyone must work fast and together to take on a project, and push everyone and everything out of the way to get it done. I set my own standards and do it better than a uneducated inspector from off the street. Get government out of peoples lives, who are you to tell me how build my home and to help my family?

that man ain't 18 no more, forgive the past....do any of ya'll have a past?...he's doing his job, that's all...BUILD IT RIGHT!!!!.....sh** go to Tennessee if you want a hardnosed inspecter

There are thousnds of old construction workers out there that cant do the heavy work for many good reasons, plumbers,electrians, carpenters etc. and are not working. Go to the business agent at your Union locale. Get some union trained people. Many cities use them for Inspectors. and they are not smart allecs.Their facilitators.

If you live in a hurricane zone, like we do, be thankful, very thankful for building codes that and inspectors who value peoples and their property. many many think men like this are a pain in the backside but remember, buildings they inspect could and will cause people to die if they are not to code!!! Stop complaining and feel greatful for having someone who wants to save lives and properties!!!!

Sounds like Mr Carrigee is doing his job like he's supposed to. Seems to me the only people who have an issue with him are the ones doing shoddy work. And lets face it, with so many contractors doing so much construction for so many people, some of the work is going to be of dubious quality at best. Sacrificing expediency for quality is foolish and helps no one in the long run. The last thing people need is a building inspector signing off on substandard work on these new homes and having their houses catch fire from uninspected wiring, or cracks in their new foundation, or the plumbing backing up into their house.

This guy with all of his high and mighty praises just sounds like someone who is from the south and abuses his position and authority to the fullest. Political leaders are scared to say anything, for fear of losing federal subsities due to this meglomaniac's idea of right and wrong.
David P. Wetter
US Army Retired
Seen this behavior all too often in the military!

I have worked in the construction industry from New York to CA, for 35 years. I have dealt with scores of different public and private trade inspectors during that time. Bill Carrigee seems to have the same goal as almost every inspector I have dealt with,i.e., facilitating projects with a minimum standard of quality tradecraft. This is the purpose of an inspector. He grades the work according to rules developed by an independent body of non-government professionals. The rules are not arbitrary, personal, or agenda driven spite. The rules are scientifically developed, empirically proven, minimum standards of material and craft competence required to construct a safe and saleable product, whether it is residential, commercial, or industrial.

The projects Mr. Carrigee inspects are subject to out of the ordinary climatic, soil and water conditions. Contractors and homeowners might expect to deal with additional stringencies in regard to these items. (Katrina).

Bill Carrigee is probably too busy to veer from the book, if he were so inclined. He umpires the game, give him some respect and you probably will not be ejected or penalized for poor sportsmanship. Don't head butt the inspector, please.

No, I don't have a past of wilfull heinous criminality of felony burglary of someone's home; that crime should disqualify one from being sent into peoples' homes! Forgiving is one thing, encouraging recidivism is another! Arrogant convicted felon - not my idea of a public servant!
By the way, I haven't had any encounters with his majesty, Inspector Bill.

Can't one do an excellent job and still be a nice man. Why do these two qualities have to be mutually exclusive, as in this man's case?

I am an inspector for local govt., myself. Let's face it, if you're a nice guy... people will call you a pushover. You have to respect a man for his knowledge...his personality gives him style.

Mike Iverson is absolutely on track. I to am a project manager for a company that is involved in construction projects throughout the world. These projects range from single family developments, to 500M+ manufacturing plants.

I would like to add the following to Mike’s comments:

First, don’t expect the building inspector to be your consultant regarding code interpretation. If you show the inspector that you know the code, he will be much less likely to inject his "opinion". Most state building codes allow local inspectors to make finial interpretation of the code. This does not mean that they can simply interject their opinion. Find out which state agency (normally the Insurance Department) interprets the building code, and use their staff to help you with any questions you might have about differences between your interpretation and the inspectors interpretation, these folks are the finial authority. So become friends with them, learn at least one of their names.

When we encounter a “problem” inspector, we have engineers on staff which decide whether it is best for us to simply make a design change, seal the change and move on, or coordinate with our attorneys, which prepare statements to the proper local governmental agencies putting them on notice regarding their possible liability by interjecting their opinions into the building code. At the same time we notify their insurance carriers of our concerns regarding assumed liability. After their insurance company has a discussion with the appropriate local governmental individual, it is absolutely amazing how quickly we get back to construction, the inspectors get back to inspecting, and we complete the project.

Our wiliness to aggressively challenge rogue inspectors and place responsibility for their actions on the local governments, seems to follow our projects from state to state. A caveat we always apply, “if they are right, they are right, if they are wrong, sue them”. Always works for us!

Vote out the old city council, vote in a new one more agreeable with the citizens of the town. Then get rid of this inspector.

Disaster areas are very attractive to many contractors that just want to make big bucks fast and disappear before anyone finds out that the job was not done anywhere close to right. The attitude of "just get it all fixed fast to get on with our life" has caused much grief down the road. At least someone is trying their best to protect those he serves. It is also likely that Carrigee and his staff are working long hours and dealing with their own recovery also. It sounds like he deserves an A for effort and competence and forgive the attitude part.

