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Board grants height variances at Devine Street to meet life‑safety code for office renovation
Summary
The board approved variances allowing an exterior stair and partial rooftop access at 2221 Devine Street, accepting the applicant's life‑safety rationale that modern egress requirements and the building's elevation profile require the stair/elevator addition.
The Columbia Board of Zoning Appeals approved variances for renovations at 2221 Devine Street that will add an exterior stair and elevator tower to meet current life‑safety codes.
Tanner Bachman, representing the applicant, and Mark Warren, executive vice president of architecture for the project firm, told the board the existing interior "scissor stair" was permitted under an earlier code and is noncompliant under today’s standards. "We're required to provide two means of egress at every floor of the existing building," Warren said, adding that code requires 50% of egress to discharge directly to the exterior and that stairs for buildings taller than four stories must terminate at the roof.
Staff explained the property sits near protected residential lots and that neighborhood compatibility standards limit building height within 100–150 feet of protected lots, but the applicant said the stair location was chosen to minimize visibility from the street and to meet separation and structural constraints. The applicant noted the stair would be sited on the north side, "not visible from Divine Street," and that rooftop programming (including a potential partial seventh‑floor restaurant) remained contingent on tenant interest and leases.
Board members discussed topography and existing building elevations as factors supporting a finding of extraordinary conditions for relief. A motion to approve the variances "subject to staff comments" passed. Staff will record the approval and conditions in the case file.
