Skokie, IL Building Safety: Childcare Center Rules (2026)

Section 54-166 of the Skokie Village Code adds building safety standards on top of the state's day care licensing rules for any family day care home, defined in Section 54-161 as a residence caring for more than 3 and up to 8 children. Every building used this way must meet the BOCA/National Existing Structures Code as adopted by the Village, and the occupant load standard requires a minimum of 100 square feet of floor area per occupant. Every room used for sleeping, living or dining needs at least two means of egress, with at least one being a door or stairway providing unobstructed travel outside at street or ground level; a second egress can be a caregiver-operable window.

If children are cared for below the exit discharge level, at least one exit must reach the outside directly and vertical travel cannot exceed 8 feet, and no day care can operate more than one story below ground. Travel distance to any exit is capped at 150 feet. Stairways must have 8 inch risers, 9 inch treads and be at least 32 inches wide. Interior finishes must meet at least a Class C flame spread rating, electrical wiring must comply with the Village's electrical code in Chapter 22, Article IV, and unvented fuel-fired room heaters are banned outright, with vented or oil and gas heaters installed to the BOCA Mechanical Code and guarded against hot surfaces.

These construction standards apply in addition to, and can supersede, the state Licensing Standards for Day Care Homes and the National Fire Protection Association's Life Safety Code separately adopted in Section 54-165.