Egress court?

[Sifu]

2021 IBC. E occupancy.
I have a 25,000sf² outdoor space, surrounded by a fence on 3 sides, and abuilding on one side with three doors exiting from three different spaces. Each of the spaces requires 2 exits, one is interior to the building, the other is exterior. The DP is showing the full OL of each room at the exterior door. Even if I take half of the full load, the combined OL is > 50. Does this egress court require two outswing, panic deviced gates in the fence? I see no requirements for exiting from the egress court in 1029, and only "access" to the public way by the definition. 1004.7 requires compliance with the entire chapter, does that get me there? At what point would a giant court or yard be big enough to mitigate the hazard? The fence has a single gate, with panic hardware.

Of course it isn't as easy as that. The egress court is "proposed to allow for the growing of crops and pens for showing of livestock", so there will be some OL for that....and the fence has a drive drive gate for vehicle entry, for loading/unloading for each of the three spaces, and maybe for goats and corn, but not parking.

 

[steveray]

"Safe Dispersal"

1028.5 Access to a Public Way​

Diagram
The exit discharge shall provide a direct and unobstructed access to a public way.
Exception: Where access to a public way cannot be provided, a safe dispersal area shall be provided where all of the following are met:

1. The area shall be of a size to accommodate not less than 5 square feet (0.46 m2) for each person.
2. The area shall be located on the same lot not less than 50 feet (15 240 mm) away from the building requiring egress.
3. The area shall be permanently maintained and identified as a safe dispersal area.
4. The area shall be provided with a safe and unobstructed path of travel from the building.

 

[classicT]

As Steveray posted...

You can either provide the MoE all the way to the public way (remember that the pat to the public way is part of the exist discharge), or provide the safe dispersal area in the exception to 1028.5.

I've run into this same issue with a school and they ultimately increased the area of the children's play area to avoid the panic hardware on the gates. Their focus was very heavy on keeping the kids from escaping the area. One option I did provide them was delayed egress hardware, but that was not inline with what they wanted, so they went with the safe dispersal area.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

As you have probably already discovered, the IBC doesn't have a definition for "Egress Court." The definition of "Court" is:

COURT. An open, uncovered space, unobstructed to the
sky, bounded on three or more sides by exterior building walls
or other enclosing devices.

The Commentary for this definition is:

Though not specifically identified in the definition, the
provisions in the code for courts (see Section 1205)
are only applicable to those areas created by the
arrangement of exterior walls and used to provide natural
light or ventilation (see Section 1205.1 and the
definition of “Yard.” See also the definition of “Egress
court” for courts that are utilized for exit discharge.).

As you have discovered, egress courts are address in IBC 1029. 1029 starts off by establishing that an egress court is part of the exit discharge, the third component of means of egress. As exit discharge, an egress court has to provide safe and unobstructed passage from the exit [door] to a street or public way.

1029.2 establish that the width and capacity shall be determined according to section 1005.1 but shall not be less than 44 inches. I don't think the egress court requires two personnel gates, so the one gate with panic hardware should be okay as long as it's wide enough to accommodate the occupant load.

Of more concern is the part about crops and livestock pens. There has to be a clear and unobstructed path from the exit doors to the gate, and from the gate to the street or public way. This should be a paved or all-weather walking surface, it can't be a field of soybeans or a muddy pig sty. It can't be open to the possibility of animals potentially obstructing egress traffic. And the clear path has to be at least ten feet wide or the exterior walls of the building will have to be fire-resistance rated.

I would ask for a plan showing the livestock enclosures, the cropland area, and showing a paved egress walk between the exit doors and the gate.

FWIW, we recently went through this exercise with a child day care center. They didn't want to rate the exterior walls, so they had to move a fence and a gate to comply with the code.

 

[Sifu]

Update/edit: Just had a conversation with the architect. It will not have goats and corn. It is strictly for deliveries. The goats (and pig) are in a different yard and I am asking for a clear path of egress. It does have two panic hardware gates.

Here is the rendering of that yard for your viewing pleasure.



So my thinking for the non-goat court is that the egress court as part of the exit discharge has to have "access" to the public way (by definition) but that access isn't defined. And that the dispersal area in lieu of the exit discharge to the public way is more than adequate, and that the code doesn't really specify "access" from the dispersal area to the public way. So their single gate with panic hardware from the egress court/exit discharge constitutes the required "access" and meets code.

 

[steveray]

1004.7 Outdoor Areas​

Yards, patios, occupied roofs, courts and similar outdoor areas accessible to and usable by the building occupants shall be provided with means of egress as required by this chapter.

 

[Sifu]

This chapter includes 1029 specific to egress courts, so do we follow that direction, which has no direction? Or 1028 for exit discharge, which doesn't provide provisions for leaving a safe dispersal area? Are both of these sections subject to 1006, and every other section of the chapter? My first thought was yes, but then I think that people who get 50' away, in a large open yard/court, are not subject to the same level of hazard as those inside the building. Then those in the egress court/safe dispersal area element within the exit discharge element are in a safe (safer?) space now, so the other requirements don't apply, and the "access" required by the definition for an egress court is a just access.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

This chapter includes 1029 specific to egress courts, so do we follow that direction, which has no direction? Or 1028 for exit discharge, which doesn't provide provisions for leaving a safe dispersal area? Are both of these sections subject to 1006, and every other section of the chapter? My first thought was yes, but then I think that people who get 50' away, in a large open yard/court, are not subject to the same level of hazard as those inside the building. Then those in the egress court/safe dispersal area element within the exit discharge element are in a safe (safer?) space now, so the other requirements don't apply, and the "access" required by the definition for an egress court is a just access.

There is no [required] egress from a safe dispersal area. A safe dispersal area is a place large enough to accommodate the required occupant load such that they will be safe from the heat of a fire and from the possibility of collapse (which means the distance between the building and the dispersal area varies as a function of building height) so the occupants will be safe even though they DON'T have access to a street or public way.

An egress court, on the other hand, is intended to be part of the required route to a street or public way.

 

[Sifu]

There is no [required] egress from a safe dispersal area. A safe dispersal area is a place large enough to accommodate the required occupant load such that they will be safe from the heat of a fire and from the possibility of collapse (which means the distance between the building and the dispersal area varies as a function of building height) so the occupants will be safe even though they DON'T have access to a street or public way.

An egress court, on the other hand, is intended to be part of the required route to a street or public way

Egress court is defined in the 2021: a court or yard which provides access to a public way for one or more exits.

So I have a door from the building, leading to a court. The court is provides access to the public way, therefore it is an egress court. If it is serving as access from the exit to the public way it is also part of the exit discharge. So the egress court, which is part of the exit discharge must lead to the public way OR a safe dispersal area as any exit discharge is permitted.

I still go back to the definition, which only requires access, a vague and open term. I guess it is irrelevant if the safe dispersal area is provided, but I am still curious.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

My bad. I looked in Chapter 2 under "Court," expecting that I might find "Court, Egress." Didn't think to look under "E."

So I have a door from the building, leading to a court. The court is provides access to the public way, therefore it is an egress court. If it is serving as access from the exit to the public way it is also part of the exit discharge. So the egress court, which is part of the exit discharge must lead to the public way OR a safe dispersal area as any exit discharge is permitted.

I still go back to the definition, which only requires access, a vague and open term. I guess it is irrelevant if the safe dispersal area is provided, but I am still curious.

Since the court has a gate that presumably allows egress travel to a street or public way, then I would agree that a safe dispersal area is irrelevant.

 

[steveray]

I would try not to call it an egress court or every fenced site now is....