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Sidell Pakravan Architects\u2019 light-filled proposal for a six-story single-stair building in San Francisco won second place in the National Single Stair Architectural Design Competition.<\/p>\n
Rendering by Sidell Pakravan Architects<\/p>\n
It used to be quite common to build lovely mid-rise, medium-sized apartment buildings throughout San Francisco.<\/p>\n
The San Francisco\u00a0Planning Department\u2019s 2024 Housing Inventory Report<\/a> showed that of the 1,735 homes added that year, only 163 were in medium-sized buildings (5 to 19 units).<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n That\u2019s a shame for a variety of reasons.<\/p>\n I recently wrote about what San Francisco could learn from Parisian-style density<\/a> in the form of six-story buildings. Paris\u2019 Haussmann buildings make uniformity elegant. Great attention is paid to materials and design details and bringing in an abundance of light and air. At ground level, the buildings activate the street with cafes, restaurants and shops. It\u2019s what many refer to as gentle density, bridging the gap between high-rises and single-family homes.<\/p>\n San Francisco Chronicle Logo<\/p>\n Make us a Preferred Source to get more of our news when you search.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n So, why aren\u2019t we building more of those here?<\/p>\n Typically, modern apartment buildings require two exit stairwells, connected by a hallway. These rules were implemented for fire safety. But they make it particularly difficult to fit multifamily developments on San Francisco\u2019s small neighborhood lots. That second set of stairs takes up way more space and costs way more money than you might think and dictates to a large degree what a building ends up looking like \u2014 typically not for the better. Long double-loaded corridors result in smaller units with fewer windows and less light. More money and attention need to be paid to the exits and the hallways. The look of the facade and the building interior suffers.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Eliminating the two-stairwell requirement allows for design flexibility\u00a0\u2014 from the ability to fit a greater diversity of unit types (a four-bedroom unit on one floor, for example, with two studios and two one bedrooms on another) to including more windows and open space, which brings in more natural light and ventilation. Losing a staircase also helps reduce construction costs by an estimated 6% to 13%<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite advances in fire mitigation technology, the U.S. is among only a handful of nations<\/a> where cities still widely mandate two stairwells in new multifamily construction. California requires two stairway exit routes in all multiunit apartments above three stories.<\/p>\n Architects, planners and housing advocates have become increasingly interested in legalizing so-called \u201csingle stair\u201d developments.<\/p>\n The recent National Single Stair Architectural Design Competition showed us what could be possible if this reform were to be implemented in San Francisco.<\/p>\n The competition\u2019s design criteria were straightforward. Buildings could have a maximum height of only 75 feet and a maximum of six stories and no more than four units per floor. No parking was required.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Entries were judged in three regions across the country. The Bay Area winners were particularly compelling.<\/p>\n David Baker Architects\u2019 Steplight project won first place in the National Single Stair Architectural Design Competition.<\/p>\n Rendering by David Baker Architects<\/p>\n In first place was Steplight<\/a> by David Baker Architects<\/a>, a firm that has done the lion\u2019s share of well-designed affordable housing in the Bay Area. Inspired by San Francisco\u2019s pre-war apartments, the light-filled six-story building shows what kind of architecture single-stair rules can unlock on a narrow lot in a dense urban neighborhood.<\/p>\n Steplight has 10 units, but it feels of a piece with its low-slung neighbors. Its tiered massing, cascading open space and large\u00a0light wells provide spaciousness and outdoor connection. The openness keeps the building from taking light from its neighbors \u2014 perhaps the most common salvo thrown in opposition to multistory apartments. There\u2019s a mix of units from studios to four-bedrooms on five levels with a modest ground-floor cafe and accompanying parklet to activate the street.\u00a0<\/p>\n The project, its architects explain in their statement, \u201crealizes the potential of San Francisco\u2019s recent upzoning throughout its western and northern neighborhoods.\u201d They credit \u200b\u200bsingle stair reform as \u201can opportunity to leverage modern building technology while reinvesting in the tried and true qualities of old, midrise, dense apartment living.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Siddell Pakrvan\u2019s design allows for lots of open space and natural light, something allowable only by eliminating the second stair.<\/p>\n Rendering by Sidell Pakravan Architects<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Siddell Pakravan Architects<\/a>\u2019 second-place entry, called appropriately enough, Let Me Live in Your City<\/a>, uses elemental architectural strategies\u00a0\u2014 light, air and street connection\u00a0\u2014 to create an open and architecturally dynamic nine-unit, six-story building on a narrow lot on a mixed-use street near the city\u2019s Mission District. There are one-bedroom and three-bedroom units that appeal to different family sizes. Every unit has access to natural light, ventilation and a direct relationship with the street and with the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSingle-stair,\u201d architect Rudabeh Pakravan explained to me, \u201cfosters a strong sense of community. Rather than sharing a hallway with 60 other units, you\u2019re sharing a stair with just a few neighbors you can see and interact with more personally.\u201d<\/p>\n Pakravan and Siddell see single stair as a timely and radical way to completely rethink housing in the U.S.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re optimistic, but there\u2019s not the platform in the real world to do it yet,\u201d Pakravan said.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n That could change. And soon.<\/p>\n Assembly Bill 2252<\/a> from Assembly Member Alex Lee, D-San Jose, co-authored by Assembly Member Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, and state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, could soon pave the way for single-stair reform in California. On Wednesday, the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee is holding a hearing on the bill, which directs the Department of Housing and Community Development to propose building standards<\/a> for single-stairway multiunit residential apartments of up to six stories.<\/p>\n The Cal Fire Office of the State Fire Marshall is not a fan of single-stair reform, citing potential fire danger. But its report<\/a>, issued earlier this year, acknowledged the spiraling costs associated with current regulations.\u00a0<\/p>\n There\u2019s a separate column to be written about the many ways fire safety impacts architectural design. But for our purposes here, I will simply opine that global best practices show\u00a0a second stair requirement for six-story buildings persists out of an abundance of caution rather than necessity.<\/p>\n What excites so many architects and advocates\u00a0\u2014 and me\u00a0\u2014 is that single-stair enables more efficient and attractive buildings on small lots. As Bryan Alcorn of David Baker Architects told me, \u201cIt opens up a path where we could build at a modest scale, adding housing and density more incrementally.\u201d<\/p>\n Guest opinions in Open Forum and Insight are produced by writers with expertise, personal experience or original insights on a subject of interest to our readers. Their views do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Chronicle editorial board, which is committed to providing a diversity of ideas to our readership.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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