BC Hopes a New Design Catalogue Will Boost ‘Gentle Density’

Want to turn your house into a multiplex? The province’s set of do-it-yourself designs is finally here.

The BC NDP unrolled its provincial housing reforms at the end of 2023, requiring that municipalities allow up to four units on a single-family lot. If the lot is near rapid transit, six units must be permitted.

Capping off a term in government, the Housing Ministry under Ravi Kahlon has published a catalogue that shows exactly what that “gentle” densification could look like.

Inside are designs for houses with an accessory dwelling unit (sometimes called coach or laneway houses), duplexes, multiplexes and townhouses, made up of “building blocks” that can be arranged in different configurations.

“We see huge potential in this, and what’s vital is that every year we continue to expand the opportunity on these catalogues so we see a variety of types of homes in our communities,” Kahlon told media at the unveiling of the designs in early September.

If you’re a homeowner or builder looking to densify a lot, the catalogue makes the process look as easy as putting Lego together. The designs were commissioned from Leckie Studio Architecture + Design in Vancouver.

The catalogue walks a would-be densifier through a process that begins with choosing a floor plan with or without a garage on the ground level. In Step 2, you can stack on one or two storeys with bedrooms and studies. In Step 3, you choose your roof shape.

Finally, you can choose how to arrange the units on the lot.

Speedy home construction

Kahlon intends for the designs to speed up home construction “faster than ever before,” and a number of standardized features lend themselves to this.

The homes are already designed for the province’s building and energy codes.

Basements are not included as an option, as they are expensive.

The five lot sizes in the catalogue are the most common in B.C., surveyed from a number of municipalities.

And because the homes are made up of stackable blocks, these could be prefabricated off site, allowing for quick construction and minimum disruption.

The province hopes that municipalities will be able to fast-track these designs because of their standardization.

Dan Winer is the executive lead of Small Housing, a non-profit that has been advocating for exactly the kind of multiplexes and townhomes for which the BC NDP has opened the door.

“I think that gentle density presents the greatest opportunity for British Columbians who have lived here for some time,” he said.

Seniors who own houses with too much space would be able to downsize while adding new units to their property, earn some profit for retirement and age in place, staying in the neighbourhoods where they’ve built up their routines.

Multi-generational households who add units would be able to live on the same property in separate quarters. The separation would offer some privacy while allowing relatives to live in close proximity to each other.

“So there’s an economic benefit, there’s a social benefit, there’s the benefit that these homes are more environmentally sustainable using new building practices,” said Winer. “It just seems to check so many boxes.”

The citizen developer

Small Housing is pushing the province to consider a few more steps to ensure that the potential of these homes is fully “unleashed.”

The province should pass legislation that allows the units to be strata titled, says Winer. This would allow the units — whether it be a laneway house or a home that’s part of a multiplex — to be bought and sold individually, rather than remain the property of whoever owns the lot.

The province could also push for more financial help. The owners of houses looking into developing their own multiplexes are going to need financing. However, lenders like banks have been resistant to financing these projects, as they are small and may not justify the transaction.

Products could look like a new construction mortgage that RBC introduced in June, specifically for homeowners who want to add a coach house or turn their house into a multiplex.

Also, the BC Financial Services Authority does not allow retail loans for more than four units, meaning that homeowners in zones that permit six units would not be able to access that capital from lenders.

“These are fantastic tools because they don’t cost a lot of money,” requiring only the “political stroke of the pen,” said Winer.

He has hope that as policies and lenders make it easier to build multiplexes, they will become less of a rare “premium product” to rent or buy.

Undemocratic zoning?

The BC NDP has been hands-on with regards to housing, and the catalogue arrives at the end of its term in government.

The party has cracked down on Airbnb and similar platforms, financed the construction of new rental buildings while helping non-profits buy up old ones and expanded speculation taxes.

However, the party has been viewed as too hands-on by some mayors and municipalities when it comes to zoning reforms. There are politicians who disagree with how the province is forcing land-use decisions traditionally made on the local level. And others who agree with the intent behind the changes have been wishing for a more collaborative rollout.

On CKNW in May, Conservative Party of BC Leader John Rustad said the province was “taking away the democratic right and the democratic vote” and that he would repeal the NDP’s housing reforms if elected.

He echoed the concerns of some mayors frustrated with how the province is overriding official community plans and how the new housing would stress existing infrastructure.

Winer hopes this isn’t the case, as the push for gentle density has been a long time coming.

“This is a real opportunity for those within the field of politics and whomever they represent to advocate for housing affordability solutions,” he said. “We’ve always been non-partisan.... We will certainly be there to help anybody who wants to engage.”