Council approves single-stair midrise option with safety conditions; will track impacts

The City Council on April 10 approved a package of amendments to local building policy to allow single-stair apartment buildings under tightly constrained conditions and with follow-up reporting and study requirements.

Councilmember Chito Vela led the amendment to allow a single staircase in certain midrise multifamily buildings, limited to five stories, a maximum floor plate (initially 4,000 square feet, later modified in committee discussion), and no more than four units per floor. The amendment includes additional fire-safety requirements such as enhanced sprinkler systems and protected stairwells; the council also added direction for staff to study a larger floor plate option and for annual tracking of how many single-stair buildings are permitted and completed by district.

The motion drew extended discussion about emergency response capacity. Austin Fire Department leaders told council that citywide response times have fallen over years and the department is working to add apparatus and staffing to improve outcomes; the chief and staff emphasized NFPA 1710 benchmarks for first-unit arrival and explained that response time variation across the city is a concern counselors factored into their deliberations.

After several amendments to the amendment (including direction to study larger floor plates and to require annual reporting by the manager on single-stair permits and completions), council adopted the final package on a 10–1 vote; Councilmember Mark Duchin was shown voting no. Supporters said the change will expand options for family-size apartments and help produce more modest-scale multifamily housing; opponents and some public commenters urged caution given current response-time challenges and asked that the fire department's resource needs be addressed in parallel.