Layout and Design

Maximizing use of your self-storage site

By Ken Carrell

Anyonecan build a building, but how well that building comes out is another story. Thedesign of the facility can make or break a self-storage project. With the costof land constantly rising, maximizing the amount of building you can get on yoursite may make all the difference. The facility design becomes extremelyimportant to this end.

Choose a Style

In designing the layout of the typical self-storage facility, there are twodistinct styles. The first style surrounds the property with a fence and has thestorage buildings in the middle of the site. While this layout is very common inolder facilities, it is still used on smaller sites where you don't have a lotof area to work with. One of the distinct advantages of this design is it allowsfor the maximum number of drive-up spaces for the buildings.

The second style, which is much more common, uses a perimeter building thatalso serves as the security fence for the facility. This is known as a"fortress" style. A definite advantage to this layout is it maximizesthe site coverage of the lot. This layout is generally used except wheresetbacks from the property line would create a significant loss of buildingarea.

Office Space

The next important consideration of the design of a storage facility is themanager's office. This is where your customer gets his first look at yourfacility. He wants to feel his "stuff" is safe, and the office cangive him the impression it will be. If your customer sees security monitors,cameras, etc., when he walks in the door, he feels his property is going to bewell cared for. But the office is also your selling place, and layout becomesimportant for this reason as well. Packing materials and other retail goods forsale should be displayed so they are easy to reach and view.

Parking

Your customers need to be able to get to the office, so parking is animportant consideration. Even still, it is probably one of the mostmisunderstood parts of site design. Although a typical parking space is 9 feetwide by 18 feet deep, you also lose the backup space needed to get a car in andout of the space. A typical parking space takes anywhere from 300 to 400 squarefeet of area that is better used for your buildings. While planning and zoningboards always want to see a lot of parking incorporated into a site, the truthis, it rarely gets used because customers tend to park in front of their units.The Self Storage Association has information on the amount of parking requiredfor various size facilities. While this provides a more realistic idea of theamount of parking required for a project, it takes convincing of the planningdepartment to allow it. If you can convince the planner you don't need that muchparking, you can put that space back into your storage buildings.

Driveways

Once they've rented a unit or two from you, customers need access to move in.The typical stacking distance at the entry gate should be approximately 40 feet.You can get away with less than that, but if you have the space, it's alwaysbetter to provide it. This allows for the truck to pull in off of the street andoperate the gate keypad without blocking traffic. And access to keypads requiressome thought. You want the driver to access the keypad without having to get outof his vehicle. But since the driver sits on the left side of the truck, hetypically has to pull in on the left side of the driveway in order to operatethe keypad. This creates some interesting situations for traffic control.

Multistory Sites

The design of your self-storage site incorporates several different buildingdecisions. Should the buildings be single-story, two-story or multistory? Howwide and long should they be? In two-story buildings, should you use elevatorsor lifts, or make them drive-up? Are you able to provide secure, 24-hour accessto the buildings?

Single-story buildings are the least expensive to build. If your land cost islow and you have a large enough parcel, plan on going with one story. The moreexpensive the land becomes, though, the more incentive you have to go upward.The cost of the structure goes up with each floor added. Up to a maximum ofthree floors, you can use an inexpensive form of construction for the typicalbuilding. Once you go beyond three floors, you must use costlier forms. Todetermine how many floors to build, you need to look at not only the cost of theland and construction, but whether you'll be able to fill up the space once it'sbuilt.

If you decide to build two stories, you have other options to consider. Doyou use elevators or lifts, or use a drive-up type of building? Elevators costmore than lifts, but provide your customers a better sense of comfort. If you gowith a drive-up second floor, you need to have room available for the rampsrequired at each end of the building. With buildings above three stories, youwill need to have elevators. The design of the building can determine just howmany elevators will be required.

Buildings should generally be no wider than 60 feet. This allows drive-upaccess from both sides and one or two interior corridors, which will maximizethe building efficiency. Likewise, the length of the building should be around300 feet. This allows corridor lengths that won't exceed 150 feet, the designstandard a customer will be willing to walk to get to his unit. This isn't tosay you can't or shouldn't make the building larger or smaller than what hasbeen discussed here.

To Use or Not Use an Architect

A lot of facility owners ask why they should use an architect to design theirfacilities. Often, steel-building manufacturers provide the design for the ownerwhen there is nothing special about the site. They have staff dedicated to thedesign of facilities for their customers. These designs are useful, but are notalways laid out for efficient use of the site. When the site is small, unusualin shape, steeply sloped, etc., it is useful to bring in an architect. Becausearchitects specialize in the design of buildings, they focus on how to make thefacility work. They also know how to design the facility to accommodate thevarious codes and ordinances every city seems to keep adding. For this reason,it is to your advantage to find an architect who specializes in the design ofstorage facilities.

As you can see, the design and layout of a site involves consideration ofmany factors. Although there is no one perfect layout for a site, the ideaspresented here make a good starting point. The ultimate goal in any design for astorage facility is to get the customers in and keep them. Making your projectuser-friendly is a good step in the right direction.

Ken Carrell is principal of KC Architects, based in Aliso Viejo, Calif.His firm specializes in self-storage as well as other types of commercialarchitecture, and is licensed in several states. For more information, call949.716.0114.