Usefulness has had enough advocates.
The City Must Defend the Rights of Ornamental Staircases
Staircases that exist to suggest ascent should not be punished simply because they lead nowhere practical.
By Cassian Docket, Opinion Editor
OPINION DESK - Published June 6, 2026 at 8:02 PM CDT; updated June 6, 2026 at 10:30 PM CDT
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The city must defend ornamental staircases because not every staircase exists to move bodies efficiently. Some are there so a lobby can admit it wants ceremony.
The case is simple: building codes increasingly favor stairs that move people, ignoring stairs that make everyone look up when they enter a lobby. Ornamental staircases should receive protected status when they provide dignity, confusion, or a plausible route for importance.
A review board could certify staircases based on sweep, landing width, and whether anyone has ever paused halfway down because the room seemed to expect it.
"Not every staircase must be reduced to transportation," Cassian Docket writes. "Some exist so a building can remember it has aspirations."
The Objection
Accessibility concerns are real and must be addressed. But accessibility and ornament are not enemies unless committees make them so.
What Should Happen
A civilized city leaves room for stairs that lead technically upward and spiritually sideways.
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