Syracuse, NY Building Safety: Door Locking Hardware (2026)

Syracuse's Property Conservation Code, Chapter 27 of the Revised General Ordinances, sets locking-hardware standards separately for one- and two-family homes and for multiple dwellings. Section 27-65(a) requires every means of egress in a one-family or two-family dwelling to carry a suitable locking device. In multiple dwellings, subsection (b) extends the mandate to every entrance serving common space, basement areas and accessory spaces, while subsection (c) covers a main entrance wired with separate buzzers to each unit. Subsection (d) requires separate dwelling and rooming-unit doors within a multiple dwelling to carry their own locking hardware, and subsection (e) governs double-leaf main entrance doors: the active leaf must carry a suitable lock while the inactive leaf is fitted with top and bottom flush bolts of at least five-eighths inch throw into a metal strike plate.

None of these devices may block free escape from inside, and no leaf of a double door may be left inoperable if full doorway width is needed as an exit under the Uniform Code. The Division of Code Enforcement within the Department of Community Development, created by Section 27-111, administers the chapter, and its inspectors may enter premises during business hours under Section 27-113 to verify hardware is installed and functioning. A director who finds a violation issues a written notice under Section 27-114 giving 15 days to comply, or a shorter emergency period, and the owner can request a hearing within that window.