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Building Area Calculation for Double Height Space?

Adrienne

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Joined
Oct 17, 2016
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19
Location
California
Are double height spaces calculated twice for building area? I.E. if you have a two story unit with a double height living room, would the area of the living room be calculated twice or only where the actual floor is? I know that courts are exempt but stair and elevator shafts need to be calculated on each floor.
 
HEIGHT, BUILDING. The vertical distance from grade plane to the average height of the highest roof surface
 
Are double height spaces calculated twice for building area? I.E. if you have a two story unit with a double height living room, would the area of the living room be calculated twice or only where the actual floor is? I know that courts are exempt but stair and elevator shafts need to be calculated on each floor.

If it has a roof over it, its included in the building or floor area.....
 
Thank you all for your responses, but I think there may be some confusion about my question. I am trying to get clarification on calculating building area, not building height. Specifically, if a room is two stories tall in say a three story building (for instance a tall lobby space), would you count that floor area twice? I.E. at each floor of the building that the "space" occurs, or only once at the level where the floor itself is?
 
Oh



AREA, BUILDING. The area included within surrounding exterior walls (or exterior walls and fire walls) exclusive of vent shafts and courts. Areas of the building not provided with surrounding walls shall be included in the building area if such areas are included within the horizontal projection of the roof or floor above.
 
Floor area is what you are calculating. In that case, areas such as atriums are not counted twice or more (at each floor level).

FLOOR AREA, GROSS. The floor area within the inside perimeter of the exterior walls of the building under consideration, exclusive of vent shafts and courts, without deduction for corridors, stairways, ramps, closets, the thickness of interior walls, columns or other features. The floor area of a building, or portion thereof, not provided with surrounding exterior walls shall be the usable area under the horizontal projection of the roof or floor above. The gross floor area shall not include shafts with no openings or interior courts.

FLOOR AREA, NET. The actual occupied area not including unoccupied accessory areas such as corridors, stairways, ramps, toilet rooms, mechanical rooms and closets.
 
The only time I know of that it would be counted twice is if it was a building constructed by a state agency in Virginia. This was done to discourage atriums.
 
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