No. It’s not only fire that’s a hazard, but a personal safety thing. Most men here probably never experienced being stalked, or having to turn around when your path is through a group of shady characters. In the Midwest, brick/concrete fire stairwells have another benefit: tornado shelters. While a sufficient tornado would decimate any wooden structure, these stairwells provide essential protection from the main haza…
The case for single-stair multifamily
31–40 of 562 posts
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#32No. It’s not only fire that’s a hazard, but a personal safety thing. Most men here probably never experienced being stalked, or having to turn around when your path is through a group of shady characters. In the Midwest, brick/concrete fire stairwells have another benefit: tornado shelters. While a sufficient tornado would decimate any wooden structure, these stairwells provide essential protection from the main haza…
Safetyism will be the death of civilization.
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#33The Boston triple decker should be the standard home of North America and nobody can tell me otherwise.
They do not appeal to me, as I’m not fond of having to scale several flights of stairs, and the individual floors seem quite small, smaller than my first studio apartment.
My first town house was essentially three stories. The garage level, main living level, and a loft. But the main living space was the majority of the square footage so there was little routine need to scale the stairs.
Also the main living/dining/kitchen area shared with the loft offering a nice, high ceiling, and a roomy experience.
While I can certainly appreciate the benefits of the density these provide, the idea of living in several 400-500 sq ft boxes, especially connected with stairs, just doesn’t appeal to me, particularly as I age.
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#34No. It’s not only fire that’s a hazard, but a personal safety thing. Most men here probably never experienced being stalked, or having to turn around when your path is through a group of shady characters. In the Midwest, brick/concrete fire stairwells have another benefit: tornado shelters. While a sufficient tornado would decimate any wooden structure, these stairwells provide essential protection from the main haza…
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#35No. It’s not only fire that’s a hazard, but a personal safety thing. Most men here probably never experienced being stalked, or having to turn around when your path is through a group of shady characters. In the Midwest, brick/concrete fire stairwells have another benefit: tornado shelters. While a sufficient tornado would decimate any wooden structure, these stairwells provide essential protection from the main haza…
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#36European here. I can't even put to words my embafflement upon having learnt that you US folks need two staircases.
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#37Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#38Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#39European here. I can't even put to words my embafflement upon having learnt that you US folks need two staircases.
Re: The case for single-stair multifamily
#40No mention of the ADA in the entire article - I guess people with mobility issues should go fly a kite.
Living in boston with a broken leg certainly made me very proficient in the {carry crutches while hobbling up and down countless staircases using only the railing to lift my entire body up and down with one arm} waddle. Anyone with anything more debilitating should steer clear.