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Oakland fire: Ghost Ship owner has business license on warehouse
san jose mercury news ^ | dec. 16, 2016 | david debolt, matthias gafni

Posted on 12/16/2016 10:45:46 AM PST by SteveH

OAKLAND — The owner of the Ghost Ship warehouse where 36 people perished earlier this month has had a business license at that Fruitvale address for more than two decades, a city official confirmed Thursday, yet firefighters charged with inspecting Oakland’s commercial businesses never reviewed the building.

Chor Ng, 62, filed for the business license in 1995 on her property at 1315 31st Ave., writing on the form that she wanted to operate a “commercial rental,” said Margaret O’Brien, Oakland’s revenue and tax administrator. The property owner was up to date on her annual business taxes, O’Brien said.

(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...


TOPICS: Government; US: California
KEYWORDS: california; ghostship; oakland
a commercial rental seems to require a fire department permit which allegedly was never applied for. woops. i wonder how many other businesses in oakland exploit the same regulatory loophole? (or is this a loophole?)
1 posted on 12/16/2016 10:45:46 AM PST by SteveH
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To: SteveH

A business license is just a tax under another name. It in no way implies inspections or a duty on the part of the license grantor to verify anything about the business. The most the city or county would do is verify they are collecting the correct amount.


2 posted on 12/16/2016 10:52:53 AM PST by Gen.Blather
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To: SteveH

It sounds like Ms Ng thinks “commercial rental” is anything she says it is-to hell with safety regs-and is it just me, or does “Fruitvale” sound sort of like a place for loons?


3 posted on 12/16/2016 10:55:25 AM PST by Texan5 (`"You've got to saddle up your boys, you've got to drive a hard line"...)
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To: Texan5

There’s a legitimate question about whether the owner or the lease holder is ultimately responsible for safety and zoning compliance issues in a situation like this.


4 posted on 12/16/2016 11:03:50 AM PST by Alberta's Child ("Yo, bartender -- Jobu needs a refill!")
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To: Texan5

“It sounds like Ms Ng thinks “commercial rental” is anything she says it is-to hell with safety regs-and is it just me, or does “Fruitvale” sound sort of like a place for loons?”

Get serious! The Fruitvale District of Oakland used to be a very nice place to live. My aunt and uncle lived there right after the end of WWII (My aunt was a civilian truck driver for the Oakland Army Depot during the war). Sadly, all of East Oakland is now a minority sewer. You name it, if it isn’t white, chances are it lives there.
And BTW, i’ve been to a few places in Texas that I could make similar comments about. The last time I was through Paris, TX it looked like a ghost town. Definitely not much in Paris that looks like Paris. Also, used to work for a company that had a plant in Graham, TX (”Gateway to the Possum Kingdom Reservoir”)


5 posted on 12/16/2016 11:05:40 AM PST by vette6387
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I imagine procedures vary from city to city. I rented offices in 3 different locations in Marin County, California. In one city, I don’t recall any fire inspections, but I wasn’t there full time, so perhaps they came when another partner was there. In the second city, the fire department would inspect yearly (one was a 400 sq ft unit; the other 2000 sq ft). We had a business permit, but no specific fire permit. The fire department would check that there were lighted exit signs over exterior doors, the appropriate # of fire extinguishers were mounted and had a valid date. They had a whole checklist they went through. They got me once on an expired fire extinguisher that I had to go get recharged (I was happy for the reminder),and they came back to check that it had been done. They also updated owner/manager information so in case of a fire or other emergency,they’d know who to contact.


6 posted on 12/16/2016 11:30:57 AM PST by Kipp
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To: vette6387

Tranquila, Senor-I was not insulting anyone-I’m sure Fruitvale was once a very nice place-just like so many other once-nice places with names that have become a source of humor/irony over time-there is a sort of burb of Corpus Christi called Flower Bluff-when I was a teen and wondered why it looked like anything but a flowered bluff, my mom told me that in years past it had been a much nicer place-with flowers...

The rural area I live in is called Pipe Creek-since it has been known as the meth capital of West Central Texas for at least the last 20 years, both the irony and the humor of the name is not lost on anyone here-I’m not offended-it is what it is...


7 posted on 12/16/2016 11:45:21 AM PST by Texan5 (`"You've got to saddle up your boys, you've got to drive a hard line"...)
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To: Texan5

“Tranquila, Senor-I was not insulting anyone-”

Lo siento mucho! We decent conservatives here in California get a little raw about the crap that comes our way from Texas. Lots of good things to recommend Texas, but if you Texans think you are immune to what’s happened here, you are in for a big surprise. That said, it appears that you can see what’s coming. Peace.


8 posted on 12/16/2016 1:54:55 PM PST by vette6387
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To: vette6387

Esta bien, es no le hace-a lot of us here feel the same way about California-I’m one of those people that thinks we are at the point that we need to separate into 2 countries-liberal states one, conservative states another-but I heard that some in California want to secede-if that is what they want, maybe liberals and conservatives could trade out residence-that way, our cities with the most liberals would see a drop in population-starting with Austin-when they move to Lala land-leaving plenty of room, jobs and resources for an influx of sensible conservative new residents...


9 posted on 12/16/2016 2:07:14 PM PST by Texan5 (`"You've got to saddle up your boys, you've got to drive a hard line"...)
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To: Texan5

The problem with all of your commentary is that the Liberals would want to own the coast of California. Where you live is important. I was born in San Francisco in 1940, and have lived here all my life. I see no reason why a bunch of Liberal schmucks should be able to take this state out of the union and displace probably 40% of those of us here in CA. For me, Texas would be an unacceptable place to live for many reasons, with weather at the top of the list. Again, it simply ties with your life-long preferences.


10 posted on 12/16/2016 2:11:53 PM PST by vette6387
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To: vette6387

I see your point on that-I’m sure the liberal ass***s would want to lay claim to the coast-and all the other primo income producing areas-and while the Texas coast around the Valley/Brownsville area has very nice Summer weather, it is hotter than where you are-and the winters are colder and last longer than SanFran ones-snow once or twice a winter is not uncommon on the coast.

You would not like it where I am-much farther north-it will be 25 by Sunday, and we will likely see at least some snow flurries-that happens several times most winters. I love remote places like this, being brought up on a ranch in a remote area not far from here, so living without a bunch of conveniences or comforts is quite normal to me-it is my comfort zone-I’d probably enjoy the Alaskan Bush if it wasn’t for the 6 month winter at 30 below 0, without sunshine...


11 posted on 12/16/2016 2:30:35 PM PST by Texan5 (`"You've got to saddle up your boys, you've got to drive a hard line"...)
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To: Alberta's Child

Apparently there is indeed-here, issues of responsibility/liability for safety compliance is spelled out in commercial leases-I’ve no idea how responsibility is determined in California...


12 posted on 12/16/2016 2:42:56 PM PST by Texan5 (`"You've got to saddle up your boys, you've got to drive a hard line"...)
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