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Section 453 State Requirements for Educational Facilities
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Public educational facilities shall comply with the Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal. These are minimum standards; boards may impose more restrictive requirements. Additional requirements for public educational facilities in Florida, including public schools and public Florida colleges, are found in these standards.
Note: Other administrative and programmatic provisions may apply. See Department of Education Rule 6A-2.0010 and Chapter 1013, Florida Statutes.
Each school board and Florida college board of trustees is deemed to be the owner of facilities within its respective jurisdiction. Boards shall provide for enforcement of the Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal, including standards for health, sanitation, and others as required by law.
All public educational and ancillary plants constructed by a school board or a Florida college board are exempt from all other state, county, district, municipal, or local building codes, interpretations, building permits, and assessments of fees for building permits, ordinances, road closures, and impact fees or service availability fees as provided in Section 1013.371(1)(a), Florida Statutes.
Section 553.80(6), Florida Statutes, provides options for plan review services and inspections by school boards and Florida college boards.
A school board or Florida college board which undertakes the construction, remodeling, renovation, lease, or lease-purchase of any educational plant or ancillary facility, or day labor project, regardless of cost or fund source, shall review construction documents as required by law in Section 1013.38, Florida Statutes, and Section 553.80(6), Florida Statutes, and shall ensure compliance with requirements of law, rule, and the Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal. Section 553.80(6), Florida Statutes, states that district school boards and Florida college boards shall provide for plan review and inspections for their projects. They shall use personnel certified under Part XII of Chapter 468, Florida Statutes, to perform the plan reviews and inspections or use one of the options provided in Section 1013.38, Florida Statutes. Under this arrangement, school boards and Florida college boards are not subject to local government permitting, plan review, and inspection fees.
As an option to the owner providing plan review and inspection services, school boards and Florida college boards may use local government code enforcement officers who will not charge fees more than the actual labor and administrative costs for the plan review and inspections. Local government code enforcement offices shall expedite permitting. Any action by local government not in compliance with Section 553.80(6), Florida Statutes, may be appealed to the Florida Building Commission, which may suspend the authority of that local government to enforce the Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal on the facilities of school boards and Florida college boards.
Boards shall coordinate the planning of projects with state and regional regulatory and permitting agencies, as applicable. Other state or local agencies may inspect new construction or existing facilities when required by law; however, such inspections shall be in conformance with the code as modified by this section.
Any one construction project estimated to cost $300,000 or less where bonafide board employees or contracted labor provide the work. Day labor projects are subject to the same Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal as new construction.
Maintenance projects are subject to the same Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal as new construction. Chapter 489, Florida Statutes, exempts boards from the use of a licensed general contractor for projects up to $200,000 where bonafide board employees provide the work. Maintenance projects which include construction, renovation and/or remodeling, shall be reviewed for compliance with the code.
New buildings, additions, renovations, and remodeling shall not be occupied until the building has received a certificate of occupancy for compliance with codes that were in effect on the date of permit application.
Reuse and prototype plans shall be code updated with each new project.
School Boards and Florida College Boards of Trustees. In addition to complying with the Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal, and other adopted standards and this section, public educational facilities and sites shall comply with applicable federal and state laws and rules.
A Florida Department of Education document which includes required design standards, standards for rehabilitation of historical resources, capital outlay project process requirements, and various agencies having jurisdiction during project planning and construction.
Educational facilities in flood hazard areas shall comply with ASCE 24.
Including, but not limited to, Chapters 255, 468, 471, 481, 489, 553, 633, 1013, and Section 287.055, Florida Statutes, and various state rules as applicable to specific projects.
U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board.
Playgrounds and equipment shall be designed and installed using the Public Playground Safety Handbook by the U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the ASTM/CPSC Playground Audit Guide as applicable.
American National Standard Safety Color Code for marking physical hazards, is used in shops where machinery requires marking and safety zones.
American Society of Civil Engineers.
Life Cycle Cost Guidelines for Materials and Building Systems for Florida's Public Educational Facilities, available from the Department of Education, Office of Educational Facilities, shall be considered.
Assembly occupancies are buildings or portions of buildings used for gatherings of 50 or more persons, such as auditoriums, gymnasiums, multipurpose rooms, classrooms and labs, cafeterias, stadiums, media centers and interior courtyards. Assembly occupancies include adjacent and related spaces to the main seating area, such as stages, dressing rooms, workshops, lobbies, rest rooms, locker rooms, and store rooms. School board and Florida college facilities shall follow the requirements of Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal for assembly spaces.
A district school board and a Florida college board of trustees.
A fuel-fired, heat-producing appliance with a minimum input capacity of 60,000 Btu per hour and intended to supply hot water or steam. Boilers and the inspection of boilers shall comply with Section 554, Florida Statutes, the Boiler Safety Act.
