Improving Building Regulations for Rehabilitation.
Author(s):
Gross, James G.
Publication Date:
9/1/1981
Performing Organization(s):
National Bureau of Standards Washington, DC
Availability:
HUD USER, P.O. Box 23268, Washington, DC 20026-3268; phone (800) 245-2691; fax (202) 708-9981; or TDD (800) 927-7589
Notes:
Presented at the 1981 Fall Convention, American Concrete Institute, Quebec City, Canada, September 20-25, 1981.
Descriptors:
Building renovation. Renovated buildings. Construction codes. Housing rehabilitation.
Abstract:
This paper provides an overview of building regulations applied to rehabilitation. It discusses constraints due to regulation, recent technical activity to improve rehabilitation regulation, and needed research to permit more effective use of the existing building stock. A study by the National Bureau of Standards Center for Building Technology identified several regulatory problems. Most codes contain administrative provisions stating that a building's conformance with the requirements of the building code for new construction should increase in relation to the dollar amount of rehabilitation planned (e.g., the 25 - 50 percent rule); compliance is very expensive. The building codes for new construction presents difficulties because they may not address the types of construction present in many older buildings and they are structured to follow the new construction process where the building is designed to comply with established requirements. The technical base of some codes has been questioned, and they limit innovative solutions because building officials feel there is a lack of technical flexibility to allow code deviations. Several technical inputs are required to alleviate these regulatory problems: (1) evaluation of technical constraints in current codes for various occupancies to determine validity or provide basis for removal; (2) development of a comprehensive set of performance requirements for existing buildings; and (3) preparation of a catalog of building systems no longer in use for evaluating the performance of archaic systems against code requirements. HUD Model Rehabilitation Guidelines are listed, and research needs for building rehabilitation are noted, including test methods, analytical procedures, field inspection guidelines, and economic considerations. Two figures and five references are provided.
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