The institution granted those responsible for the notified works a period not exceeding 25 working days to correct the non-compliance.
SANTO DOMINGO.– The Ministry of Housing, Habitat and Buildings (MIVHED) reported that during an inspection of construction projects in the National District, it found that 40 real estate developments do not comply with the country's established building standards.
The state agency explains that the supervision of the buildings was carried out by its Directorate of Inspection of Private Works, which visited 121 works to verify compliance with the protection measures in excavations and buildings that are being erected in the city.
During the inspections, carried out between August 11 and 29, the agency details that safety measures and whether the works have protective netting, as well as whether the excavations have impact protection, finding that 81 of the works comply with current regulations, while another 40 were notified for partial or total non-compliance.
The Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Housing (MIVHED) recently adjusted construction inspection fees, emphasizing that the measure aims to protect lives and propertythrough broader, more timely, and rigorous oversight at all stages of the construction process. "Adjusting the fees will allow us to increase the number of inspections, expand the pool of qualified technical personnel, and incorporate tools and technology that will improve the quality and efficiency of on-site verifications," the ministry stated.
Main weaknesses
Among the deficiencies observed in the construction projects reported as non-compliant, the Ministry of Housing states that it found a lack of adequate protective netting and excavations with insufficient protection. Of the total, 50 buildings have protective netting and 29 excavations have impact protection, while 38 buildings lack adequate netting and 2 excavations do not have sufficient protection.
The areas inspected included the perimeters between 27 de Febrero Avenue and John F. Kennedy Avenue, as well as the corridor connecting Winston Churchill Avenue with Núñez de Cáceres Avenue.
Similarly, the sections corresponding to Máximo Gómez Avenue and George Washington Avenue were supervised, up to the Luperón – 27 de Febrero perimeter.
The Housing (MIVHED) stated that it granted those responsible for the notified projects a period of up to 25 business days to correct the irregularities identified in the notification. Depending on the scale of the project, the correction period is set at 10, 15, 20, or 25 days, the institution maintains.
He warned that, once the given deadline has expired, new verification visits and, if the faults are not corrected, the projects will be sent to the Legal Department for the corresponding purposes.
Legal support
According to a press release from MiVHED, the provisions are based on the Regulation for the Supervision and General Inspection of Works R-004, Decree 232-17, which establishes in its Article 61 that the Director of Supervision must guarantee that the safety and hygiene measures are applied throughout the construction process, in coordination with the Ministry of Labor.
Likewise, Article 62 requires theplacement of tarpaulins and safe protections around buildings and deep excavations, while Article 64 stipulates that personnel must have helmets, gloves, masks, safety straps, scaffolding and a first aid kit on site, in order to prevent accidents.
"At the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (Mived), we reaffirm our commitment to the safety of workers and the general public during the construction processes of private works. We will continue to conduct inspections to ensure full compliance with current safety regulations," the agency stated in the press release.