Mr. Iverson, don't pretend to know what Bill Carrigee is like. You don't. He has plenty of common sense and even puts it to good use. He is and has always been accountable. If he makes a decision, he takes the responsibility for it. Is he gruff? Absolutely! But - if you want to work with the system and with him, he's agreeable. If you cop an attitude - look out. It is not his job to coddle someone's ego. He shouldn't - it's a waste of his time and public money. He doesn't have time for all the whiners. He's not a shrink - he's a building inspector. It is his job to make sure this city's buildings get built to code. Over the years I have had to check with him on code and zoning questions for my work. There have been times that folks have challenged me and what I was told by Bill. He has never back peddled on what he told me, just to avoid uncomforable issues. He has always been honest and forthright. People in our area, especially folks that lost their homes, are getting desperate after a year with very little improvement. That should not mean that building officials should look the other way to speed up building. It means that we are weary and short tempered. We want what we want. Bill Carrigee helps protect us from ourselves and the very many unscrupulous contractors and pretend contractors that have descended on this area. I for one think he's doing a darn good job.

It sounds like this inspector is doing his job to the best of his ability, and with the resources he has available. Praise to him for doing his job to ensure that buildings are built to code. As a union sprinklerfitter and instructor in the Fire Protection industry, I have dealt with inspectors, insurance officials, and Fire Departments over the years. If you are upfront with an inspector, and make an honest effort to comply with the codes and standards, he will sense that you are intending to do the right thing. You will have problems when he senses that you are trying to get by with substandard, nonworkmanlike work that does not meet the intent of the code,especially if you try to slip it by him, hoping that he would not notice. Then he will inspect with a fine tooth comb if that happens. Inspectors have to be wary and impartial, because they can easily be burned by fly-by nighters, especially in an area that has to be rebuilt with firms that the inspector has little or no experience dealing with them,know if they are legitimate and qualified to do the work properly, and if they intend to do so, or just take the money and run.

Does anyone have a shred of evidence that this man is not enforcing the regulations that he has been hired to uphold? Building contractors must be held to a high standard. As there is no money to be made in doing this, the government must perform this public service. Imagine sitting down to have coffee in your grandmother's living room, and having the roof collapse. Lawsuits do not help very much at that point. Nothing could possibly be worse than the hurricane's devastation besides the production of a large number of unsafe buildings, setting the stage for more disasters.
Furthermore, it is the responsibility of society to rehabilitate convicted felons. Otherwise, they will be left with little recourse beyond returning to a life of crime.

I am all for refusal to sign off on a building that is improperly built by a contractor. In the case of a building that was built by volunteers, it is unreasonable to expect them to come undo several days of labor to take down the sheetrock just to show the wiring. Aren't there cases where it is appropriate to just assume that the licenced electrician who did the work should know what he was doing? We don't need the government to protect us from ourselves, particularly after major disasters like Katrina.

Well I think Mr. Carrigee would be highly sought in New Orleans if he is not appreciated by the cititizens in Bay St. Louis. Every member of my family there has had issues rebuilding and rip-offs. MANY home owners who don't know the codes getting permits and many so called contractors flooding into the area that don't know the codes on top of hundreds of fly by night handymen spells problems. He's doing his job and thank God he has the courage not to leave his "employers" subject to unsafe and costly incidents come the next big wind, rain or wave.

Drastic times call for drastic measures... maybe attendance at a workshop or briefing held two or three times per week should be required for issuance of a permit? Cover the basics and most common issues - give them a packet of info and a checklist to go by. If you keep doing the same thing the same way... you can't expect a different result. The beaurocrats are going to have to start thinking a bit out of the box - and a bit beyond their job descriptions to get the job done.

A lot of you folks don't understand. It is the homeowners Inspector Bill is alienating, not contractors. This guy is the antithesis of a good public servant. He hides behind the building code to intimidate and harass people who want to do the right thing. You can get all sorts of awards and kudos in any field if you belong to enough bogus organizations. If you want him in New Orleans help yourself! Perhaps in Louisiana, if you are a convicted burglar, you can't go into peoples homes as a "public servant."

In the end, there are carpenters and there are cobblers....this man is making sure a cobbler don't do a carpenters job.....and they will if ya don't watch them!...thank goodness he is protecting you

Why is Mr Carrigee the way he is? Simple. Hurricane Katrina opened up a near avalanche sized hole for unscrupulous contractors to come through and swindle the locals into losing whatever is left of insurance settlements. Carrigee might be loud,obnoxious,antagonistic,and opinionated---he is also doing what it takes to preserve a sembelance of legitimacy in getting things rebuilt.

I remember a time when a man was APPLAUDED for doing his job well. It's not the buildings he's protecting, it's the people who will live and work in them. Today's mentality is get it done fast and as cheap as possible. If somethings wrong with it, blame the other guy and take no responsibility for it. Bill is wanting a Mam or Woman contractor or homeowner to take responsibility for their work. Is that wrong? If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything! Good job Bill.

