Chapter 3 Provisions for All Compliance Methods

The provisions of this section are intended to maintain or increase the current degree of public safety, health and general welfare in existing buildings classified as Group R Occupancies.

Every apartment and every other sleeping room shall have access to not less than two exits when the occupant load is 10 or more (exits need not be directly from the apartment or sleeping room). A fire escape as specified herein may be used as one required exit.

All stairs shall have a minimum run of 9 inches (229 mm) and a maximum rise of 8 inches (203 mm) and a minimum width exclusive of handrails of 30 inches (762 mm). Every stairway shall have at least one handrail. A landing having a minimum horizontal dimension of 30 inches (762 mm) shall be provided at each point of access to the stairway.

Every interior stairway shall be enclosed with walls of not less than one-hour fire-resistive construction. Where existing partitions form part of a stairwell enclosure, wood lath and plaster in good condition will be acceptable in lieu of one-hour fire-resistive construction. Doors to such enclosures shall be protected by a self-closing door equivalent to a solid wood door with a thickness of not less than 1³/₄ inches (44.5 mm).

Exterior stairways shall be noncombustible or of wood of not less than 2-inch (51 mm) nominal thickness with solid treads and risers.

Fire escapes may be used as one means of egress if the pitch does not exceed 60 degrees, the width is not less than 18 inches (457 mm), the treads are not less than 4 inches (102 mm) wide, and they extend to the ground or are provided with counterbalanced stairs reaching to the ground. Access shall be by an opening having a minimum dimension of 29 inches (737 mm) when open. The sill shall not be more than 30 inches (762 mm) above the floor and landing.

Exit doors and openings shall meet the requirements of Sections 1008.1.2, 1008.8.1.8, 1008.1.9 and 708.6 of the California Building Code. Doors shall not reduce the required width of stairway more than 6 inches (152 mm) when open. Transoms and openings other than doors from corridors to rooms shall be fixed closed and shall be covered with a minimum of ³/₄-inch (19 mm) plywood or ¹/₂-inch (13 mm) gypsum wallboard or equivalent material.

Every exit doorway or change of direction of a corridor shall be marked with a well-lighted exit sign having letters at least 5 inches (127 mm) high.

Elevators, shafts, ducts and other vertical openings shall be enclosed as required for stairways in Section 313.5 or by wired glass set in metal frames. Doors shall be noncombustible or as regulated in Section 313.5.

Occupancy separations shall be provided as specified in Section 508 of the California Building Code. Lobbies and public dining rooms, not including cocktail lounges, shall not require a separation if the kitchen is so separated from the dining room. Every room containing a boiler or central heating plant shall be separated from the rest of the building by not less than a one-hour fire-resistive occupancy separation.

In lieu of the separation of occupancies required by Section 313.10, equivalent protection may be permitted when approved by the enforcement agency.

The provisions of Sections 314.1 through 314.27 shall apply to every existing high-rise building of any type of construction or occupancy having floors (as measured from the top of the floor surface) used for human occupancy located more than 75 feet (22 860 mm) above the lowest floor level having building access.

Except as may be otherwise specified, existing high-rise building shall conform to the applicable requirements of these regulations by April 26, 1979.

Existing high-rise building may have their use continued if they conform, or are made to conform, to the intent of the provisions of Sections 314.5 through 314.27 to provide for the safety of the occupants of the high-rise buildings and person involved in fire-suppression activities.

Alternate means of egress, fire walls or fire barriers, smoke barriers, automatic fire detection or fire-extinguishing systems, or other fire-protection devices, equipment or installations may be approved by the enforcing agency to provide reasonable and adequate life safety as intended by Sections 314.5 through 314.27 for existing high-rise buildings.

The provisions outlined in Sections 314.1 through 314.27 are applicable to every existing highrise building.

Existing wood lath and plaster, existing ¹/₂-inch (12.7 mm) gypsum wallboard, existing installations of ¹/₂-inch thick (12.7 mm) wired glass which are or are rendered inoperative and fixed in a closed position, or other existing materials having similar fire-resistive capabilities shall be acceptable. All such assemblies shall be in good repair, free of any condition which would diminish their original fire-resistive characteristics.

All new construction shall be composed of materials and assemblies of materials conforming to the fire-resistive provisions of these regulations. In no case shall enclosure walls be required to be of more than one-hour fire-resistive construction.

