Monthly Archives: February 2015

Deciphering the Code

  February 23, 2015

Deciphering the Code – What Does The Building Code Really Require for Bow?
By Chuck Douglas

Many of us have asked why we cannot make renovations to our police and fire stations, rather than constructing a new facility with a price tag of almost $5 million. The response from the town has been that the cost of renovations will be cost prohibitive because the fire and police stations have been deemed “essential facilities” by our building inspector last February under the international Building Code (2009 Edition). They claim the foundation and walls need to be reconstructed to withstand hurricanes and natural disasters like earthquakes.

However, the type of renovations called for in Warrant Article 30 will not trigger Level 3 of the Code as explained here:

The Designation of An “Essential Facility” is Not Required
Under the International Building Code (2009 Edition), police and fire stations designated as “essential facilities” must be constructed to withstand hurricanes and other natural disasters. The determination of whether a building should be designated an “essential facility” is not automatic – a municipality’s Building Official has discretion, and the decision should only be made after the Building Official receives consideration of input from all applicable federal, state and municipal authorities.
Significantly, our local Building Official issued a decision last year (dated February 25, 2014) determining the facilities should be designated “essential facilities.” His letter states that any renovations to the existing buildings should conform to the “essential facility” standards. Article 30 at the town meeting will be your chance to make that decision.

So What Renovations Can Be Made To Existing Facilities?
Thousands of police and fire stations throughout New Hampshire and the country were built before the 2009 International Building Code was adopted. There is no requirement for these existing facilities to be torn down and reconstructed whenever any renovations are needed. Such a standard would bankrupt many municipalities and would be absurd to apply to preexisting buildings.
Rather, assuming an existing police or fire station is designated as an “essential facility,” the 2009 International Existing Building Code requires those existing facilities to meet the seismic and structural load requirements only for certain alterations.

There are three types of alterations addressed in the 2009 International Existing Building Code (IEBC). They are as follows:

Level 1 Alterations: A Level 1 alteration is defined as the “removal and replacement or the covering of existing materials, elements, equipment, or fixtures using new materials, elements, equipment, or fixtures that serve the same purpose.” IEBC, Section 403. A Level 1 alteration can be made so long as it does not make the building less safe than its existing condition. IEBC, Section 601. Replacing asbestos panels with sheetrock as called for in Article 30 is an example.

Level 2 Alterations: A Level 2 alteration is defined as the “reconfiguration of space, the addition or elimination of any door or window, the reconfiguration or extension of any system, or the installation of any additional equipment.” IEBC, Section 404. A Level 2 alteration can be made so long as those new elements/components comply with the new code requirements. IEBC, Section 701.

Level 3 Alterations: A Level 3 alteration is defined as “where the work area exceeds 50 percent of the aggregate area of the building.” IEBC, Section 405. With respect to Level 3 alterations that involve “substantial structural alterations,” the code states as follows:

Where more than 30 percent of the total floor and roof areas of the building or structure have been or are proposed to be involved in structural alteration within a 12-month period, the evaluation and analysis shall demonstrate that the altered building or structure complies with the International Building Code for wind loading and with reduced International Building Code level seismic forces as specified in Section 101.5.4.2 for seismic loading. For seismic considerations, the analysis shall be based on one of the procedures specified in Section 101.5.4. The areas to be counted toward the 30 percent shall be those areas tributary to the vertical load-carrying components, such as joists, beams, columns, walls and other structural components that have been or will be removed, added or altered, as well as areas such as mezzanines, penthouses, roof structures and in-filled courts and shafts.

IEBC, Section 807.4.2. In other words, it is not necessary to replace the foundation and walls of our existing police and fire stations in order to meet the 2009 International Building Code requirements unless 30 percent of the total floor and roof area is involved in a structural renovation.
The type of work to be done to the Fire/Community building based on the Fire Marshal’s report does not involve altering the vertical load carrying components like beams or columns.

What are the Sources for the Above?

1. 2009 International Building Code – Chapter 16 discusses the requirements for essential facilities, and Table 1604.5 (Category IV) sets forth the structural requirements for essential facilities. Here’s a link to the IBC: https://law.resource.org/pub/us/code/ibr/icc.ibc.2009.pdf

2. Process for designating a building as an essential facility: The Division of Fire Safety put out an informational bulletin explaining the process. It can be located here:
http://www.nh.gov/safety/divisions/firesafety/bulletins/documents/2013-06EssentialBldgs.pdf

3. International Existing Building Code 2009: Here is a link to the document. The sections to review are listed in the article. I did find a typo – it is Section 807.4.2 for the requirements when 30 percent or more of the total floor and roof area is involved in alternation.
http://publiccodes.cyberregs.com/icod/iebc/2009