Single Stair Bldg. Code Reform
Senate Bill 492 would direct the North Carolina Building Code Council to amend the State Building Code to allow certain multifamily residential buildings to be constructed with a single exit stairway instead of multiple stairways. The bill applies only to “qualifying R-2 buildings,” meaning Group R-2 apartment-style buildings with 5 to 32 dwelling units, located on a single lot, and no more than 75 feet in height. It creates two design pathways: a mid-rise option for buildings up to eight stories with stricter fire-resistance and sprinkler requirements, and a low-rise option for buildings up to three stories with somewhat different construction and sprinkler standards.
The bill also imposes a set of universal safety conditions for any building using the single-stair option, including corridor separation, limits on travel distance, pressurized or otherwise engineered stairways and elevators, restrictions on openings near the stair, and limits on how other occupancies may connect to the residential portion. It further provides that qualifying buildings meeting these standards are deemed to satisfy means-of-egress requirements under the Fire Code and local ordinances. Until permanent rules are adopted, the bill requires state and local code officials to apply the new single-stair provisions temporarily.
In practical terms, the bill would change how the Building Code and Fire Code are applied to a narrow category of multifamily housing projects, giving developers and designers a new construction option that is currently not generally available under existing code requirements. It also grants the Building Code Council explicit rulemaking authority to adopt substantively identical permanent rules, with those rules exempted from certain administrative procedure requirements. The temporary statutory provisions would sunset once the permanent rules take effect.
The overall sentiment reflected by the bill itself is reform-oriented and pro-development, with the stated goal of modernizing building code standards for residential buildings while preserving fire and life-safety safeguards. Because there were no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, there is no documented public debate in the supplied materials. Based on the text alone, the bill appears designed to balance housing design flexibility with heightened safety engineering requirements.
No specific points of contention are documented in the available history, but likely areas of debate include fire safety, evacuation concerns, and whether a single stairway is appropriate for mid-rise and low-rise apartment buildings. Potential supporters would include housing advocates, architects, and developers seeking lower-cost or more efficient building layouts, while potential opponents could include fire-safety officials, local code enforcers, or others concerned about emergency egress and occupant safety.
The bill would amend the North Carolina State Building Code and related Fire Code application for a limited class of multifamily residential buildings, creating a new legal pathway for single-exit stairway design in qualifying Group R-2 occupancies. It also directs the Building Code Council to adopt conforming permanent rules and temporarily requires state and local enforcement officials to apply the new standards until those rules become effective. In effect, it changes building-code compliance standards for certain apartment buildings, affects developers, architects, engineers, local building inspectors, and fire code officials, and preempts contrary code provisions or local ordinances for buildings that meet the bill’s criteria.
The bill’s tone is generally supportive of code reform and housing construction flexibility, while embedding detailed safety conditions intended to address fire and evacuation risks. Because no committee discussion or votes are included, there is no recorded legislative sentiment to measure directly. From the bill text, the measure appears to be framed as a technical modernization effort rather than a controversial policy shift, though it likely raises safety-related concerns among code and fire officials.
The main likely point of contention is whether allowing single-stair apartment buildings is sufficiently safe, especially in mid-rise buildings where evacuation and firefighter access can be more difficult. Fire officials and some local regulators may worry about smoke control, emergency egress, and the consequences of relying on one stairway, while housing and design advocates may argue that the added flexibility can reduce costs and support more housing production. Another possible issue is the bill’s directive that the Building Code Council adopt rules with substantively identical language and the bill’s temporary override of contrary code provisions, which may be viewed as limiting local discretion.