Every floor from an existing high-rise building shall have access to two separate means of egress, one of which, when approved by the enforcing agency, may be an existing exterior fire escape. New installations of smoke-proof enclosures shall not be required.

An existing fire escape in good structural condition may be acceptable as one of the required means of egress from each floor. Access to such fire escapes may be by any one of the following:

When an existing fire escape is accepted as one of the require means of egress, openings onto the fire escape landing and openings within 5 feet (1524 mm) horizontally of the landings shall be protected in a manner acceptable to the enforcing agency.

When exit doors from corridors to exit stairways are locked to prohibit access from the stairway side, the locking mechanisms shall be retracted to the unlocked position upon failure of electrical power and a telephone or other two-way communication system connected to an approved emergency service that operates continuously shall be provided at not less than every fifth floor in each required stairway. In lieu thereof, master keys which will unlock all such doors from the stairway side shall be provided in such numbers and locations as approved by the enforcing agency.

Interior vertical shafts, including but not limited to, elevators, stairway and utility, shall be enclosed with construction as set forth in Section 314.6.

Doors in other than elevators, which shall be of a type acceptable to the enforcing agency, shall be approved one-hour, fire-rated, tight-fitting or gasketed doors or equivalent protection, and shall be of the normally closed type, self-closing or a type which will close automatically in accordance with Section 715 of the California Building Code.

Every existing high-rise building shall be provided with an approved fire alarm system. In department stores, retail sales stores and similar occupancies where the general public is admitted, such systems shall be of a type capable of alerting staff and employees. In office buildings and all other high-rise buildings, such systems shall be of a type capable of alerting all occupants simultaneously.

Existing fire systems, when acceptable to the enforcing agency, shall be deemed as conforming to the provisions of these regulations. For requirements for existing Group R-1 Occupancies, see Section 312.13.

When a new fire alarm system is installed, it shall be connected to an annunciator panel installed in a location approved by the enforcing agency. For purposes of annunciation, zoning shall be in accordance with Section 907.6.3 of the California Building Code.

Shall be in accordance with Section 907.6.5 of the California Building Code.

When an automatic fire detection system or automatic extinguishing system is installed, activation of such system shall cause the sounding of the fire alarm notification appliances at locations designated by the enforcing agency.

A manual fire alarm box shall be provided in the locations designated by the enforcing agency. Such locations shall be where boxes are readily accessible and visible and in normal paths of daily travel by occupants of the building.

An approved emergency voice/alarm system shall be provided in every existing high-rise building which exceeds 150 feet (45 720 mm) in height measured in the manner set forth in Section 312.1. Such system shall provide communication from a location available to and designated by the enforcing agency to not less than all public areas. The emergency voice/alarm system may be combined with a fire alarm system provide the combined system has been approved and listed by the State Fire Marshal. The sounding of a fire alarm signal in any given area or floor shall not prohibit voice communication to other areas of floors. Combination systems shall be designed to permit voice transmission to override the fire alarm signal, but the fire alarm signal shall not terminate in less than three minutes.

When it is determined by test that portable fire department communication equipment is ineffective, a communication system acceptable to the enforcing agency shall be installed within the building to permit emergency communication between fire-suppression personnel.

Interior wall and ceiling finish of exitways shall conform to the provisions of Chapter 8 of the California Building Code. Where the materials used in such finishes do not conform to the provisions of Chapter 8 of the California Building Code, such finishes may be surfaced with an approved fire-retardant coating.

Natural or mechanical ventilation for the removal of products of combustion shall be provided in every story of an existing high-rise building. Such ventilation shall be any one or combination of the following: Panels or windows in the exterior wall which can be opened. Such venting facilities shall be provided at the rate of at least 20 square feet (1.86 m²) of opening per 50 lineal feet (15 240 lineal mm) of exterior wall in each story, distributed around the perimeter at not more than 50-foot (15 240 mm) intervals on at least two sides of the building. Approved fixed tempered glass may be used in lieu of openable panels or windows. When only selected panels or windows are of tempered glass, they shall be clearly identified as required by the enforcing agency. Any other design which will produce equivalent results.

Existing air-circulation systems shall be provided with an override switch in a location approved by the enforcing agency which will allow for the manual control of shutdown of the systems.

Smoke detectors for emergency operation of elevators shall be provided as required by Section 3003 of the California Building Code.

Exits and stairways shall be provided with exit signs and illumination as required by Sections 1011.1 and 1011.2 of the California Building Code.

