City of Vancouver staff oppose single-staircase residential buildings | Daily Hive

City of Vancouver staff oppose single-staircase residential buildings due to safety risks

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The Government of British Columbia recently approved and enacted changes to the BC Building Code to enable just a single staircase for new small multi-unit residential buildings.

However, in response to Vancouver City Council’s approved directive requesting City staff to consider similar changes to the separate Vancouver Building Code, City staff are strongly opposing such a flexible allowance, primarily due to safety concerns. This negative recommendation to City Council takes into account critical feedback previously provided by fire rescue departments in BC during the provincial government’s consultation on its proposed changes.

The provincial government’s new regulations enable residential buildings up to six storeys — designed for no more than 24 residents per floor — to have just one egress staircase. Previously, such buildings with three or more storeys required at least two egress staircases.

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Since Vancouver has its own building code, separate from the provincial code that applies to all other municipalities, it has the authority to decide whether to adopt a similar policy for itself. Vancouver currently requires buildings greater than two storeys to have at least two egress staircases.

The new provincial regulations enabling such buildings require additional life-safety design measures to mitigate the associated safety risks, including the use of non-combustible stairwell materials, a wider staircase, mechanical fan equipment for the air pressurization of the stairwell to keep smoke out, an emergency power supply for the stairwell pressurization fan and fire protection of the electrical cables, and hold-open devices for doors for each residential unit tied to the fire alarm system.

To enable a safe multi-family residential building between three and storeys in height and with a single-egress staircase, the building owner/operator would need to ensure the equipment is always in a good state of repair, according to City staff. Over time, there could be high maintenance or repair costs for such equipment.

“Vancouver continues to experience the challenge of maintaining fire protection systems in a multi-unit building while being able to have the residents housed in safe and liveable conditions, especially for the older, mobility challenged, and vulnerable citizens,” reads a City staff report.

“If a building owner fails to maintain the single-egress staircase life safety systems in a timely manner even as legal action is being undertaken by the City, mandating residents to vacate their homes while enforcement action is being taken or repair is being done will be an extreme option and a last resort.”

Another major area of concern relates to using the single-egress staircase for both the evacuation of building residents and firefighting access, with the stairwell becoming congested. As well, the doors into this stairwell would have to be held open for the water hoses used by firefighters, which would enable smoke to spill into the stairwell. To be effective, air pressurization systems for the stairwell require the doors to be closed.

As well, according to City staff, the City of Seattle’s longtime adoption of single-egress staircase designs for similarly sized buildings is often cited as an example by supporters of such building concepts. However, City staff emphasize that a broad expansion of such buildings is not supported by Seattle’s fire department, and that “substantive fire fighting capabilities, more than almost every other fire department in North Vancouver have, including Vancouver, are needed to make single-egress staircases work.”

The provincial government and supporters of the concept touted such buildings as a way to build more homes on smaller lots — perhaps even on single-family lots — and in different configurations, and lower project costs. It would also enable more flexibility for multi-bedroom apartments, more density within transit-oriented development areas, and potentially improved energy efficiency in buildings.

New building designs with a single exit staircase are also permitted in New York City and many European cities.

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