Colorado’s 2025 Single-Stair Bill Spurs Code Reform Movement

At the AIA Colorado Practice + Design Conference, the session “Colorado’s 2025 Single-Stair Bill Spurs Code Reform Movement” brought together Jesse Adkins, AIA, Sean Jursnick, AIA, Jeff Evans, and Keaton Hodges to discuss the transformative potential of single-stair housing in addressing Colorado’s housing shortages.

SAR+ Architects’ design competition showcased innovative housing designs, inspiring Governor Polis to sign the Colorado Smart Stair Bill. Sean, as co-chair of the AIA Housing Committee, emphasized curiosity and collaboration in advocating for housing diversity and affordability.

The speakers critiqued the International Code Council’s enforcement-driven process, with Stephen Smith’s advocacy and a Stockholm syndrome analogy highlighting systemic limitations. Denver’s adoption of mass timber provisions and pressurized stairwells were noted as advancements in safety, while Denver Fire raised concerns about smoke inhalation over fire risks. Case studies, including a Cap Hill housing study and Globeville affordable housing project, illustrated single-stair housing’s potential to revitalize urban spaces. Discussions also addressed tenant safety, social equity, and the role of insurance companies in code reform.

QR code survey results and post-occupancy evaluations underscored the importance of data-driven innovation, urging architects to engage actively in shaping building codes for a safer, more inclusive future.

Federal Projects Demonstrate Alternative Regulatory Approaches

Federal government projects, which serve as their own authority having jurisdiction, demonstrate how removing traditional building department oversight allows for more innovative, performance-based design solutions through direct engagement with qualified professionals.

The great thing about working with federal government in Federal Projects or DoD or Department of Energy is they are their own AHJ Supremacy is the term we use in the code community. But it’s amazing what you can do when you remove the building department out of the process.

Young Professionals Bring Fresh Perspectives to Code Reform

Younger architects who question established norms rather than accepting them as immutable can drive innovation and change, bringing valuable user perspectives as actual residents of the housing types being discussed.

When I came into this field, I didn’t even think to question, are these codes right? Is this what, what they should be? It wasn’t a question that was going through my head when I came into the industry. It was, okay, these are the codes. This is what I have to design under.

Curiosity Drives Unexpected Professional Opportunities

Starting with simple curiosity about housing differences led to significant professional growth, policy engagement, and career development opportunities that weren’t initially anticipated, demonstrating how questioning established norms can open new paths.

If you had told me a year or two ago that I’d be up here talking about code reform, I would have laughed because I just didn’t think that was going to be the direction that things would go. But I slowly learned kind of the ins and outs of how the industry worked.

Everyone Deserves a Seat at the Code Development Table

The current code development process should be more inclusive, allowing insurance companies, architects, and other stakeholders with relevant expertise to have meaningful input rather than limiting decision-making to enforcement officials alone.

I think everybody should have a seat at that table. And that’s the great realization that I’ve come to, to throughout this whole curiosity of this process is everybody deserves a seat and you have one too.

Legislative Success Requires Visual Advocacy Tools

The design competition showcasing potential single-stair housing projects served as a powerful advocacy tool for policymakers, leading to Colorado’s SmartStair bill and demonstrating how architects can influence policy through compelling visual presentations of possibilities.

We basically said, what if we turn this into a design competition for architects? And that design competition was an advocacy and education tool for policymakers that are interested in this change. And we could just give them a book of beautiful new housing options that just leap off the page that they want to bring to their communities.

Architects Are Excluded from Building Code Voting Rights

Despite being required to comply with building codes, architects cannot vote on code changes – only government enforcement officials (building inspectors, fire officials) have voting rights in the ICC code development process, creating a disconnect between expertise and decision-making authority.

The official vote as to whether or not a proposed code change gets adopted into the code is voted on by a very select group of people. Those people are ICC jurisdictional members. They’re the fire code officials, the building officials and the building inspectors. I cannot vote on the code if I am not an enforcement official.

Building Codes Aren’t Written in Stone

Building codes evolve continuously and architects have successfully influenced major changes before, such as the introduction of mass timber construction, proving that organized professional advocacy can achieve significant regulatory reforms.

It’s important to acknowledge that the building code has evolved over time. It’s taken into account technology and responded to like improvements in life safety in various ways. And the more that we can bring a conversation on performance or data and evidence into the conversation on the evolution of the code, then the better outcomes that we’ll have in the end.

Single-Stair Housing Enables Diverse, Compact Development

Single-stair residential buildings, common globally but restricted in the US, allow for more diverse housing types on smaller lots with better unit layouts, natural light, and ventilation compared to the standard double-loaded corridor approach required by current US building codes.

Units clustered around a single exit that’s quick to exit and can fit on a small footprint. That’s really key. The standard product being built in the US is wide, fits on large lots. The single stair product on the right fits on a lot more lots, could fit on single family home lots previously, can infill small lots across cities.

Collaboration with Fire Departments Enables Code Reform

Successful code reform requires early collaboration with fire departments and building officials to address their specific concerns and ensure they have the capacity and confidence to enforce new provisions safely.

Denver’s going to allow type 3 construction and also non -combustible construction types. A few other additional requirements they felt were appropriate, things like limiting outlets and stairwells, things like that, but nothing really changing the fundamentals of the state bill.

Enforcement vs Innovation Creates Code Development Problems

The current code development system prioritizes enforcement over innovation, with enforcement officials making decisions about scientific and technical matters they may not be trained to evaluate, unlike other regulated industries where experts drive innovation.

We have to ask permission of the firefighter. You have to ask permission from a firefighter or a building inspector before your design can be approved. Is that the way it should be? It’s not the way it is in almost any other industry that I can think of where we need expertise to help innovate and create and push.