Occupant load

Buyers of a restaurant, bar or fitness studio may meet this term in a fire inspection file or on a sign posted in the space. It is the number of people a space is designed to hold, so in Ontario’s assembly occupancies, such as a dining room, it caps how many people may be in the room. Compare it with the seller’s layout and with your own plans for the space. The restaurant buyer checklist lists other premises items to confirm.

What Ontario’s codes say

Ontario’s Building Code (O. Reg. 332/12) defines occupant load as the number of persons for which a building or part of a building is designed. Under Article 3.1.17.1 it is based on the number of seats in an assembly occupancy having fixed seats, a set number of persons per sleeping room or sleeping area in a dwelling unit or suite, or the number of persons for which the area is designed or determined from Table 3.1.17.1. If a floor area was designed for an occupant load other than the table figure, a permanent sign showing it must be posted in a conspicuous location. The Fire Code (O. Reg. 213/07) sets the occupant load of an assembly room as the lower of its own calculation and the figure for which means of egress are provided under the Building Code, and Sentence 2.7.1.4.(7) caps the result by floor space per person.

What to ask

• What occupant load applies to each room, and where it is posted.
• Whether the seats, tables or dance floor now in the space match the layout that load was based on.
• Whether a fire inspector has raised the figure; see fire inspection.

This entry covers Ontario only; check the rules where the business is.