An honest building inspector that does his job to the fullest. That's something every city should want. Unfortuntely, due to the emotional and physical losses of Katrina, some families in these towns are willing to circumvent the process for some form of supposed stability. Ironically, skipping these crucial steps in the building process could be a catalyst for future problems causing the opposite--possible water leaks, fire danger...instability.

If I can paraphrase a saying by the religious South: the Building Inspector works in mysterious ways.

I've dealt with inspectors for 36 yrs. There's good one's and there are one's with attitude. When you experience one that is level headed and right in his call you are best to comply, it's in your and the home owners interest. But when you run into one that's going to teach you a lesson never hesitate to take them to task, even if it means going to the top of his chain in comand.... If you don't get the coarse corrected at the top remember who was in charge at their next election.... Cuz once you coward to them your in for a roller coaster ride you'll hate...

I read the article regarding Mr. Carrigee trying to uphold the adopted IBC codes for the rebuilding of homes and other facilities. Mr. Carrigee was appointed by the local municipality to make sure that all permitees are complying with the codes and approved plans. The IBC codes were "ADOPTED BY THE LOCAL GOVERING BODIES". The elected officals are the ones you voted for and those same elected officials are the ones who adopted the IBC codes. And, they have appointed Mr. Carrigee to make sure the codes are enforced. So. do not blame Mr. Carrigee, blame it on your elected officals or take your complaints to your elected officials. If Mr.Carrigee does not do his job as he was hired to do, and if a failure happens, he lose his job. The ultiment responsibility lies with the municipality. Additionally, I would like add...The municipalties were required to pass a building codes for buildings. FEMA has advised all the municipalities that if they do not have and adopted building codes, the likelyhood of recieving FEMA disaster funds due to an act of god are slim to none. My personal note to Mr. Carrigee "Keep up the good work". The permitee will reap the benefits for years to come. Last, but not least, to all the Municipalities. Do not let any development occur on lands the is subject to flooding and below sea level. If you permit it, you are only asking for problems when a major storm event occurs. The injured party will come to you. So, stay out of Harms Way.

If people get mad at you, then your doing your job.

"No, I don't have a past of wilfull heinous criminality of felony burglary of someone's home; that crime should disqualify one from being sent into peoples' homes! Forgiving is one thing, encouraging recidivism is another! Arrogant convicted felon - not my idea of a public servant!
By the way, I haven't had any encounters with his majesty, Inspector Bill." So the past is not forgiveable. Well our fair president took illegal substances in the past. So should he be allowed to have his finger on the preverbial button?

The point of building codes, as many have stated here, are a set of MINIMUM standards of safe building practices. These codes used to not be so "overburdening" because we had contractors and homeowners who educated themselves and took pride in quality. Today there is so much focus on money that MINIMUM standrds have become a nuisance.

Build it right or don't waste the time.

I love this man! Work ethics have really gone down hill and Mr. Carrigee simply says you can't slip a Franklin in his pocket to look the other way. Contractors, you kiss asses, you know who you are. You can't work your charms to save you the bucks on this awesome man. That "attitude" may just be part of your uniform and we would definitely appreciate people like you in Maryland.

This last year I personally had the opportunity to deal with Mr Carrigee face to face.I can honestly say that it was a pleasure dealing with a person who not only conducted himself as a professional but was extremely pleasant and helpful.

But before I could talk to him I was in a position to witness his kindness to a lady who had apparently lost all and had many questions.This took some time and the man showed wonderful patience.It was admirable.

I hope to someday revisit Bay St.Louis and witness the beauty I am sure it will once again possess and much of that can be attributed to the fact that Mr Carrigee requires that it be done right.

I believe Mr. Carrigee is doing the right thing by making the construction industry do the right thing. The construction industry is just riddled with people out to make the fast buck and just cut the corner leaving the last tennant to foot the bill when something goes wrong years later.

Typical beauracratic roadblocks...The government can't move fast enough to handle the needs of the people. Here we are a year later and some of the codes aren't even spelled out yet in Louisiana. Why can't the government see that there is a need to have more inspectors to get the construction moving forward. How can one man be a bottleneck in the road to families getting back to some sort of normalcy. I don't fault him, even if he does have a bad intimidating attitude. He is just one man in the chain. I fault the guy at the top who is responsible for seeing what the people need and making sure we're staffed adequately to move forward. I agree that we need govt inspectors to keep businesses from half-stepping and screwing up, but it should be able to keep up and not increase the suffering. I'd seek out whoever is the top guy, whether it is the Mayor or whoever has the final accountability and authority to make a difference and hold his feet to the fire. If that person had home problems, I bet they were taken care of at the top of the list. Good luck to all of you...God bless you keep your heads up.

I'm a contractor...and at times I become annoyed...but it's written in the code book....sometimes it's frivolus...but it's still code....do your job right...and let the inspectors do theirs!

