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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 19h

1. Is pretty intriguing if they mandate a certain minimum buildable area. That could address setbacks, open space, lot coverage, etc.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 22h

The extra 5 X 20ish feet added about $200K to my total build cost, but that's offset by the little bit of extra revenue the 2-beds generate. It also opened my building up to a couple of families with a child. No new babies yet, but there's certainly an option. Definitely worth it.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 22h

I had 2 window walls in this little 3-storey PBR, with 5 extra ft of length on one side. That allowed me to redesign 4 1-beds into 4 2-beds. I love the large one-beds in this building, but the 2-beds are more flexible. Unfortunately, my footprint was closely scrutinized so I couldn't do both sides.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 1d

It’s this craziness that led to CMHC’s “standardized” sixplex design where they split the staircase inside and outside the building so the doors were only 1.5m above grade. It illustrates how dumb the rule is as this is a less safe design.

www.housingcatalogue.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/designs/bc/c...

Courtyard Sixplex

www.housingcatalogue.cmhc-schl.gc.ca

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 1d

It’s almost impossible to fit secondary exits into stacked townhouses without doing silly inefficient things so we typically sink them.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 1d

I can’t say for certain as I can’t see the floor plans, but I don’t think you’re going to eliminate this issue even if Van allows another meter or 2 height. The ridiculous bc building code requires a secondary egress for all units built under part 9 if the home’s door is more than 1.5m above grade.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 1d

100%. This is one of the poison pills in Victoria’s OCP and related policies. Their open space, storm and tree location requirements + setbacks make parking impossible to build unless it’s $$$ and climate killing underground, but they’re also charging significant fees if a builder doesn’t build it.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 2d

Code writers unfortunately don’t understand that relatively minor “low cost” changes introduced every few years add significant costs as industry and inspectors have to constantly catch up to the new code and suppliers and labourers add money to compensate for the added risk of missing something.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 2d

They’re getting a lot less bang for the buck so homelessness and related deaths and public costs (to the Canadian health care system) rise because we can’t build enough even with the significant public (and private) investments.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 2d

In B.C., it’s even more insane as senior governments are spending more and more on massively needed public housing while constantly introducing new code and technical requirements, mostly on multifamily, with very limited incremental benefits for the added costs.

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Reposted by Ryan Jabs

Stephen Jacob Smith @stephenjacobsmith.com · 2d

I can't stop thinking about this. We're pursuing zero fire risk in multifam, while tolerating much more in single-fam. People respond by building and living in single-fam, where they're exposed to not only one of the highest fire death risks in the developed world, but also TONS more car crash risk

Emily Hamilton @ebwhamilton.bsky.social · 2d

Love this new report on buildings' relative fire safety from @alexhrwtz.bsky.social and Pew colleagues.

www.pew.org/en/research-...

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 4d

Absolutely. Province said they were working on a part 9 single staircase option (probably no elevators), which is a no brainer with sprinklers, but it’s been over a year and nothing yet, so we’ll see. I could see that possibly working in Victoria’s zone. The lanes in Van unlock a lot more potential.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 4d

I’ve heard from a smaller builder he might try variances for six storeys version to make them pencil. I don’t think staff will support that as the OCP says lot assemblies and larger housing blocks if five or six storey. They even seem to have leeway to reject 4 storeys to avoid “orphaning.”

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 4d

I’m curious to see if anyone will try this. The taxes, open space, new DCCs, high TDMs, storm water and tree bylaws will make it really challenging to pencil a 4 storey building. We may see it in higher cost neighbourhoods as higher end homes w/ underground parking to limit risk/offset the tdm tax.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 6d

I still don’t quite understood why, but this is the type of building still very much frowned upon in @victoria.ca’s newly adopted official community plan.

12 family sized homes in one smaller building would allow community to form, but the city unfortunately does not want it.

Bryn Davidson - Lanefab @lanefab.com · 6d

The New Vancouver Special - 50' lot edition.

Accessible single stair flats on a 50x122 lot.
12 family size homes (or) 24 small units.

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · 8d

Reminds me of this by @matthutchins.bsky.social in Seattle (with smaller apartments). It’s a pretty cool building to see in person:

www.castarchitecture.com/jansen-court...

Jansen Court Apartments - 4-Star Built Green — CAST architecture - Seattle Architect Modern Architect

This 10-unit apartment building was built on the rear of an urban parcel. Constructed on the rear of an urban parcel, it preserves a turn of the century house in the front yard and two exceptional che...

www.castarchitecture.com

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Reposted by Ryan Jabs

Bryn Davidson - Lanefab @lanefab.com · 9d

“Modern apartments have a fire death rate … six times lower than older apartments… (or) single-family homes…”

Aka why new single stair flats would be among the safest buildings in your city.

www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-bu...

Why Building Modern Apartments Can Solve the Housing Shortage and Improve Fire Safety

State and local policymakers across the country are exploring ways to expand housing options as communities face a persistent shortage that has driven costs to record highs. One way to close the gap i...

www.linkedin.com

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Reposted by Ryan Jabs

Jens von Bergmann @jensvb.bsky.social · 15d

The fact that BC planners feel the need to invent a new word to indicate that a zoning change is government-initiated is very telling.

Nathan Lauster @lausterna.bsky.social · 15d

Delta puts together a proposal for townhouse-only zoning... and gets in on the game of trying to explain BC municipalities' newest planning concept of "pre-zoning"

(perhaps inadvertently explaining a key portion of how we got into housing shortage in the first place) letstalk.delta.ca/pre-zoning

Delta explanation of Pre-Zoning text:

What is Pre-Zoning?

Pre-zoning is a process where a municipality proactively changes the zoning for certain areas to align with land use designations, to encourage certain types of development such as housing. This would speed up the process for getting new housing built faster. Future projects in a pre-zoned area could apply for permits directly without needing a lengthier rezoning process. Pre-zoning is considered in locations that are consistent with the Official Community Plan (OCP)

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · Sep 9

A small window into why new housing is so expensive. Everything is like this… and unfortunately getting worse.

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Reposted by Ryan Jabs

Bryn Davidson - Lanefab @lanefab.com · Sep 5

Ok, I've been pondering some of the ways that BC's new housing minister @christineboyle.bsky.social might build on the expansive work championed by @ravikahlon.bsky.social and her previous work as a @cityofvancouver.bsky.social councillor.

So - here's a first draft: 🧵

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Ryan Jabs @ryanjabs.bsky.social · Sep 5

There are a couple in Victoria too. 2560 Quadra.

We’re doing an exterior stair case for the rear building, similar to tomohouse’s in our convent project: www.lapishomes.com/projects/933...

933/935 Convent Place — Lapis Homes

Nestled within Victoria's cherished Fairfield neighborhood, Convent Place offers a blend of classic architectural design and sustainable living. At its core lies the shared community courtyard, envisi...

www.lapishomes.com

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Reposted by Ryan Jabs

Sean Galbraith @plannersean.bsky.social · Aug 29

ANALYSIS: Standard home plans aren’t ‘performative’ — they’re illuminating

Government-approved home designs teach bureaucrats, not builders

The plans absolutely confirm what the private sector has been saying for years: the building code and zoning are problems

www.tvo.org/article/anal...

TVO Today | Current Affairs Journalism, Documentaries and Podcasts

www.tvo.org