By Kevin Jefferies
Commerce – An inspector that will determine the Insurance Services Office, or ISO, rating for Commerce completed his inspection by early afternoon. The City of Commerce has been actively improving areas of its capability to protect citizens from fire for more than a year in hopes to improve the city's ISO rating. Currently Commerce sits at a rating of 6 on a 10 point scale, with 10 being the worst. City officials hope to improve that rating by at least two points, giving the city a 4 rating.
Fire Chief Tommy Eaton told the Commerce City Council in regular session last night that much of what the inspector needing was simply a matter of documentation. Last year, the city hired an ISO consultant to help gather such documentation, as well as offer suggestions for changes to help lower Commerce's ISO rating.
The ISO rating affects fire insurance rates for the entire city. A new rating is expected to be assigned for Commerce with six to eight months.