Frequently Asked Questions

Requirement 1


Q. When would it be considered impractical to provide an accessible entrance served by an accessible route due to terrain?

A. The Accessibility Guidelines provide an impracticality standard only for non-elevator buildings. Buildings with elevators must be designed to provide at least one accessible entrance on an accessible route. A covered multifamily dwelling without an elevator shall be designed and constructed to have an entrance on an accessible route unless the characteristics of the site are impractical, as determined by one of two alternative tests, described below as Test 1 and Test 2. The tests may be applied as follows:

•A site with a single building having a common entrance for all units may be analyzed only as described under Test 1. •All other sites, including a site with a single building having multiple entrances serving either individual dwelling units or clusters of dwelling units, may be analyzed using the methodology in either Test 1 or Test 2.

EXCEPTION: For sites for which either test is applicable, regardless of which test is selected, at least 20% of the total ground floor units, on any site, must comply with the Guidelines.

Test 1 - Individual Building Test - It is impractical to provide an accessible entrance served by an accessible route when the terrain of the site is such that:

•(A) the slopes of the undisturbed site measured between the planned entrance and all vehicular or pedestrian arrival points within 50 feet of the planned entrance exceed 10 percent; and •(B) the slopes of the planned finished grade measured between the entrance and all vehicular or pedestrian arrival points within 50 feet of the planned entrance exceed 10 percent.

Note: If there are no vehicular or pedestrian arrival points within 50 feet of the planned entrance, the slope for the purposes of Test 1 will be measured to the closest vehicular or pedestrian arrival point.

Test 2 - Site Analysis Test - For a site having multiple buildings, or a site with a single building with multiple entrances serving either individual dwelling units or clusters of dwelling units, impracticality can be established by the following steps:

•(A) The percentage of the total buildable area of the undisturbed site with a natural grade less than 10% slope shall be calculated. The analysis of the existing slope (before grading) shall be done on a topographic survey with two foot (2') contour intervals with slope determination made between each successive interval. The accuracy of the slope analysis shall be certified by a professional licensed engineer, landscape architect, architect or surveyor. •(B) To determine the practicality of providing accessibility to planned multifamily dwellings based on the topography of the existing natural terrain, the minimum percentage of ground floor units to be made accessible should equal the percentage of the total buildable area (not including floodplains, wetlands, or other restricted use areas) of the undisturbed site that has an existing natural grade of less than 10% slope. (Note: Of course the previously mentioned exception still applies, i.e., at least 20% of the total ground floor units, on any site, must comply with the Guidelines. •(C) In addition to the percentage established in paragraph (B), all ground floor units in a building, or ground floor units served by a particular entrance, shall be made accessible if the entrance to the units is on an accessible route, defined as a walkway with a slope between the planned entrance and a pedestrian or vehicular arrival point that is no greater than 8.33%.


Q. When would it be considered impractical to provide an accessible entrance served by an accessible route due to unusual characteristics of the site?

A. Unusual characteristics include sites located in a Federally-designated floodplain or coastal high-hazard area and sites subject to other similar requirements of law or code that the lowest floor or the lowest structural member of the lowest floor must be raised to a specified level at or above the base flood elevation. An accessible route to a building entrance is impractical due to unusual characteristics of the site when:

(1) the unusual site characteristics result in a difference in finished grade elevation exceeding 30 inches and 10 percent measured between an entrance and all vehicular or pedestrian arrival points within 50 feet of the planned entrance; or

(2) if there are no vehicular or pedestrian arrival points within 5 feet of the planned entrance, the unusual characteristics result in a difference in finished grade elevation exceeding 30 inches and 10 percent measured between an entrance and the closest vehicular or pedestrian arrival point.


Q. Who bears the burden of establishing impracticality?

A. The burden of establishing impracticality because of terrain or usual site characteristics is on the person or persons claiming site impracticality. This means that, when a complaint is filed, the burden is first upon the person(s) claiming site impracticality to demonstrate how he/she determined that the project site met the impracticality criteria contained in the Guidelines. Once the basis for the impracticality determination is established, the burden shifts to the complainant to demonstrate that the builder's methodology or calculations were unsound or flawed.


Q. Under Test 1, how is the slope of the site calculated?

A. To determine the slope of a site, the distance and elevation between two points (e.g. an entrance and a pedestrian or vehicular arrival point) are determined. The difference in elevation is divided by the distance and that fraction is multiplied by 100 to obtain a percentage slope figure. For example, if a principal entrance is ten feet from a pedestrian arrival point and the principal entrance is raised one foot higher than the pedestrian arrival point, then the slope is l/lOxlO0=10%.


Q. A developer plans to construct a 100-unit apartment building with one elevator. Must all 100 units be accessible?

A. Yes. A 100-unit apartment would be a covered multifamily dwelling under the Fair Housing Act. Under the Accessibility Guidelines an elevator building must provide at least one accessible entrance on an accessible route, regardless of terrain or unusual characteristics of the site. Therefore, all 100 units must be designed and constructed so that they comply with the accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Act.


Q. A developer plans to construct 30 apartments in a three story building that will not have an elevator. The building will have one accessible entrance on the first floor. Must all of the apartments be accessible?

A. No. Since the building does not have an elevator, only the "ground floor" units are subject to the Act. The ground floor is the first floor because that is the floor that has an accessible entrance. Unless impracticality is established, as discussed above, all of the dwelling units on the first floor must meet the Act's requirements; and there must be at least one of each type of public or common use area available for residents with disabilities in the building. Even where impracticality has been established, a minimum of 20% of the total ground floor units in nonelevator buildings, on any site, must comply with the Guidelines, unless it is a site with a single building having a common entrance for all units.


