People Are Asking How Do We Get up to the New Tower Entrance?

The current parking lot is about elevation 4.01' at the turn in from West Ocean and about elevation 4.78' at the concrete walk entrance to the existing 2-story building department wing. The floor elevation of the city hall admin area is 5.76'. All elevations are from the official city hall survey.

The commission proposed rasing the parking lot. CPH noted that traffic would need a ramp, making a "hill" in the parking lot in front of the tower. The ramp or hill would stop at a curb or step up to the tower entry porch. There would have to be a "curb cut" for wheelchair access.

The CPH parking lot drawing shows a 6-8% "slope" at the parking lot entrance. An 8% grade (slope) means that for every 100 feet of horizontal distance, there is an 8-foot rise or fall. The maximum allowable slope for an ADA-compliant ramp is 8.33%, which is equivalent to a 1:12 ratio. As a visual comparison, most KCB duplex "boatels" have 1:12 roofs.

The parking lot ramps CPH suggested appear to have some issues because the slopes on their drawing can't reach the needed elevation. Concerned in KCB clarified the drawings to show the most feasible ramp and grades.

The parking lot "hill" to surmount varies from 2'7" to 3'5" in height plus that step up to the porch. An 8% grade means a 41-foot ramp for that height. The parking lot is not wide enough to ramp up to a "flat" landing near the building--the ramp will have to go from near the edge of the parking spaces to the curb of the porch.

That 8% grade is steep but within the law although the 8% ramp will require more than the entire 26' distance from the property line to the porch to climb the entire height.

More. A standard tractor-trailer is not designed to handle a lateral 8% grade. Tractor-trailers are designed for longitudinal grades, and a lateral grade of 8% would likely cause the trailer to slide or tip over due to the angle.

Since that porch is also within 15' of the "ADA entrance" to the admin offices, that entrance is then too close to the "hill" for an allowable direct slope back down. Further, access to the ADA entrance from the ADA parking spaces is again blocked by the "hill." Visitors will have to climb the hill and go back down (or go around the hill) to get from the ADA parking spaces to the ADA entrance.

The landscape to the south and east of the building will require grading as well.