Mid-Rise Wood-Frame Residential Construction

Premier Gordon Campbell has announced new BC Building Code provisions which increase the maximum building height for mid-rise wood-frame residential construction from four to six storeys.

These new code provisions were approved in early January 2009 and will take effect on April 6, giving the residential construction sector time to prepare for implementation.

An online public consultation on these changes closed on December 15, 2008 and the feedback received from building industry stakeholders, local governments and the general public were considered in finalizing the changes to the new code requirements. A clear majority of consultation respondents supported the proposed changes and several adjustments were made to the original proposals in response to feedback. The exterior cladding proposal was altered to clarify the performance basis of fire resistance requirements, the shear wall integrity proposal was adjusted and the yielding diaphragm proposal was withdrawn.

The new BC Building Code provisions can be viewed by clicking here.