Official Details ‘Staggering’ Effort on Building Codes

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The New York Sun

Next week, the Department of Buildings will submit its proposal to revamp the New York building code to the City Council for approval.


At a luncheon at the Manhattan Institute yesterday, the city’s buildings commissioner, Patricia Lancaster, said the first draft of the code’s revision, known as the blueprint bill, will be submitted to the council as soon as next week. A second bill outlining a number of changes will be submitted in March. A third bill detailing the remaining provisions is expected sometime before January 2006, when the new code will take effect.


“When the mayor hired me, he said, ‘Fix the department, Lancaster,’ but little did I think I’d have to adopt a new code,” Ms. Lancaster told the audience. “The level of effort has been staggering, with 400 people donating a year of their time to get us prepared.”


A collection of real estate experts from the private and public sector have used the International Building Code, or IBC, as a model and adopted it to fit New York standards.


The IBC was chosen as the basis for the new code for a number of reasons, most importantly, that it makes intuitive sense.


In citing one example, Ms. Lancaster noted how “the IBC calls residential development ‘R,’ but for some unknown reason, the New York code calls residential ‘J,’ making it impossible to follow.”


Aside from the simplicity offered by the IBC, it also has a support system that will alleviate the pressure the Buildings Department has been under.


“When I started, we had 200 vacancies, and I have since lost 45 technical people, so in an office of 1,000, I am missing 250 people,” Ms. Lancaster said. Being undermanned makes training people, enforcing policies, and other tasks “like pulling teeth.”


Under the IBC, there are a number of programs to help the department and developers comply with code. For example, the body that oversees the IBC, known as the International Code Council, has certification programs, technical handbooks, and automated products.


“They do all this stuff for us, and it makes our job a lot easier,” she said.


The New York code is one of the most stringent in the country, and Ms. Lancaster assured the audience that the new code would hold to the same level of safety without costing any more.


Costs can be limited because of the structural and educational support from the International Code Council, which is heavily funded, Ms. Lancaster said.


Some likely changes Ms. Lancaster spoke about included a proposal allowing scissor stairs, where the stairwell bends back and forth above itself as a way of saving space.


While they are forbidden under the IBC, because building is so tight in New York, a provision is being considered to allow them in exchange for additional fireproofing or self-closing doors.


“All codes balance economic development with safety, and it’s that razor’s edge we have to hit every time,” Ms. Lancaster said.


The New York Sun

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