Los Angeles Takes Steps to Eliminate Multifamily Staircase Rule

The Los Angeles City Council took another step toward giving affordable multifamily housing developers a break they’ve long been pushing for when it comes to staircases.

The city’s legislative body recently voted 14-0 to do away with a requirement that all apartment buildings have two staircases for entry and exit, the Los Angeles Daily News reported. The council now seeks new regulations from city agencies to allow for single staircases in apartment buildings up to six stories.

Councilmembers Nithya Raman and Katy Yaroslavsky initiated the action, which will require a final vote based on reports from city agencies.

Backers of the move contend that eliminating the requirement for a second staircase will lead to savings on construction. A second stairway often limits possibilities of floor plans and methods of providing required exposures to natural light, adding to the cost of bringing housing to the market.

The change could lower the cost of construction, yield bigger apartments and make buildings more beautiful while maintaining safety, Raman told the outlet.

The ability to build bigger apartments with more bedrooms is a key to the push. A recent study based on the state-mandated Housing Element, which calls for the addition of about 450,000 residential units in the City of Los Angeles over the next five years, found that less than 20 percent of units have three or more bedrooms, while 70 percent of owner-occupied homes in the city have three or more bedrooms.

Cities across the U.S. have recently begun to reconsider regulations on stairways in multifamily buildings. Some public safety organizations and executives contend that cutting out a second stairwell could bring risks for residents and first responders.

“When you start to get to a fifth and sixth story, in some areas, that really pushes the ability of the fire department to reach those people,” said Jon Hart, a fire protection engineer at the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association.

Hart noted that New York is one of several cities that allows a single stairway under limited conditions rather than as a blanket policy or regulation.

Raman said her concerns about safety were satisfied in discussions she had with representatives of the Los Angeles Fire Department.