I think that Mr. Carrigee knows his job come on after 30 YEARS in the construction business he would know what the building codes are and how to put up a building safely....as for that felony conviction at age 18 years old...Do you think that it maybe ancient history and to think that he was "pardoned"..Here's a question is he a repeat offender NO then shut up and stop crying and let the man do his job and tell him thank you for doing a damm good job keeping everything done by code and done safely.......

Holy Schnikes!!! Some of you act like you WANT incompetence in our public officials. It sounds like the man is doing his job.

To those who do not want a felon in their home inspecting, don't investigate a lot of construction workers' past. We just need to hope that our system has done it's job at rehabilitating the felon.

Also, If a person can barely speak english, like a lot of illegal immigrant workers, how do you expect them to be able to correctly interpret the code. Oh no, I didn't just go there!

Again, the code is only the minimum standards. Any self-respecting contractor should look at each of his jobs as an opportunity to build in a Crafstman-like manner. They should take pride in their work. Codes exist because some idiot in the past built wrong and hurt someone, or the materials changed, times change and research into hurricanes, all of which affect code. Florida codes changed drastically after Hurricane Andrew, all of which was started by one county, Metro Dade county. We actually learned from our mistakes - and still are. Codes are there to protect us.

My Momma always taught me that you always get more with honey than with vinegar. Momma sure was smart.

I am told there is a house being built on Thomas Street in Bay St. Louis. I am told the framing is well underway atop the round concrete piers. The pier straps are in plain view, being secured to the outside of the piers with a fastener. Some sill joints, which are butt joined, are free-floating, meaning the joints are not over the piers. How nice. Anyone can take a look-see; it is just North of Dunbar. I am also told that the owner is a very good friend of the the diligent Mr. Carrigee and she claims he took a good look at the construction progress and stated it is just fine.

Jeremy,

Yes, we can imagine that, right here in Bay St. Louis. I just typed up one of many examples that occured under the watchful and discerning eye of Mr. Carrigee. I expect it to never be listed here though. Imagine an elderly couple's horror, as they attempted to store things in their brand new attic, when they touched the roof rafters and bracing and THEY SWUNG! Not to worry, they were installed by a very politically connected contractor.

I believe this article
http://www.topix.net/content/kri/1982945580233344959318926949422109070676
will shed some light on the motives of Mr. Carrigee. Everyone here in Bay St. Louis is aware that the construction sailing is much smoother for local contractors as opposed to "outsiders" doing just as good, if not significantly better, work.

At last an honest man in Louisiana. He seems to be one of the Untouchables. Elliot Ness would be proud.
Just get the permits and do the right thing.

Mr Carrigee looks to be at least 50 years old. People want to lynch him because he committed a crime 30 years ago or more? That's un-American, friends.

He may be a government bureaucrat with an attitude, but he's in a very tough position. Disaster zones are rife with fly-by-night contractors who have no accountability or roots in the community. It's inconvenient, but this is the time for strict regulation.

His personal style notwithstanding, it seems like he's the right person for the job.

I have to wonder if some of your mouths are connected to your brains. Just spouting off at the mouth with no real knowledge of the subject.

Howard:
Let it go. That was years ago. Hes not a hardened criminal and frankly you have no idea what happened back then. It could have been something stupid as hell. Jesus, Just Forget and fogive, because hes obviously proven that hes a good guy to many many people.

Steve Salem: No its not enough to assume that the electrician knew what he was doing, or that he did it right. There are scam artists down there and as a contractor, you definitly need that sheet rock pulled up. Id rather have to redo sheetrock, than have my house burn down because of an electrical fire. You dont need the goverment to protect you from yourselves? Are you serious? So when your house burns down because of shotty work, who are they going to go after? The Goverment. Its happened before and it will happened again, so yes the Goverment does need to protect someone of us from ourselves...

IMO, Let the man do his Job. I have to admit that I truly hate Code Enforcement Officers. They can be so picky and bitchy about the littlest thing. However, they can also save you money from having to tear shit up and redo it when something goes wrong. On top of that they can prevent accidents and damage to the house. Lay off the damn guy and let him do his job.

Wow, Howard, cut the guy a break huh? Using your rationale, if anyone does something felonious at any time in their lives, should they receive a lifetime disqualification from any vocation exposing them to any facet of dealing with people in their residences? One strike and you're out, with no hope to ever rise above the stigma of a misdeed done decades ago, in all probability a nonviolent one? (Burglary is a property crime.) It seems to me that would be more likely to encourage a criminal recidivism, because you are reducing the man's options to better himself. This is not a political debate..I'm no bleeding heart liberal, and if Mr Carrigee had other convictions revealing a propensity to felonious behavior then my stand would be different- but one bad decision made in the impetuousness of youth in which no one was injured and for which the man has obviously risen above and not let dictate the course of the rest of his life, is forgivable.
You say you've had no personal dealings with Mr Carrigee but your post drips of a thinly disguised contempt for this man. I've had no personal dealings with him either but I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Because of his integrity in performing his job, I have faith that we won't be subjected to headlines of "Incompetent inspectors signs off on shoddy construction", "Hurricane victims re-victimized by unscrupulous contractors", or, "Building inspector with felony record did not enforce building codes", in the months and years to come. His job has got to be one of the most stressful and thankless in the state right now, if not the entire nation, overseeing the rebuilding of a community that was one of the most devastated towns from Katrina. He is a scapegoat for all the frustration that goes hand-in-hand with this rebuilding process. And I'm pretty sure he's still doing it at his pre-Katrina salary.

