The Accessibility Thicket

Event: From Plans to Practice: Best Practices in Accessible Design and Construction in Affordable Housing in New York City
Location: Center for Architecture, 4.25.12
Speaker: Peter Stratton, Senior Vice President, Director of Accessibility Compliance and Consulting, Steven Winter Associates
Moderator: Mark Ginsberg, FAIA, LEED AP, Partner, Curtis + Ginsberg Architects
Organizers: AIANY Committees: Building Codes; Design for Aging; Housing; Planning & Urban Design

Peter Stratton’s goal was to give an overview of accessibility issues for affordable housing in New York City, with an emphasis on federal standards. Litigation related to accessibility and compliance with the Fair Housing Act started in the early 2000s, and accessibility reviews continue to expand. For example, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is currently inspecting the top 50 restaurants as listed in Zagat’s for violations. The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) is now working to make sure buildings it funds comply, including an architect’s certification, on which the AIA New York Chapter has worked with HPD to create a reasonable document.

There are four federal standards enforced by different federal agencies for different reasons, and which, consequently, do not fully relate to one another. Below are short descriptions of each standard and why they matter to architects.

• Architectural Barriers Act (ABA)
This first federal law related to accessibility goes back to 1968. It covers accessibility in facilities that are designed, constructed, altered or leased by or on the behalf of the federal government, and requires compliance with the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS) which is produced by the United States Access Board; the current version is from 1984.

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
It covers all projects, both new construction and rehabilitations, which receive federal funding. The standard for Section 504 is UFAS; it applies to developments of five or more units, and requires a percentage of units to be accessible. Substantial alterations – those comprising 75% of the replacement value of the building – require compliance with new construction rules. Other alterations may require compliance.

• American with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Title II covers structures built by state and local governments. Title III covers places of public accommodation and commercial facilities. In multifamily housing, ADA applies to spaces designed to accommodate the general public (i.e. a leasing office). In spaces designed only for residents and their guests, ADA does not apply.

• Fair Housing Act
Related to the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which was expanded in 1988 to include people with disabilities and children. Buildings built before 1991 are not required to comply, even if they undergo conversion. There are more than 10 fair housing safe harbors (regulations that the federal government has approved as meeting the Fair Housing Act). NYC’s code, however, is not one. The Act covers all housing with four or more units in a single building, all ground floor units, and all units in elevator buildings.

Finally, one has to comply with local codes, which may have requirements that exceed Federal Standards (i.e. Connecticut has visibility legislation).

So what does this mean for architects designing affordable housing? In sum, all projects need to comply with the local codes. Public spaces and projects built by city and state governments must comply with the ADA; projects built or used by the federal government must comply with ABA; all “ground up” housing built after 1992 must comply with the Fair Housing Act; and if a project receives federal funds (not including tax credits) it must comply with UFAS.

Mark Ginsberg, FAIA, LEED AP, is a partner at Curtis + Ginsberg Architects.