Legalizing Mid-Rise Single-Stair Housing in Massachusetts

Building code requires that residential buildings between three and six stories must include two staircases. Advances in materials, smoke detection, and sprinkler systems mean this requirement may no longer be necessary, but it still drives up costs and limits design flexibility. 

By exploring the potential for allowing single-staircase designs, particularly in smaller, urban parcels, Legalizing Mid-Rise Single-Stair Housing in Massachusetts, a new report from Boston Indicators, Utile, and JCHS, examines how we could unlock new possibilities for more affordable, space-efficient housing. This is especially relevant in Greater Boston, where small, dense parcels near transit could accommodate more housing with such a change. 

Watch the video:

AGENDA
 

Welcome
Luc Schuster, Executive Director, Boston Indicators
Chris Herbert, Managing Director, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies

Report Presentation
Sam Naylor, AIA, Associate, Utile

Report Response
Eduardo Mendoza, Policy Director, Livable Communities Initiative 

Panel Discussion and Audience Q&A
Carlos Martín, Director, Remodeling Futures Program, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies (moderator)
Ian Hatch, Partner, Fulcrum Land & Infrastructure
Tim Love, FAIA, Founding Principal, Utile; Lecturer in Real Estate, Harvard Graduate School of Design
Eduardo Mendoza, Policy Director, Livable Communities Initiative 
Elizabeth Whittaker, AIA, Founder/Principal, Merge and Associate Professor in Practice of Architecture, Harvard Graduate School of Design