Appendix D. Definitions Checklist
This listing of specific cases and unusual situations is offered as a supplement to the
definitions and as an aid to the determination of the appropriate categorization.
Assignable Area
1. Assigned or assignable to an occupant.
2. Covered by a ceiling 6'6" or higher.
3. Enclosed on all sides by walls, partitions, doors, or functionally equivalent.
4. Measured from inside face of walls, partitions, or doors at or near floor level.
5. Expressed in square feet to the nearest whole number.
6. Inclusive of:
a. Columns or similar structural obstructions.
b. Built-in or free-standing furniture and equipment.
c. Alcoves and similarly recessed areas.
7. Special Examples:
a. Custodial or physical plant department offices, locker rooms, storage areas, shops, etc., which are generally usable by other activities, located in campus buildings, including separate central heating, cooling, or generating plant buildings. In central plant buildings all areas devoted to mechanical service and/or equipment, either for the building itself or for service to other buildings, are considered nonassignable.
b. Separate mechanical service or equipment areas within buildings supporting or serving specific laboratories or program activities only; generally classified as laboratory service.
c. Loading docks within the environmentally controlled envelope directly assignable to a specific department or program within a building. Loading docks serving multiple departments or programs are counted as circulation, not assignable.
d. Phantom corridors within departmental suites.
e. Lobbies which are internal corridors serving operational functions such as reception, waiting, card catalogues and/or display cases.
f. Library stack areas including aisles, stairwells, elevators, and book lifts within bookstacks.
g. Library reading rooms including aisles.
h. Toilets for:
1) Residence hall and apartment occupants.
2) Hospital inpatients and treatment or diagnostic-related services to clinic outpatients.
3) Executive suites.
4) Instructional and research activities.
i. Greenhouses and headhouses.
j. Lathhouses, screenhouses, polehouses. Area measurement for these structures should be based on "functionally equivalent" walls.
k. Vivaria.
l. Institutional vehicle storage and service (including aircraft hangars). Private vehicle parking areas, whether in parking or non-parking structures, are not counted as assignable area.
m. Theater greenrooms.
n. Social rooms and laundry rooms in residential facilities.
Custodial Area
- Janitor's closets, interior incinerator rooms, and other specialized custodial facilities which are usable only for building maintenance. Generally usable spaces assigned to custodial staff such as offices, locker rooms, storage areas, shops, etc. are reported as assignable areas.
Circulation Area
- Loading docks within the environmentally controlled envelope serving multiple departments or programs within the building.
- Within an assignable facility (e.g., library), allow a 6’0” strip for circulation in front of public-use facilities such as elevators and public toilets.