Oh how I wish we had a "hard-nosed" inspector like Bill Carrigee around when our home had to be rebuilt after a storm. We hired what we thought were reputable contractors, and all our construction passed inspection at every visit. Everything looked good. Long story short, the problems began in about 3 months with everything from doors out of plumb, wiring done wrong, roof leaks, wall cracks (not cosmetic - structural!) etc etc. Contractors long gone and closed up shop, no way to contact them. Not so reputable after all! Building inspector turned a deaf ear to our complaints also. No one to sue, so we essentially built our home, and paid for it, twice. We, also, were competing with many homeowners for workmen, and in our rush to be back in our home, didn't research the contractors enough. Our big mistake, but at least a tough inspector could have given us warning that things weren't OK. Wonder where our less than professional contractors are now? Gulf Coast, ya think? I'd be thanking my lucky stars for an inspector like Carrigee, even if it slowed the process down. Don't like his attitude? Mine wasn't so great after almost $75,000 down the drain.

As a 55 yr. old carpenter I know there are a lot of ways to do the same thing. I also know I don't know them all. The best attitude I have found to take with an Inspector is to assume he knows everything. An inspection can be a learning experience. If he wants a change and he is worth his salt you can work out what needs to happen right there on the spot. As stated by others, inspectors interpret the code like lawyers. They can put you on the path to the desired result, but if you become arguementative they will just shut you down. Sometimes you are getting attitude from them because of the last guy they had to deal with. Patience and respect need to go both ways. At the end of the day you can appeal to a higher power, either a more senior inspector or other city official for a second opinion on the interpretation if you really think what is being called for is excessive. DO NOT EVER OFFER OR GIVE CASH TO AN INSPECTOR. That is a betrayl of the public trust. Inspectors are there to protect the health and saftey of the citizens of their comunity. What this guy did when he was eighteen is irrelevant. The fact that he could not be blackmailed by it says a lot about his charcter. An unsung hero if I ever saw one. Don't let the bastards grind you down Bill.

Bill Carrigee should be applauded for doing is job PROPERLY. I'd much rather have had his "arrogant attitude" to deal with than having to replace the garage roof, rewire the electrical system in my home, and most recently gut and rebuild the bathroom. All passed the inspection before I purchased my house. If contractors/builders were true craftsmen and proud of their work, folks like Bill would be out of a job. The work wouldn't be questionable in the least. Kudos to you Mr. Carrigee and shame on those of you who would accept poorer quality workmanship than you should.

I don't know the man, but I will garantte....if the work is right...there won't be problems...that's the way it is!!! there should be people to reason with called the Board Of Adjustments And Apeals...but they will stick buy the inspector ...I know I do 99.9% of the time....and I chair our board

Andy,

Would you have stuck by the inspector who approved an interior stairway with drastically varying riser heights?

It's very obvious that many of you have had no dealings with this man. Not only is he arogant and egotistical but he is also an untruthful person. In the article he said that if you walk in and want to do it right he's your best friend. I know personally that that is NOT TRUE. We bought a house in BSL and found out that it had code violations. When our insurance clerk checked with the building department, she was told that the previous owner had applied for a permit, was told that what they wanted to do was not up to code. The owner did the work anyway and Mr. Carrigee looked the other way. When we went to talk with him to find out exactly what we needed to do to bring the house up to code, we walked in "wanting to do it right" but we were treated like idiots. He would not tell us what the codes actually were. Instead he said to tell him what we wanted to do and he would tell us if he would "allow it". We could not get any definite answers from him about what the actual codes were. No written guidelines. And even after relating to him what we hoped to do he would not tell us if it was code. We were NOT arguementative with him, either. We have dealt with Chief Building Inspectors in other cities/states and have NEVER been treated as poorly and rudely as we have been by Mr. Carrigee. In later dealings with Mr. Carrigee, we learned the hard way that we would get no where with this man because we weren't natives or in his inner circle. This was all pre-storm so don't give him the benefit of the doubt that he may have been overwhelmed. After the storm my husband went again and talked with him to make sure that something we wanted to do would be allowed. During that meeting, Mr. Carrigee actually threatened to "yank" our current building permit from us so that we would not have anywhere to live. Nice way to treat the people who want and try to do the right thing; people who are paying your salary, especially when you know these people are already suffering from losing nearly everything they owned.
It has nothing to do with what is safe or up to code---with Mr. Carrigee it is ALL about WHO YOU ARE. The fact that he could not be blackmailed has NOTHING to do with his character. He could not be blackmailed because he knew that his past wouldn't matter at this point in time.
Next to the insurance companies not paying claims, this man is the second biggest delay in the rebuilding of Bay St. Louis.