Regardless of any other provisions of these regulations, every existing high-rise building of Type II-B, Type III-B or Type V-B construction shall be provided with an approved automatic sprinkler system conforming to NFPA 13.

Existing buildings housing existing protective social-care homes or facilities established prior to March 4, 1972 may have their use continued if they conform, or are made to conform, to the following provisions:

The use of floor levels in buildings of Type III, IV or V nonfire-rated construction may be as follows: Nonambulatory—first floor only; Ambulatory—not higher than the third-floor level, provided walls and partitions are constructed of materials equal in fireresistive quality to that of wood lath and plaster in good repair and all walls are firestopped at each floor level.

Except for two-story structures housing ambulatory guests, all interior stairs shall be enclosed in accordance with Chapter 10 of the California Building Code. In lieu of stairway enclosures, floor separations or smoke barriers may be provided in such a manner that fire and smoke will not spread rapidly to floors above or otherwise impair exit facilities. In these instances, floor separations or smoke barriers shall have a fire resistance equal to not less than ¹/₂-inch (13 mm) gypsum wall board on each side of wood studs with openings protected by not less than a 1³/₄-inch (44.5 mm) solid bonded wood-core door of the self-closing type. All other vertical openings shall be enclosed in accordance with the provisions of Section 314.6 and 314.13.

Each floor or portion thereof of buildings used for the housing of existing protective social-care homes or facilities shall have access to not less than two exits in such a manner as to furnish egress from the building or structure in the event of an emergency substantially equivalent to the provisions of Chapter 10 of the California Building Code.

Openings from rooms to interior corridors shall be protected by not less than 1³/₄-inch (44.5 mm) solid-bonded wood-core doors. Transoms and other similar openings shall be sealed with materials equivalent to existing corridor wall construction.

Interior wall and ceiling finishes shall conform to the requirements for a Group R-1 Occupancy as specified in Chapter 8 of the California Building Code.

Automatic sprinkler systems shall be installed in existing protective social-care occupancies in accordance with the provisions of Section 903.2.6 of the California Building Code.

Automatic fire alarm systems shall be installed in existing protective social-care homes or facilities in accordance with the provisions of Section 907.2.6 of the California Building Code.

Additions, alterations or repairs may be made to any building or structure without requiring the existing building or structure to comply with all the requirements of this code section, provided the addition, alteration, or repair conforms to the requirements of this section.

Additions, repairs or alterations shall not be made to an existing building or structure that will cause the existing building or structure to be in violation of any of the provisions of this code, nor shall such additions or alterations cause the existing building or structure to become unsafe, or to be in violation of any of the provisions of this code. An unsafe condition shall be deemed to have been created if an addition or alteration will cause the existing building or structure to become structurally unsafe or overloaded; will not provide adequate egress in compliance with the provisions of this code or will obstruct existing exits; will create a fire hazard; will reduce required fire resistance or will otherwise create conditions dangerous to human life.

Any buildings that have alternations or additions, which involves a change in use or occupancy, shall not exceed the height, number of stories and area permitted for new buildings

Additions or alterations shall not be made to an existing building or structure when such existing building or structure is not in full compliance with the provisions of this code except when such addition or alteration will result in the existing building or structure being no more hazardous, based on life safety, fire safety and sanitation, than before such additions or alterations are undertaken.

Alterations or repairs to an existing building or structure that are nonstructural and do not adversely affect any structural member of any part of the building or structure having required fire resistance may be made with the same materials of which the building or structure is constructed. The installation or replacement of glass shall be as required for new installations.

Buildings in existence at the time of the adoption of this code may have their existing use or occupancy continued if such use or occupancy was legal at the time of the adoption of this code, provided such continued use is not dangerous to life.

Laboratory suites approved prior to January 1, 2008 shall not exceed the maximum allowable quantities listed in Tables 316.1 and 316.2.

All modifications, structurally connected additions and/or repairs to existing structures or portions thereof shall, at a minimum, be designed and constructed to resist the effects of seismic ground motions as provided in this section. The structural system shall be evaluated by a registered design professional and, if not meeting or exceeding the minimum seismic design performance requirements of this section, shall be retrofitted in compliance with these requirements.

