Appeal 9550
Appeal Summary
Status: Decision Rendered - Held over from ID 9520
Appeal ID: 9550
Submission Date: 2/12/13 10:08 AM
Hearing Date: 2/13/13
Case #: B-013
Appeal Type: Building
Project Type: commercial
Building/Business Name:
Appeal Involves: Alteration of an existing structure
Proposed use: A-2 cafe, restaurant
Project Address: 36 SW 3rd Ave
Appellant Name: Marcus Koch
LUR or Permit Application #: Permit 12-181109-CO
Stories: 2 Occupancy: A-2 Construction Type: III-B
Fire Sprinklers: Yes - throughout tenant space
Plans Examiner/Inspector: Brian Quattlebaum
Plan Submitted Option: mail [File 1] [File 2]
Payment Option: mail
Appeal Information Sheet
Appeal item 1
| Code Section | 1008.1.2 Door Swing |
|---|---|
| Requires | 1008.1.2 Door Swing …. Doors shall swing in the direction of egress travel where serving an occupant load of 50 or more persons. |
| Code Modification or Alternate Requested | |
| Proposed Design | The proposed design is change the swing of the north exit door so that it swings in direction of egress travel. This door will be equipped with panic hardware. The door will be alarmed and have a large sign in red letters on the interior stating that it is alarmed. The door will not have a handle on the exterior and will only be used in the case of an emergency. This door will not have a lock. The existing main entry door will remain in swing. This door will not be equipped with a latch and have signage stating that it will not be locked during business hours. The proposed occupancy of the tenant space based on seats is 78. There is 1074 sq. ft. of seating area. If the occupant load is calculated by square footage the occupant load would be 71. |
| Reason for alternative | Because of the existing configuration of the building, it is impractical to create an alcove at the main exit door so that the door can swing in the direction of egress travel. A large portion of the existing bar would need to be rebuilt. The majority of the existing storefront would need to be replaced. The buildings is in an historic district and is designated as a contributing structure so therefore any changes to the exterior of the building would require that the proposal go through the lengthy and costly historic design review process. It is not known if historic design review would grant approval of the project. We investigated the possibility of installing some type of break-away hardware on this door that would allow it to swing out only in an emergency. Unfortunately we were unable to find a system that would allow this type of door action. Please see the attached letter from Joe Cross with Ingersoll Rand confirming this. To provide equivalent life safety a NFPA 13 sprinkler system will be installed in the space. Alarms and strobes will be connected to the sprinkler system. The space will be separated from the other tenants space with a 2-hour fire barrier. Emergency egress lighting, on battery back up power, will be installed to provide a minimum of 1 foot-candle of illumination along egress pathways. The egress path leading to the out-swinging side exit will be provided with a minimum of 5 foot-candles of illumination as a way to draw importance to this exit. In addition occupants from the second floor will be directed to this exit with signage. Appeal 8811 and 5720 are two appeals that deal with a similar life/safety issue. Both appeals were approved. |
Appeal item 2
| Code Section | 3202.2 Encroachments |
|---|---|
| Requires | 3202.2 Encroachments into the public right-of-way above grade and below 8'-0" height shall be prohibited except as provided for in Sections 3202.2.1 through 3202.2.3. Doors and windows shall not open or project into the public right-of-way. |
| Code Modification or Alternate Requested | |
| Proposed Design | The proposed design is change the swing of the north exit door so that it swings in direction of egress travel. The door will swing over the property line into the Ankeny street right of way. The door will be alarmed and have a large sign in red letters on the interior stating that it is alarmed. The door will not have a handle on the exterior and will only be used in the case of an emergency. This door will not have a lock. It should be noted that Ankeny has been vacated and is not used for vehicle travel currently. |
| Reason for alternative | Because of the existing configuration of the building, it is impractical to create an alcove at the north exit door. Seating would need to be removed from the interior and the existing trash room would need to be accessed from the exterior of the building, which is problematic. The buildings is in an historic district and is designated as a contributing structure so therefore any changes to the exterior of the building, other than changing door swing, would require that the proposal go through the lengthy and costly historic design review process. It is not known if historic design review would grant approval of the project. The door will be alarmed so and only used for emergencies which will reduce the chance of conflict with pedestrians. PBOT has stated that they typically issue encroachment permits for this type of door. |
Appeal Decision
1. Inward swinging door for occupant load of 50 or more: Granted provided the occupant load of the second floor does not exceed 29 in accordance with decision in appeal ID 9520. Occupant load signage indicating maximum load (per floor) is to be posted at both the 1st and 2nd floors.
2. Door encroaching into public right-of-way: Granted in concept. This approval does not supercede the requirement for an approved encroachment permit through PBOT.
The Administrative Appeal Board finds that the information submitted by the appellant demonstrates that the approved modifications or alternate methods are consistent with the intent of the code; do not lessen health, safety, accessibility, life, fire safety or structural requirements; and that special conditions unique to this project make strict application of those code sections impractical.