Andy,
If you work for the Board of Adjustments and Appeals I truly feel sorry for the people that you work with. Your gramatical and spelling are horrible. I work in a field that deals with inspectors on a regular basis and if one of my techs wires something wrong or did not follow code I want him to point it out and fail us. That is their job. I would never think about going to a board and crying that I was not passed because of having a big, bad, mean inspector.
Suffering,
I feel bad for the trouble that you have had. BUT you have to keep in mind it is NOT this mans job to hold peoples hands when they are building or remodeling something. You can go to your local courthouse and there are books with the codes in it. When a home owner takes it upon themselves to do work that should be done by a knowledgeable professional not a handy man who is useful for changing a light bulb.

Suffering,

A lot of people trying to rebuild in Bay St. Louis are discovering what you already have about Mr. Carrigee: His movtives are about what he "allows" and by whom he will allow it, as opposed to what the code is and how it is properly performed, regardless of personal worker preferences.

One of many good examples of Mr. Carrigee's discriminating practices against "outsiders" is this:
A Master Electrician from Michigan came to Bay St. Louis this past Spring to volunteer his expert services in the rebuilding effort, all at his own expense.

Mr. Carrigee told him that he could not perform any work or be "ligitimized" in Bay St. Louis until his credentials as a State of Michigan Master Electrician were verified by the Michigan authorities. Then, Mr. Carrigee would get back with him. No problem. Mr. Carrigee's motivation appeared to be due diligence.

The top licensing authority for electrcians in Michigan verified to Mr. Carrigee the credentials, expertise, and good standing of the electrician in question. Then, that authority called the electrician to let him know that everything was indeed verified. He said that when a skilled, State-licensed tradesperson is considered by their home licensing State to be a top expert and in good standing in their home State, other States, especially ones in a disaster rebuilding mode, would normally provide a courtesy of accepting their home State credentials and allow them to work.

The electrician then waited, and waited, for Mr. Carrigee to get back to him as promised. The electrician eventually contacted Mr. Carrigee for an OK to proceed with work being held up. Mr. Carrigee then claimed to the electrician, "He told me that you are only a Journeyman, so you cannot work here."

When the electrician pressed Mr. Carrigee's stance, without letting on he knew Mr. Carrigee was lying, Mr. Carrigee stated, "What about my local workers?"

I had sent a post about law suits that document cases of Mr. Carrigee's double standards, but it was not allowed to present on this blog.

Mr. Carrigee has made it abundantly clear to many of those who have had to deal with him that he does not welcome outsiders. I can see why. Get an estimate from one of the "Carrigee Approved" local Electrians. Compare that to the estimates from the outsiders who charge, much less the ones who are volunteering.

On the other hand, and to give him the benefit of the doubt, maybe Mr. Carrigee believes that outsiders are not smart enough or capable of comprehending the "Codes" of Bay St. Louis. I suspect this may be true.

Heather,

It does not suprise me that your belittling of Suffering's plight that is shared by many in Bay St. Louis, and mocking Andy's post was allowed here, even though it violates the listed rules.. At the same time, my posts documenting factual lawsuits against "Approved Contractors of Bay St. Louis" for their shoddy work, approved by the building department, were not allowed.

You wrote, critiquing Andy's writing:
"Your gramatical and spelling are horrible." In your opinion, What is yours?

Any building inspector that has issue's about favoritism or nepotism and actual physical evidence
is available of approved work that is not up to code should be brought to the attention of the state attourny generals office. When I was living in south Mississippi, I had a problem with a county road supervisor. They surfaced my road and put less than 1/2 the tar on it than was required. I had proof and called the man about it. He threatened to never fix the road. I called the AG office in Jackson and found out the penility for false reporting of materials used on the road. I then called the supervisor back and he said again if I kept complaining I would never get the road fixed. So I said ok the road is not fixed now with me complaining and won't be if I kept on complaining, then I would contact the Attourney General's office and have them take core samples and see if what was used was the same as was reported used and if it was not he would have to pay out of his own pocket for it as well as be prosicuted for stealing public property. The man decided to fix the road and did a fine job of it. Now the basic same thing could occur with your building inspector.

If people in Bay St. Louis have such a problem with this man then the way to handle it is when your next election comes around for the city and county officials STOP VOTING for the same people over and over. By allowing new officials in you have more of a voice as the public to express your opinions and views to the things that are going on. Birmingham and Jefferson County had a similar problem for MANY years and the people here FINALLY had enough of it and things are changing for the better here. The people that are hired on are hired on by the officials that are voted for by you the public

Bill Carrigee needs to clue-in the clueless breaucrats at FEMA. In another extravagant waste of taxpayers' money, FEMA has recently hired many new nitwits to harrass us. This time they are in the form of client consultants: Case Workers; their sole pourpose is to meet with each of the Katrina affected property owners to inform us that we should make every effort to rebuild with volunteers. Yep. They are armed with lists of volunteer groups that they insist we should get to rebuild our homes. They check up on us regularly to see what progress we have made in securing these unlicensed, unskilled, and Carrigee unapproved foreigners to reconstruct Bay St. Louis.