If the criteria in Section 317.3 apply to the project under consideration, the design professional of record shall provide an evaluation in accordance with Section 317 to determine the seismic performance of the building in its current configuration and condition. If the structure's seismic performance as required by Section 317.5 is evaluated as satisfactory and the peer reviewer(s), when Method B of Section 321 is used, concur, then no structural retrofit is required.

Following the notations of ASCE 41, the seismic requirements for design and assessment are based upon a prescribed Earthquake Hazard Level (BSE-1N, BSE-2N, BSE-1E, BSE-R or BSE-C), a specified structural performance level (S-1 through S-5) and a non-structural performance level (N-A through N-D). The minimum seismic performance criteria are given in Table 317.5 according to the Building Regulatory Authority and the Risk Category as determined in Chapter 16 of the California Building Code or by the regulatory authority. The building shall be evaluated in accordance with a Tier 3 Systematic Evaluation and Retrofit per ASCE 41 Chapter 6 for both the Level 1 and Level 2 performance levels, and the more restrictive requirements shall apply.

Where the evaluation indicates the building does not meet the required performance objectives of this section, the owner shall take appropriate steps to ensure that the building's structural system is retrofitted in accordance with the provisions of Section 317. Appropriate steps are either: 1) undertake the seismic retrofit as part of the additions, modifications and/or repairs of the structure; or 2) provide a plan, acceptable to the building official, to complete the seismic retrofit in a timely manner. The relocation or moving of an existing building is considered to be an alteration requiring filing of the plans and specifications approved by the building official.

The additions, modification or repair to any existing building are permitted to be prepared in accordance with the requirements for a new building, Chapter 16 of the California Building Code, applied to the entire building.

The requirements of ASCE 41 Chapter 14 are to apply to the use of seismic isolation or passive energy systems for the repair, modification or retrofit of an existing structure. When seismic isolation or passive energy dissipation is used, the project must have project peer review as prescribed in Section 322.

Any construction required by this chapter shall include structural observation by the registered design professional who is responsible for the structural design in accordance with Section 319.10.

Where Method B of Section 321 is used or is required by Section 319.7, the proposed method of building evaluation and design procedures must be accepted by the building official prior to the commencement of the work.

Where the exception of Section 317.2 applies, modifications of existing structural components and additions of new structural components that are initiated for the purpose of improving the seismic performance of an existing structure and that are not required by other portions of this chapter are permitted under the requirements of Section 319.12.

In addition to the definitions given in Section 202, for the purposes of Sections 317 through 323, certain terms are defined as follows:

This section determines what technical approach is to be used for the seismic evaluation and design for existing buildings. For those buildings or portions of buildings for which Section 317 requires action, the procedures and limitations for the evaluation of existing buildings and design of retrofit systems and/or repair thereof shall be implemented in accordance with this section.

The existing condition and properties of the entire structure must be determined and documented by thorough inspection of the structure and site, review of all available related construction documents, review of geotechnical and engineering geologic reports, and performance of necessary testing and investigation. Where samples from the existing structure are taken or in situ tests are performed, they shall be selected and interpreted in a statistically appropriate manner to ensure that the properties determined and used in the evaluation or design are representative of the conditions and structural circumstances likely to be encountered in the structure as a whole. Adjacent structures or site features that may affect the retrofit design shall be identified.

Soil profile shall be assigned in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 18 of the California Building Code.

For purposes of earthquake-resistant design, each structure shall be placed in one of the risk categories in accordance with the requirements of the California Building Code.

Each structure shall be designated structurally regular or irregular in accordance with the requirements of ASCE 41, Sections 7.3.1.1.1 to 7.3.1.1.4.

The requirements of Method B (Section 321) may be used for any existing building.

The requirements of Method A (Section 320) or the specific procedures for applicable building types given in Section 319.1.1 are permitted to be used except under the following conditions, where the requirements of Method B (Section 321) must be used.

All components of the lateral-force-resisting system must have the strength to meet the acceptance criteria prescribed in ASCE 41, Chapter 7 or as prescribed in the applicable Appendix A chapter of this code if a specific procedure in Section 319.1.1 is used. Any component not having this strength shall have its capacity increased by modifying or supplementing its strength so that it exceeds the demand, or the demand is reduced to less than the existing strength by making other modifications to the structural system.

Where the nonstructural performance levels required by Section 317, Table 317.5 are N-C or higher, mechanical, electrical and plumbing components shall comply with the provisions of ASCE 41, Chapter 13, Section 13.2.