Documentation issued by an authority having jurisdiction which indicates inspection and approval of completion of a construction project pursuant to the requirements of Florida law.
is a courtyard that is not roofed, has a minimum width of 40 feet (1219 mm) and has an opening a minimum width of 40 feet (1219 mm) with no obstructions or fencing, on at least one end.
An exterior courtyard may be considered exterior space and used for exiting of adjacent spaces. For an exterior courtyard with an opening between 40 feet (1219 mm) and 60 feet wide (18 288 mm), the building walls and wall openings must meet the requirements of Florida Building Code, Building Tables 601 and 602 and the maximum travel distance to the courtyard opening/exit shall not exceed 150 feet (45 720 mm) from any point within the courtyard. If the minimum courtyard width exceeds 60 feet (18 288 mm), the travel distance to a courtyard opening/exit may exceed 150 feet (945 720 mm).
is a courtyard not roofed by more than 50 percent of the courtyard area and that is substantially surrounded by a building(s) on two sides or more, has a minimum width of 40 feet (1219 mm) and each opening to the exterior is less than 40 feet (1219 mm) in width. The courtyard area shall be calculated for maximum occupancy as an assembly space and the number and size of remotely located exits shall be calculated for the maximum possible load. The maximum possible load is the greater of the calculated capacity of the courtyard or the load imposed by the surrounding spaces. An enclosed courtyard may be used as a component of exit access provided that the walls and wall openings meet the requirements of Florida Building Code, Building, Tables 601 and 602 and the maximum travel to the exit discharge does not exceed 150 feet (45 720 mm) from any point within the enclosed courtyard. If the minimum courtyard width exceeds 60 feet (18 288 mm), the travel distance to a courtyard opening/exit may exceed 150 feet (45 720 mm). An enclosed courtyard cannot serve as the exterior for exiting or for emergency rescue openings.
is a courtyard roofed by more than 50 percent of the courtyard area in any manner. Roofed courtyards may be used for assembly spaces and shall not be used as a component of exiting from adjacent spaces.
Additionally defined as follows:
is a building or other facility necessary to provide district-wide support services, such as an energy plant, bus garage, warehouse, maintenance building, or administrative building.
consists of the support spaces located at educational facilities and plants which do not contain student stations but are used by students, such as libraries, administrative offices, and cafeterias.
consists of buildings and equipment, structures, and special educational use areas that are built, installed, or established to serve primarily the educational purposes and secondarily the social and recreational purposes of the community.
comprises the educational facilities, site, and site improvements necessary to accommodate students, faculty, administrators, staff, and the activities of the educational program.
is a facility owned, rented or leased.
is a facility not owned, but contracted for use.
is a facility designed for a fixed location.
is a building which is designed with the capability of being moved to a new location.
The upkeep of educational and ancillary plants including, but not limited to, roof or roofing replacement, short of complete replacement of membrane or structure; repainting of interior or exterior surfaces; resurfacing of floors; repair or replacement of glass and hardware; repair or replacement of electrical and plumbing fixtures; repair of furniture and equipment; replacement of system equipment with equivalent items meeting current code requirements providing that the equipment does not place a greater demand on utilities, structural requirements are not increased, and the equipment does not adversely affect the function of life safety systems; traffic control devices and signage; and repair or resurfacing of parking lots, roads, and walkways. Does not include new construction, remodeling, or renovation, except as noted above.
Any construction of a building or unit of a building in which the entire work is new. An addition connected to an existing building is considered new construction.
An arrangement of two or more class areas with no permanent partitions or wall separations.
Each school board and Florida college board of trustees is deemed to be the owner of facilities within its respective jurisdiction.
Documentation issued by an authority having jurisdiction which indicates approval of construction plans prepared pursuant to the requirements of Florida law.
The changing of existing facilities by rearrangement of space and/or change of use. Only that portion of the building being remodeled must be brought into compliance with the Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal unless the remodeling adversely impacts the existing life safety systems of the building.
The rejuvenating or upgrading of existing facilities by installation or replacement of materials and equipment. The use and occupancy of the spaces remain the same. Only that portion of the building being renovated must be brought into compliance with the Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code as adopted by the State Fire Marshal unless the renovation adversely impacts the existing life safety systems of the building.
The individual volumes of air in a building which are divided by smoke proof barriers to limit contamination of the air by smoke and fumes during a fire.
The purpose of separate fire alarm systems or sprinkler systems, a separate building is a structure separated from other buildings by 60 feet (18 288 mm) or more, or as required by other sections of this code.
A public community college, public college, state college, or public junior college.
Any area planned primarily for use by six or more students.