Well, I tried two of the groups. They had no clue what they were doing and did more damage than was already there. I will wait it out for a good, local contractor, while being harrassed by my FEMA case worker to get another volunteer group to wire and plumb my house.

I'm getting the feeling no one else saw Penelope's link, above. Long story short: the man's son is pouring foundations for "fast track" permits and approvals company. Threw me for a loop.
First I thought the man was a picture of virtue.
Then I thought I saw a horse leaving.
So maybe it's true, that even a blind squirrel gets a nut eventually.

Your voted in officials are allowing this man to wreck havoc in a community that has had enough. The goal is to rebuild, it appears that extra inspectors have not been hired to help the office because all decisions are his and the area will be rebuilt as he sees fit. Where is his southren hospitality to the "outsiders" as homeowners or volunteers. His high horse is getting altitude sickness. As for FEMA, being absorbed by Homeland Security has ruined that dept. and their reputation.

Believe it or not, most government employees actually want to do their job for the best of everyone, but you don't hear or read about them. Exceptions do exist, we see them on the news everyday, crooked cops, DMV agents selling illegal licenses, teachers fondling students, etc. But here you have a rarity, a public servant in the news with integrity, yet he's made into a villian for doing his job correctly...Yes you read correctly. For if the inspector took bribes and houses were built which burned or collapsed when they shouldn't have you'd swear he was the devil incarnate and have lawyers all over the government about his actions or lack thereof. But when he insists on things being built the right way, builders are incovenienced and patience tested. We are a nation of laws...Laws which were designed to regulate bad behavior, hopefully preventing bad things from happening. This man is enforcing those laws so new homes will last for many decades with a minimum of problems. Praise him for doing his job right, for looking out for your home, for improving-not destroying this town. Your life and finances may depend on his actions come the next hurricane.

Keith Herman,

Ok. So you think approving framing members, including rafters, that are not nailed AT ALL to the framing members they are suppose to be properly attached to, approving varying height stair risers, on the same set of interior stairs, approving foundation sills that are butt jointed above NO PIER SUPPORT, is doing a building inspector's job correctly? And, you think these aformentioned conditions - in previous posts here - are built the right way? OK. We now clearly know what your agenda is. I guess you would also interpret the past lawsuits filled here in Bay St. Louis by homeowners, which are a matter of public record, as evidence of this building inspector's "integrity."

I myself would love to see a post with links to these lawsuits. I've heard a lot about this guy, and let's just way that the tenor of these comments are 180 degrees different than that of the story here.

It is sad to know that coastal towns throughout the south are the same. They hide behind what they say is FEMA regulations and County regulations but what they are small men with small minds. They stifle rebuilding and leave behind the mess of previous storms because no one can repair their property.

With all that is said and done, I thought that corruptions only runs in the third world like the Philippines, nope I was dead wrong it also runs high in America. hehehe

Give this building inspector a fair go as he is looking after your intrest in saftey
building regs here are a lot tuffer that you have in the usa
this man knows what he talking about so trust him
a person that is not liked must be doing his job
just like a police officer or parking warden
i wish you all well in the USA
stayed a while in 2000 love it
Yours Barry

So that's it! Let's thank Barry for giving us the formula: "A person that is not liked must be doing his job." Now, that clears everything up. We should all contemplate the politicians and civic leaders through history that were not liked as we rest assured by Barry that they did a good job.

I work with the public also. If I behaved like Mr. Bill I would have been fired 20 years ago. In my dealings with people I have observed that most arrogant people are really insecure and guilty. I believe this is true. Let's see. If you try to pass the test to work in the Bay- you can't unless you pay Mr. Bill a few hundred dollars to take his class. He is paid to be a consultant- but only outside of the Bay, supposedly. More money. He approves his son's constuction company but gives the others that have applied a hard time. More money. Eddie Favre, the mayor, gave him a raise without others approval. More money. (This is supposedly being looked into by the attorney general.) I appreciate all of the people not living in the Bay who have never dealt with this guy having comments, but unless you have- what can you really say? I have had an inspection with Mr. Bill with my new house, Pre-Katrina- around 2002. He was rude then and still is. I wanted to move in furniture while I had help for the upcoming week-end and it was like he was trying to find something wrong so I couldn't. We had been thru inspections before. It is like an evil game with him. He did find something, but thank God as he was outside smoking a cigarette and appeared to be gloating; I called the electrician- who was unable to attend this inspection, but had been thru others- and showed him what he wanted. We got to move in. Apparently Eddie does not want to run for Mayor again or Bill has something really good on him. May I also say that EVERYONE'S job is HARD in the Bay now. We are all still in FEMA trailers trying to work- thank God we have a job- and trying to fix up our homes at the same time.

Thank God For Mildred; she is right on track with Mr. Bill. Most of these posts are obviously either from outsiders that are ignorant of the way things are done here, or they are posted by Mr. Bill, Mr. Eddie, or their lackies.

I am glad the Attorney General is looking into these shenanigans. But if the AG handles the investigation like the Mississippi Development Authority is handling the Grant money and process, nothing will come of it.

Everyone I know thinks Mr. Bill has something big time on Mr. Eddie.

Carrigee resigns:

http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/local/15553027.htm

Sounds like a real winner - good riddance. I hope they find a replacement who has integrity and intelligence.

What a bright spot of sunshine on a cloudy day---the news that our building czar is resigning!!!! Time to celebrate and start re-building!!!FINALLY!!!

It's amazing how quickly one resigns when "moonlighting" in the county is reported. I guess we were all supposed to sit back and think that the county inspections were happening outside of the normal city hall working hours. When it was time to inspect my house, he did not show up for three days even though I called to confirm with him the time and place. When he finally showed up to inspect my house to see if it was "structurally sound" he did not even get under the house. And, then it tool him almost two weeks to make a decision because he had to "check his reports"!

But, rest assured, "Bubba" will hire another lackie to take his place or him as a consultant to continue to be on the payroll. As I said in my last post, things in the Bay will never change!

Hallaluyah and God Bless Aerica, but especially Bay St. Louis now that the gestapo is leaving. Good Riddance!

I heard Mr. Eddie is mad about it. Could it be that he is afraid that the cat will be let out of the bag now???

http://208.62.60.4/40/article_520.shtml

Man. Are they _trying_ to lose?

Okay, I've read all the posts so far. Now I can't stop myself from speaking out. I feel the pain of the residence of the Gulf Coast, and totally understand what they are experiencing. You see, I a
have had the benefit of being on both sides of this fence. I was a survivor of a close neighbor of BSL when Ivan devistated the Florida panhandle, and suffered damages to my home that "FEMA" totally ignored due to incompitent investigators that knew nothing about construction. It was a hard pill to swallow because I was a building inspector employed by the local municipality and watched other folks receive large sums of money for claims that were blatently unfounded and in many instances fraudulent. I, too can attest to the "good ol boy" system being alive and well in the contracting business. Saw many well qualified contractors turned away while unlicensed, unquailfied, con artists that had "friends" ran rampent. The politics got so nerve racking in the attempt to do my job as a building inspector I moved on to better opportunities. I am still a building inspector, but now work in the private sector where I can do my job without the fear of stepping on some ones political toes. In closing, let me say this. In general, building inspectors are held to a high standard of ethics in making decisions on the life saftey issues we deal with and any inspector that will allow his decisions to be influenced by politics, attitudes, or bribes needs to find another profession. I personally could not live with my self knowing I approved a substandard structure that caused harm to anyone.

If the allegations in this article are true, Carrigee should go to jail.

http://208.62.60.4/40/article_619.shtml

I don't live on BSL anymore. I've never dealt with Mr. Carrigee personally, but various contractors who've done work for me have, and much of what is said by present BSL residents in the above posts have been known by these contractors for years. I've never dealt with Mayor Favre either, but I never liked the way he ran the city - it's clear he was getting re-elected because there were no pressing issues to deal with in BSL. Katrina changed all that and exposed everyone's true colors. Favre was outmaneuvered three times by Waveland's Tommy Longo - first in incorporating HWY 603, then in media attention after the storm, and finally in trailer allocation for city employees in Buccaneer State Park. The only way BSL will ever progress is if you get someone other than Favre in as mayor.

Thank heavens for Mr. Carragee; he has the backbone not to cave in to substandard building practices. I know, I used to live in Diamondhead/Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Because of Mr. Carragee, I was able to hold my licensed building contractor to the required minimum standard building practices.

To Malle Campbell:

There is much speculation - close to the level of documented evidence - that Mr. Carrigee allowed substandard work from favored contractors and did not approve quality work (judged so by any reasonable standard of safety and integrity) from those not in his inner circle. We knew many contractors in BSL and they all said the same thing. I don't care if Mr. Carrigee had a criminal record. I do care if the duties of his office were for sale to the highest bidder.

An old article in the Sun Herald mentioned manufactured housing, and how Mr. Carrigee refused to approve it because the installer refused to open a panel so that Mr. Carrigee could look at the insides. I know the installer in question, who maintains that they opened up several panels for Mr. Carrigee to inspect. He refused to come over or send someone to come out and inspect them, then maintained in the paper that the installer refused to have them inspected while he made every accomodation to help them out.

To have Mayor Favre back him the way he did, and even refuse to call for his resignation when it became clear that he was double dipping (serving as a consultant at the same time he was their building inspector), is telling. I hope that the citizens of BSL realize this and keep it in mind come election time.

This inspector is doing his job for good health, welfare and safety of public and he should be supported in every way. The shoddy contractors and builders who ever they are whether they are home owners should be grateful that this inspector is doing very good job and guiding his fellow employees and colleagues to do the right job as per local applicable building code and good construction practices.
Shoddy builders/contractors and careless home owners are the ones who do not know what they are doing and then blame building inspectors and complain irresponsibly.
My respect and appreciation goes to the courageous building inspectors for doing right job and protecting public health, welfare and safety.