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Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

independent.com

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Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#301

Post by raldi »

MR4D wrote: post #225
raldi wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I count ten emergency stairwells on every floor: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FC1jlGjVEAIvAG8?format=jpg

That's 450 people per stairwell. Assuming 20 people per floor, it would be packed with lines extending out into the floors.

I don't think either of us is qualified to express fire-safety-analysis statements with absolute certainty, but I would think the prior likelihood would be very small that plans would be drawn up with glaring fire-code violations, or that fire code would be written to allow the possibility for dangerous queueing hazards.

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#303

Post by mindcrime »

bobthepanda wrote: post #284
mindcrime wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe so. This article elides a lot of details... in fact, they don't touch on fire safety aspects at all as far as I can tell. So maybe there are sufficient accommodations made in terms of fire safety. It's hard to say. But... if the design really was done by an amateur architect who probably has little or no background specifically related to fire/life safety issues vis-a-vis building design, and it truly hasn't be…

Is there a local jurisdiction in this country that approves permits without checking if they‘re valid for the local fire code? That just doesn‘t pass the smell test. My alma mater had to go back and redo a building based on fire marshal concerns.

Is there a local jurisdiction in this country that approves permits without checking if they‘re valid for the local fire code? That just doesn‘t pass the smell test.

I would hope not. The article describes this as a "proposal" and I'm not sure how far along they are with it. Maybe they haven't even gotten as far as submitting a design for fire safety inspection yet. Or maybe they have, got feedback, and made adjustments in response, and the article above glossed over that. It's hard to say based only on what we know from TFA at the moment.

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#304

Post by foolfoolz »

zucker42 wrote: post #247

One piece of context that people might not realize: the student housing stock around UCSB is extremely limited. I've heard stories about students living in Ventura (40 minutes away by car), some students (who presumably are guaranteed housing) have been placed in hotels[1], and students living out of cars[2]. So this may be the reason that administrators feel pressured to accept this building. Still taking $200 milli…

the ventura example seems extremely unlikely to be 100% supply or cost related. housing is limited but there’s cheaper places than ventura that are much closer

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#305

Post by raldi »

mindcrime wrote: post #91

From my point-of-view as a former firefighter, I would say this: A building meant to house 4500 students, with only two entrances? There's a word for that: deathtrap. Building this is setting UCSB up to be the site of the next Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire[1], Station Nightclub fire[2], or Hamlet Chicken Processing Plant fire[3]. At a first glance, based only on the information provided in the article, I'd say tha…

In addition to the two entrances, there are ten emergency exit stairwells on every floor: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FC1jlGjVEAIvAG8?format=jpg

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#306

Post by foolfoolz »

b20000 wrote: post #265

The cost of housing needs to be brought down in California via regulation. This could be done by no longer permitting commissions on the sale of real estate for example and by only allowing for a small fixed fee in a transaction, e.g. $500. One of the main problems with the rising cost is the realtors who constantly jack up the price artifically.

one reason the cost of housing it’s so high is regulation. building a 4 unit apartment will cost you about 400-600k in city and permit fees

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#307

Post by allknowingfrog »

tclancy wrote: post #237
falcor84 wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to dispute any of your arguments, I'm really surprised at your referring to the consideration of whether to accept a gift of $200M as "save a few bucks".

It's $200 million in your pocket at a cost of $1.3 billion out.

I completely missed that in my first pass. This crazy donor negotiated absolutely authority over the design by covering less than 20% of the cost. That's both impressive and alarming.

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#308

Post by ethbr0 »

JoeAltmaier wrote: post #276
joachim4 wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not having natural light is one of the best way to attack your mental health. This building is just a bad design, and human are not made to live without natural lights.

...and I am working in a warehouse-style building at a Silicon Valley startup. All the windows have been blacked out, to keep the IP safe. It's a little like being inside a Borg Cube.

And just like this building (Munger Hall), your startup is presumably funded by investor money. ;) Correlation!

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#309

Post by ryandrake »

rglullis wrote: post #227
ajross wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Surely building codes mandate a comprehensive evacuation design. There are clearly aesthetic complaints many people will have here, but realistically safety shouldn't be a problem. This is simply not a "large" building by skyscraper standards, and those can be built safely. Honestly... I think this is very much a taste thing. Is it so weird that I don't think this looks so bad at all? Yeah, yeah, no windows. But dens…

> These 4500 kids in their sardine rooms will have multiple food options, probably several gyms, rec rooms, libraries, etc... all "down the hall". No better way to get kids prepared for what comes ahead in their adulthood, huh?

Preparing/conditioning today's young adults for the dystopian future, where all our jobs are being done by robots, and the elite class needs to warehouse the rest of us safely away in 2mx2m cells in gigantic concrete honeycomb dormitories, where we're given a TV and one Soma per day.

Re: Architect Resigns in Protest over UCSB Mega-Dorm

#310

Post by Vaslo »

“Munger maintains the small living quarters would coax residents out of their rooms and into larger common areas, where they could interact and collaborate.”

Ever wonder why housing in communist countries is dark and small but subways are grand and built with marble?

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