Bill Text: HI HR120 | 2024 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requesting The State Building Code Council To Adopt, Amend, Or Update The State Building Code To Authorize Point Access Block Construction For Residential Buildings Up To Six Stories In The State.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-04-02 - The committee(s) on CPC recommend(s) that the measure be deferred. [HR120 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2024-HR120-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	120
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

requesting the state building code council to adopt, amend, or update the STATE building code to authorize point access block construction for residential buildings up to six stories in the state.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, existing building code requirements effectively mandate a double-loaded corridor building, where two stairways both access a corridor in the middle of the building with units built on both sides; and

 

     WHEREAS, this generally results in most dwelling units in a double-loaded corridor building being single aspect, meaning daylight only comes from the single exterior wall with little to no cross ventilation; and

 

     WHEREAS, buildings with point access blocks are compact single stair buildings with dwellings that are centered around a stairway and elevator core and have a single point of access vertical corridor leading to the upper levels; and

 

     WHEREAS, point access blocks provide compact, low-carbon, and livable multifamily housing and offer a greater variety of architecture, as well as unit types and sizes, even on small urban lots; and

 

     WHEREAS, dwelling units in buildings with double-loaded corridors typically have smaller units, whereas floor plans for buildings with point access blocks tend to be very flexible, with a higher proportion of units ranging from two- to four-bedrooms; and

 

     WHEREAS, point access blocks offer greater floor plan efficiency, allowing developers to use a greater proportion of the structure for housing units and save money on the construction of extra stairways and the hallways to connect them; and

 

     WHEREAS, buildings with point access blocks provide better lighting and ventilation because dwelling units in these buildings tend to be situated either on a corner or have windows on opposite sides of the unit, which can reduce the use of air conditioning; and

 

     WHEREAS, with modern fire suppressant technology such as sprinklers, the devastating residential fires that prompted the building code to require a second access point decades ago are increasingly rare; and

 

     WHEREAS, nations with widespread use of point access blocks, such as Austria, France, and Germany, have much lower fire death rates than the United States; and

 

     WHEREAS, the City and County of Honolulu amended its building code to allow for point access block construction up to six stories; and

 

     WHEREAS, developing buildings with point access blocks presents an innovative solution to increasing the housing supply and can efficiently utilize the State's limited land area by creating compact buildings with environmentally friendly floor plans; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, that the State Building Code Council is requested to adopt, amend, or update the State Building Code to authorize point access block construction for residential buildings up to six stories in the State; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the State Building Code Council.

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Point Access Blocks; State Building Code; State Building Code Council