Council members have listened to angry homeowners give speeches about their houses' passing inspections despite code violations, bad heating and cooling systems, certificates of occupancy never issued, or excess dirt and debris from nearby construction sites.

The homeowners say building inspectors signed off on their houses when they should have caught problems and cracked down on the builders.

The building inspector, in the job only a few months, defends the work done by his staff and past inspectors, but he says they need help to keep pace with the houses sprouting around them.

Many say it's the latest symptom of exploding housing growth in Scott County that began a decade ago and continues today as people move to the area from Lexington and other cities.

At tonight's 6 o'clock city council meeting, officials will discuss how to ease the growing pains.

Council members will consider an ordinance that would deny builders new permits if they are violating the regulations on another site. Current law grants a new building permit as long as the fee is paid.

A new assistant building inspector will start in the office next week. If that doesn't help, Georgetown Mayor Everette Varney said, he is prepared to propose hiring more inspectors to keep up with the growing demand.

"The only thing I'm concerned with is quality," Varney said. "If they're rushing and they miss something, we're going to have to address it later on, and I don't want to address it later on."

'Ease-by' climate alleged

Some homeowners say they are being left to address problems that should have been caught.

"It just starts with the builder who wants to ease by, and then it's the inspector who lets them ease by," said Ainslie Vice, who was part of a group that complained to the Georgetown council last fall.

She and her husband, Charlie Vice, own a house west of Georgetown near Stamping Ground. They have never lived in it because of code violations and problems, including an improperly installed wood stove and mold growing on the living room walls, which they say make it uninhabitable.

The Vices blame the builder, who they say did not follow architectural plans. They are still in litigation with the builder, Parker Inc., which disputes the couple's claims and is asking to be paid for remedial work done in an attempt to satisfy the Vices.

Ainslie Vice thinks building inspection was lax in Scott County for many years, leading to a climate in which some builders took advantage of the situation and faced no consequences. She said the current inspector, Dennis Morris, and his staff are doing their best to turn things around.

Builders "need to be held to standards, but they've gotten away with so much for so long," Vice said.

Morris, who replaced Lyndon Howard, who resigned in November after homeowners' complaints, defends his staff. He says, however, that there just aren't enough inspectors to handle the mounting demand.

This year through Sept. 19, he and his two-person staff had made 3,207 inspections. On average, they inspect 30 to 40 buildings each day and often take paperwork home.

"We should have had more staff three or four years ago. It's even worse now," Morris said.

'It's not slowing down'

Similar pressures are seen in Georgetown's code enforcement office. The number of citations issued by the office's chief, Michael Johnson, has increased 120 percent over the past two years. He attributes the increase to more people, more houses and more people being aware of the office.

The pressure might keep building. Kelly Klepper, the Georgetown-Scott County planning director, said he is anticipating a 10 to 15 percent increase in applications for construction projects.

"It's not slowing down," he said.

In other counties that have seen growth, such as Madison and Jessamine, the largest cities have inspection departments separate from the county.

In Nicholasville, a building and zoning supervisor oversees two building inspectors and a zoning enforcement officer. The Jessamine-Wilmore Planning Commission has its own residential building inspector and a part-time inspector for commercial buildings.

Madison County has the equivalent of 11/2 people inspecting buildings. In the city of Richmond, a supervisor oversees two building inspectors. The supervisor, Richard Boneta, said he can also do inspections.

Boneta said Richmond has annexed enough land since 1990 to triple its area. He wonders whether the demand for inspections will hit his office if that farmland is developed.

"It isn't a problem yet," he said, "but it may become one."

Builder at the storm's eye

In Georgetown, the latest outcry from homeowners came this month. Many of their complaints were directed at the builder of their homes, Brian Koressel, who they claim cut corners during construction.

They are also upset that the building inspector's office signed off on their homes without catching problems.

"They're not getting cited. They're not getting shut down," said Steve Ward, a homeowner in the Mansion Estates subdivision.

Six months after moving in, he says his heating and cooling system has yet to function properly. He also complained to the council about excessive debris and improper fencing to safeguard against silt running into the sewer system.

Another homeowner, Robert Burke, had similar complaints. He said improper wiring led to a chilly house and high electric bills most of the winter. He claims he also found a flattened cardboard box taped to the furnace's door.

Koressel, the builder, said the accusations are ludicrous. He said everything in Burke's house passed code. He also said Ward installed his own thermostat and messed up the wiring. (Ward said it was installed by a contractor working for Koressel.)

"It's just a bum rap," Koressel said.

He also said any complaints about construction debris and dirty streets have been addressed.

Koressel added that the group of people complaining is very small and that many others in the Mansion Estates are happy with their homes.

He also said both Ward and Burke are behind on their mortgage payments. Because of that, he repossessed Burke's vehicle and has been in court with Ward.

Ward said he and his wife were not paying because they were in litigation with Koressel over a land contract. Burke said the repossession of his vehicle has nothing to do with neighbors' speaking out now.

"We're not targeting him specifically," Burke said. "I just don't want anyone caught in the situation our neighborhood has."