Structural, geotechnical and construction observation, testing and inspection as used in this section shall mean meeting the requirements of Chapter 17 of the California Building Code, with a minimum allowable level of investigation corresponding to seismic design category (SDC) D. At a minimum the project site will be visited by the responsible design professional to observe existing conditions and to review the construction work for general compliance with approved plans, specifications and applicable structural regulations. Such visits shall occur at significant construction stages and at the completion of the structural retrofit. Structural observation shall be provided for all structures. The plan for testing and inspection shall be submitted to the building official for review and approval with the application for permit.

When compatible with the building use, and the time phasing for both use and the retrofit program, temporary shoring or other structural support is permitted to be considered. Temporary bracing, shoring and prevention of falling hazards are permitted to be used to qualify for Exception 1 in Section 319.12 that allows inadequate capability in some existing components, as long as the required performance levels given in Section 317 can be provided by the permanent structure. The consideration for such temporary actions shall be noted in the design documents.

Where modifications of existing structural components and additions of new structural components are initiated for the purpose of improving the lateral-force resisting strength or stiffness of an existing structure and they are not required by other sections of this code, then they are permitted to be designed to meet an approved seismic performance criteria provided that an engineering analysis is submitted that follows:

The retrofit design shall employ the Linear Static or Linear Dynamic Procedures of ASCE 41, Section 7.4.1 or 7.4.2, and comply with the applicable general requirements of ASCE 41, Chapters 6 and 7. The earthquake hazard level and performance level given specified in Section 317.5 for the building's risk category shall be used. Structures shall be designed for seismic forces coming from any horizontal direction.

The existing or retrofitted structure shall be demonstrated to have the capability to sustain the deformation response due to the specified earthquake ground motions and meet the seismic performance requirements of Section 317. The registered design professional shall provide an evaluation of the response of the existing structure in its modified configuration and condition to the ground motions specified. If the building's seismic performance is evaluated as satisfactory and the peer reviewer(s,) and the enforcement agency concurs, then no further structural modifications of the lateral load-resisting system are required.

The approach, models, analysis procedures, assumptions on material and system behavior and conclusions shall be peer reviewed in accordance with the requirements of Section 322 and accepted by the peer reviewer(s).

Independent peer review is an objective, technical review by knowledgeable reviewer(s) experienced in the structural design, analysis and performance issues involved. The reviewer(s) shall examine the available information on the condition of the building, the basic engineering concepts employed and the recommendations for action.

The independent reviewer(s) shall be selected prior to initiation of substantial portions of the design and/or analysis work that is to be reviewed, and review shall start as soon as practical after Method B is adopted and sufficient information defining the project is available.

The reviewer(s) shall be independent from the design and construction team.

Review activities shall include, where appropriate, available construction documents, design criteria and representative observations of the condition of the structure, all inspection and testing reports, including methods of sampling, analytical models and analyses prepared by the registered design professional and consultants, and the retrofit or repair design. Review shall include consideration of the proposed design approach, methods, materials, details and constructability.

The reviewer(s) shall prepare a written report to the owner and building official that covers all aspects of the review performed, including conclusions reached by the reviewer(s). Reports shall be issued after the schematic phase, during design development, and at the completion of construction documents but prior to submittal of the project plans to the enforcement agency for plan review. When acceptable to the building official, the requirement for a report during a specific phase of the project development may be waived.

The registered design professional shall review the report from the reviewer(s) and shall develop corrective actions and responses as appropriate. Changes observed during construction that affect the seismic-resisting system shall be reported to the reviewer in writing for review and recommendations. All reports, responses and resolutions prepared pursuant to this section shall be submitted to the responsible enforcement agency and the owner along with other plans, specifications and calculations required. If the reviewer resigns or is terminated prior to completion of the project, then the reviewer shall submit copies of all reports, notes and correspondence to the responsible building official, the owner and the registered design professional within 10 working days of such termination.

When the conclusions and recommendations of the peer reviewer conflict with the registered design professional's proposed design, the enforcement agency shall make the final determination of the requirement for the design.

During the schematic phase of the project, the owner or the registered design professional in charge of the design shall prepare and sign an Evaluation and Design Criteria Report in accordance with Sections 4-306 and 4-307(a) of the California Administrative Code. The report shall be submitted to the DSA for review and approval prior to proceeding with design development of the rehabilitation.

Where only a portion(s) of a structure is to be rehabilitated, the public school or community college portion of the structure shall: