sb84 wrote:Accessibility does NOT just deal with wheelchair access. That is one form of disability. You also have disabilities that are mobility disabilities that don't require wheelchairs, sight disabilities, hearing disabilitie, etc.
vrcat25 wrote:sb84 wrote:Accessibility does NOT just deal with wheelchair access. That is one form of disability. You also have disabilities that are mobility disabilities that don't require wheelchairs, sight disabilities, hearing disabilitie, etc.
I understand that but when is it required to be an accessible route since there is usually going to be an elevator or ramp?
vrcat25 wrote:Thanks for the question and I can see how that could be taken out of context Raja. At our firm we have worked on quite a few apartment complexes and building where the requirement is that all ground floor units must be fair housing unless its a townhouse or single family. If the building is only 2,3 and 4 stories it is not required to have an elevator unless you place your acessible units on a non ground floor. Obviously, you would want to place your acessible units on the ground floor if you can fulfill the 2% requirement that way. Consequently, if you were to place the acessible units on upper non ground floors, you would need an elevator so that somebody in a wheel chair could get up to it and this would be an extra and unwanted cost to the owner.
My question is, for a multifamily housing building with all the acessible units on the ground floor, would there ever be an instance where you would need the stairs to be accessible? I could see that if you had an accessible unit upstairs for seeing or hearing impairment, but most of the time we would have these on the ground floor as well.
Basically, we always put an elevator in as required or we put all of the accessible units on the ground floor. I'm trying to figure out for housing when you would ever need stairs to be on accessible route if you have the accessible units on the ground floor and don't have an elevator. Clear as mud?
Yes vrcat25 that makes total sense and it's a good question. I think that if there is a corridor, elevator/ stairs to the non-GF units, those "public" areas need to be accessible for a safe way out. Like what if my blind friend is visiting me on the 3rd floor and there's a fire? I'm not owner of building, just my unit, or I'm renting a unit. Public must be protected, so we have to provide accessible means of egress for general public to get out from our individual units through the building safely to the street.
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