[Talk-GB] Residential flat above an unconnected business

[David Woolley]

On 17/05/2021 11:41, Warin wrote:
> Mapping as a node maybe all that a mappers time can spare.  Not a matter 
> of 'throwing away information' but maximizing the data from the mappers 
> time.

That's a compromise.  All of this is affected by the priorities of the 
individual mapper and the amount of detail they have.  Generally OSM 
works by successive refinement of detail, so a node is a step in the 
process, but is subject to refinement.
> 
> 
> I would think the majority of cases the business would occupy an 
> interior room .. not building parts.

For shops and things like estate agents, it would typically occupy the 
whole ground floor, with the possible exception of a stairway, or 
passage through to stairways at the back of the building.  This is the 
sort of building that typically gets mapped only as the business, with 
the residential space above ignored.  Many only have access to the upper 
storeys from the back.

There is typically a significant barrier between the commercial space 
and the residential space, above, as these arrangements are considered 
high fire risk, and there needs to be strong compartmentalisation 
between them.  So, from an architectural point of view, they are 
distinct building parts.

(Incidentally, for new developments, it is often the residential space 
which is the primary reason for the building, with the commercial space 
added as a condition for obtaining planning permission.)

There are cases, though, where a single shop has been split into lots of 
very small retail spaces, typically with signage only for the whole. 
I've seen them in streets specialising in the South Asian community, but 
they may be more general.  Hairdressers seem to pair with laundries, to 
some extent, as well.