THE MANSION

Issue: Vertical accessibility to a new, $95,640 deck that is an addition to an existing facility and to the second floor of an existing, historic house.

Analysis: The applicant is requesting a waiver from providing vertical accessibility to a new deck that is part of an alteration to an existing facility composed of a house built in 1905 and subsequent additions to it. The scope of the project includes renovation of the existing buildings, removal of an old addition and replacing it with storage as well as the new deck. The deck will cost $95,640 and alterations to the existing structures will be $18,840. Estimates of $33,300 and $29,900 (equipment only) were submitted to provide access to the deck and $29,900 for a lift to the second floor of the historic house.

Project Progress:

The project is in plan review.

Items to be Waived:

Vertical accessibility to a new deck and second floor of an existing structure, as required by Chapter 553,509, Florida Statutes.

553.509 Vertical accessibility. Nothing in Sections 553.501-553.513 or the guidelines shall be construed to relieve the owner of any building, structure or facility governed by those sections from the duty to provide vertical accessibility to all levels above and below the occupiable grade level regardless of whether the guidelines require an elevator to be installed in such building, structure or facility, except for:

(1) Elevator pits, elevator penthouses, mechanical rooms, piping or equipment catwalks and automobile lubrication and maintenance pits and platforms;

(2) Unoccupiable spaces, such as rooms, enclosed spaces and storage spaces that are not designed for human occupancy, for public accommodations or for work areas; and

(3) Occupiable spaces and rooms that are not open to the public and that house no more than five persons, including, but not limited to equipment control rooms and projection booths.

Waiver Criteria: There is no specific guidance for a waiver of this requirement in the code. The Commission’s current rule, authorized in Section 553.512, Florida Statutes, provides criteria for granting waivers and allows consideration of unnecessary or extreme hardship to the applicant if the specific requirements were imposed.