New Building Code: Balancing Safety with Expense
There doesn’t seem to be much concrete (no pun intended) information about the new building code that will drop later this month (other than it is modeled on the International Building Code). But that doesn’t mean there’s any lack of opinion about it within the industry. “There are potentially new requirements that could cost more,”…
There doesn’t seem to be much concrete (no pun intended) information about the new building code that will drop later this month (other than it is modeled on the International Building Code). But that doesn’t mean there’s any lack of opinion about it within the industry. “There are potentially new requirements that could cost more,” says REBNY’s Marolyn Davenport. “I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, necessarily, if it’s something people should be doing” for safety reasons.” Not so, says DOB Commish Patricia Lancaster: “Cost analysis studies are under way and scheduled to be completed this month, however preliminary results show that the proposed code will offer significant opportunities for cost-effective building.” Does anyone know any details?
Building Code Changes Could Increase Costs [NY Sun]
Photo by Laura Titian
There’s a year overlap time, right?
I was part of one of the IBC rules committees.
The new codes will take some getting used to, especially for the consultants and expiditers who make their living deciphering the current codes. There will be a separate chapter for existing buildings, which will be released some time after the chapters on new construction. There will also be a sub-chapter on landmark buildings that will hopefully allow some leeway to preserve old features.
When the existing codes were written there was little thought given to rehabilitation work. They were written for new construction. However the vast majority of building permits are issued for work on existing buildings, so over the years rules governing rehab work were basically made up as we went along producing memorandums and addendums, often contradictory, that makes getting a permit a baffling process to say the least. the new rules will at least be consistant. They will be strict about life safety, handicap requirements, and earthquake requirements. they will probably cause a pretty big stir at first.
Everyone will be on a new learning curve, including the DOB staffers.
Can Brooklyn contractor even read?