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Austin debates single-stair, multi-story apartment rules and 'borrowed light' student bedrooms
Summary
City staff and dozens of speakers discussed proposed 2024 building-code updates that would allow ‘‘single-stair'' apartment buildings up to several stories and considered whether ‘‘borrowed light" or windowless bedrooms should be allowed in multi-bedroom units. Council held a public hearing and will take a second hearing on April 10.
Austin officials and dozens of residents and housing advocates spent Thursday—s meeting debating a proposed local amendment to the 2024 International Building Code that would legalize so-called single-stair apartment buildings and whether the code should continue to allow bedrooms without direct exterior windows to borrow light from adjacent spaces.
Why it matters: Allowing single-stair construction on smaller lots is intended to increase housing supply and create more affordable, human-scaled apartment buildings. Opponents and some public commenters urged caution, citing fire-safety concerns and the need to ensure new buildings provide adequate natural light and healthy sleeping spaces.
What the council heard: The council—s first public hearing on the International Building Code drew large…
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