Chicago Construction News staff writer
Chicago City Council has approved Phase 3 of the Chicago Construction Codes Modernization Initiative, a sweeping package of code amendments designed to reduce regulatory barriers, support housing growth, and strengthen building safety standards across the city.
An ordinance advances Mayor Brandon Johnson’s “Cut the Tape Initiative” by streamlining development processes while maintaining strong public safety protections.
“This is what cutting the tape looks like,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said following the vote. “Modern, safe, and energy-efficient buildings are essential to the future we are building for every Chicago neighborhood, and Phase 3 delivers on that future by removing unnecessary barriers to responsible development and creating real opportunities for housing growth.”
The package updates five major areas of Chicago’s construction codes — mechanical, fuel gas, fire prevention, energy, and residential construction. According to city officials, the changes are expected to reduce construction costs, encourage adaptive reuse projects, support residential conversions, and modernize gas-piping and appliance-safety regulations that have remained largely unchanged for a quarter century.
Department of Buildings Commissioner Marlene Hopkins called the council’s approval a major milestone in the city’s ongoing effort to address housing affordability while preserving safety standards.
“Today is a milestone I am incredibly proud of,” Hopkins said. “For too long, discussions about housing affordability and development have been framed as a choice between flexibility and safety. This ordinance puts that false choice to rest, proving that affordability and safety can and should be complementary goals.”
Among the most significant changes is the authorization of interlocking interior exit stairway groups in qualifying residential buildings up to 15 stories tall. City officials said the design maintains two independent means of egress separated by fire-rated construction while allowing for more efficient floor plans, additional usable living space, improved access to natural light, and greater architectural flexibility.
The ordinance also expands residential code flexibilities from four-story to five-story fully sprinklered buildings. Officials said the change will help facilitate adaptive reuse projects, residential conversions, and development on constrained urban sites throughout Chicago, improving project feasibility and lowering per-unit development costs.
New flexibilities are accompanied by safeguards, including sprinkler systems, fire-rated construction requirements, and multiple means of egress. The measures are intended to ensure that efforts to encourage housing development do not compromise public safety.
Supporters of the initiative say the reforms will help address Chicago’s housing challenges by making it easier and more affordable to build and convert residential properties while encouraging investment in neighborhoods citywide.
Phase 3 of the Construction Codes Modernization Initiative was introduced to the City Council on April 15, 2026, and its passage marks the latest step in the city’s broader effort to modernize regulations and promote sustainable growth.
