Multifamily: 20 Things to Plan for EARLY!
It's almost never too early to think about this stuff...
Believe it or not, it’s almost never too early to think about the things below, as they can really mess with a project!
If you punt on these things, and go through a zoning process with a building that promises a certain massing, height, car access, trash access, utility locations, etc, you may find yourself locked into some very expensive compromises.
For example, let’s say you go through the zoning approval process with a building of “x” height. Then, you start the design process in earnest, and discover that you need 18” more in ceiling height to make the structural spans you need in the parking garage. Your choices now are:
Go back through the zoning process asking for a taller building
Use thinner structural members [which means more expensive materials and/or more members]
Dig down further into the ground to get your height [which may not be feasible depending on your soils, environmental report, the length of room you have for a ramp, etc and is certainly not cheap]
Sacrifice height in upper stories, going for less than 8’ height in the units, or cutting height out of the commercial units [which may not be allowed in your jurisdiction because of building code or zoning anyway]
You see the point here. All of these possible fixes are expensive and/or time consuming, and could have been easily prevented with just a bit of planning up front.
Now, before everyone gets worried that you have to plan out the whole building in all its detail early in the project…no you don’t. The key is recognizing which items in the list below [or beyond this list, as it’s certainly not exhaustive] matter most for your particular project and site. You want a team who recognizes and prioritizes those needs, so you don’t waste time on unneccesary stuff while missing the important stuff.
Ok, here’s the list. There are more things that could be added, depending on your jurisdiction, project, location, etc!
1. Electrical room/meter bank
2. Sprinkler room
3. Elevator machine room
4. Stair rise/run [which gives you overall stair size]
5. Trash room and trash strategy [bins, dumpster, compactor, trash chute, recycling, removal, trash rooms on each floor, trash drips on flooring..]
6. Bike room and storage
7. Mail/package room
8. Maintenance and management room
9. Rental office
10. Entry lobby/vestibule
11. ADA access/hallway size
12. Actual elevator size
13. Door swings [in or out, in direction of egress path - dependent on occupancy load of each story
14. Rough unit layouts, to ensure there's no weirdo layouts or layouts that don't work with number of certain layouts needed from a proforma standpoint
15. Parking layout [structure, ceiling height, true turning radii, ramp slope/length, etc]
16. Entrance and entry sequence
17. Water/gas/electrical connections from street, electrical transformer location/vault
18. Whether water heating/HVAC will be inside each unit, or whether/how it's centrally located, and what type of water heating/HVAC will be used
19. Floor to floor height
20. Structural system
Of course there are more - this is just a quick list. Consider making yourself your own list, based on what you know the jurisdiction will require, and on your own experiences - stuff you missed in the past, or stuff you know has a big impact on a building, or stuff you really care about.
What might that list include? Comment below!
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