Q. Can a building have more than one "ground floor?"

A. Yes. Each floor of a covered multiple family dwelling that has an accessible route leading to an accessible entrance is considered a "ground floor.


Q. If a covered multifamily dwelling has more than one common entrance, must all such entrances be on an accessible route ?

A. No. Only one common entrance is required to be accessible to any one ground floor of a building, except in cases where an individual dwelling unit has a separate exterior entrance, or where the building contains clusters of dwelling units, with each cluster sharing a different exterior entrance. In those cases, more than one entrance may be required to be accessible, as determined by analysis of the site. In every case, the accessible entrance should be on an accessible route to the covered dwelling unit(s) it serves.


Q. A developer is planning to construct a project that consists of several buildings. Must each building contain an accessible building entrance on an accessible route?

A. Yes. Each building on a site shall have at least one building entrance on an accessible route unless prohibited by the terrain or unusual characteristics of the site. Further, if the building has one or more elevators, then the building must include an accessible entrance on an accessible route, regardless of terrain or unusual characteristics of the site.


Q. A developer is constructing 10 three-story nonelevator buildings on a site. Each building has one common entrance. The developer conducts a site analysis according to Test 2, and the results show that 60% of the ground floor units must meet the FHA's requirements. The builder plans to meet the 60% requirement by providing an accessible entrance for six of the 10 buildings. However, according to the finished plans, two of the four inaccessible buildings have a walkway leading from the sidewalk to the entrance which has a slope of 8%. Must these two buildings be accessible?

A. Yes. Under Test 2, after the minimum percentage of accessible units has been determined, a building must still provide accessibility in the ground floor units if the entrance to the building is on an "accessible route." Such an accessible route is defined as a walkway with a slope between the planned entrance and a pedestrian or vehicular arrival point that is no greater than 8.33%.


Q. A developer is planning to construct a single building on a very hilly site. The building will have a parking area connected to the ground floor dwelling units by an elevator. There is a second floor of dwelling units accessed only by stairs. The finished grade of the site will exceed 10 percent leading to the exterior front door and the service entrances. Is the building exempt because of site impracticality?

A. No. Regardless of site considerations, an accessible entrance on an accessible route is practical when there is an elevator connecting the parking area with dwelling units on a ground floor. Thus, the dwelling units on the ground floor, plus one of each type of public and common use area, would be subject to the Guidelines.


Q. If a builder includes an elevator from a parking garage to the ground floor only, and this elevator does not serve floors other than the ground floor, is the building an "elevator" building?

A. No. Inclusion of an elevator to provide a means of access from the garage to dwellings on the ground floor is not considered an elevator building for purposes of the Guidelines; hence only the ground floor units are covered.


Q. What is an arrival point to a building?

A. A pedestrian or vehicular arrival point includes public or resident parking areas; public transportation stops; passenger loading zones; and public streets or sidewalks.


Q. Under Test 1 (the individual building test) the analysis considers the distance from the arrival point to the entrance. How is this distance to be measured?

A. Under Test 1 the slope should be measured at ground level from the point of the planned entrance on a straight line to (i) each vehicular or pedestrian arrival point that is within 50 feet of the planned entrance, or (ii) if there are no vehicular or pedestrian arrival points within that specified area, the vehicular or pedestrian arrival point closest to the planned entrance. In the case of sidewalks, the closest point to the entrance will be where a public sidewalk entering the site intersects with the sidewalk to the entrance. In the case of resident parking areas, the closest point to the planned entrance will be measured from the entry point to the parking area that is located closest to the planned entrance.


Q. A developer is designing a single nonelevator building with one common entrance to be located in the center of a large piece of property with very hilly terrain. The land immediately around the planned building site is relatively flat; but the grade of the land between the building site and the two planned arrival points within 50 feet of the entrance-public sidewalk and parking lot-exceeds 10 percent. (The other arrival points are further away than 50 feet, and thus are not considered under Test 1.) Is the building exempt from having an accessible entrance on an accessible route?

A. A single building on a site with one common entrance serving all dwelling units may only be analyzed under Test 1. In this case, if the slopes of both the undisturbed site and the planned finished grade between the building entrance and all pedestrian or vehicular arrival points within 50 feet of the planned entrance exceed 10 percent, then the building is exempt.


Q. A builder has conducted a site analysis for a single non- elevator building on a site having one common entrance. The closest vehicular and pedestrian arrival point is the sidewalk beside a driveway that curves up a slope to a flat area in front of the building entrance. The slope between the entrance and the sidewalk where the sidewalk intersects the walk leading to the entrance is less than 10 percent. However, the slopes between the entrance and all other vehicular and pedestrian arrival points exceed 10 percent. Because of the slope the builder can not provide an accessible pedestrian route from the parking lot. Is the building exempt from coverage?

A. No, the building is not exempt, since an accessible entrance on an accessible route, i.e. from the walk directly in front of the entrance, is possible. However, the Guidelines provide that if the slope of the finished grade between covered multifamily dwellings and a public or common use facility (including parking) exceeds 8.33 %, or where physical barriers (natural or manmade) or legal restrictions, all of which are outside the control of the owner, prevent the installation of an accessible pedestrian route, an acceptable alternative is to provide access via a vehicular route, so long as necessary site provisions such as parking spaces and curb ramps are provided at the public or common use facility.


Return to Requirement 1

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