From the Los Angeles Times:
L.A. to allow spires on skyscrapers, easing 40-year-old flat-roof rule
BY EMILY ALPERT REYES
Recent Columns
September 29, 2014, 1:05 p.m.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti heralded a rule change Monday that will allow the construction of skyscrapers with spires or slanted roofs -- revising a longstanding regulation that forced builders to make flat-topped structures.
The decades-old rule was meant to ensure fire safety by requiring helicopter landing pads atop tall buildings. No other large city in the country has such a rule, according to city officials.
Now, with new technology and design techniques being used to keep Angelenos safe during fires, the prohibition had become outdated, “one more stupid rule in Los Angeles,” Garcetti said in announcing the change.
Architects had bemoaned the old rule, saying it stifled creativity and prevented L.A. builders from crafting a distinctive skyline. City Councilman Jose Huizar said that under the revised regulation, L.A. buildings would no longer be “stuck in the past.”
“After decades of drab, flat-roofed designs the skyscrapers of tomorrow will be bold, unique and imaginative,” said Huizar, whose council district includes much of downtown.
Under the new rule announced Monday, builders will be able to craft skyscrapers that don’t have a helicopter pad on the roof if they include other safety features, such as a fire service elevator for firefighters to swiftly reach a blaze or another set of exit stairs, automatic sprinklers and a video surveillance system.
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L.A. to allow spires on skyscrapers, easing 40-year-old flat-roof rule