Latest news with #buildingcodes
CBC
6 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Affordable housing report card gives Alberta 'D+' grade, lowest in Canada
A new report reviewing efforts to address affordable housing has given Alberta the lowest grade among Canadian provinces. Alberta gets an overall D+ on the Report Card on More and Better Housing for failing to adopt better building codes, encourage factory-built housing and regulate construction in flood-prone areas, said author Mike Moffatt. The Task Force for Housing and Climate, a group dedicated to tackling housing and climate concerns across Canada, created the criteria last year and commissioned the report released Thursday. Quebec, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island scored the highest among the provinces with a C+, while the federal government got a B. "Alberta needs to build more social housing but there's also a lot of red tape in home building in Alberta that comes from the provincial government that could be addressed," Moffatt said during a news conference Wednesday. "It's also a lack of leadership from the provincial government when it comes to building code reform, when it comes to climate risk." The federal government earned the highest overall grade for federal tax incentives for rental construction, leasing federal land for housing and motivating municipal zoning reforms, the report says. Moffatt, also the founding director of the Missing Middle Initiative at the University of Ottawa, assessed and graded each province and the federal government in five categories. Lisa Raitt, former deputy leader of the Conservative Party of Canada is a co-chair of the Task Force for Housing and Climate. "Canada needs more homes, and they must be homes that meet the needs of today — affordable, climate aligned, and resilient to floods, wildfires and extreme heat," Raitt said in a news release. "Currently, no government is doing enough to get these homes built." Five criteria The report card focuses on five categories: Legalize density: allowing fourplexes and small apartments. Alberta scored a C- with the federal government got the highest grade of B. Improve building codes: allowing a variety of housing forms with higher energy efficiency, and things like single-stair-case apartments. Alberta got a D, while British Columbia scored an A. Accelerate factory-built housing: moving toward a manufacturing industry that can use better materials at lower cost. Alberta got a D- while the federal government received an A. Avoid building in high-risk area s: hazard maps and avoid areas prone to extreme weather events. Alberta got the lowest score of D, along with B.C., while Ontario and Saskatchewan got the highest grade of A. Fill in market gaps: finding ways to build more affordable, below market-rate housing. Alberta was again in the middle of the pack with a C, with the highest grade of A going to P.E.I. Former Edmonton mayor Don Iveson co-chairs the task force with Raitt. "Particularly in a number of the provinces and particularly when it comes to the climate outcomes there, there are huge gaps that have to be addressed," Iveson said. While Alberta ended up with an overall D+, Moffatt praises Edmonton and Calgary for their efforts. "There are a lot of great things happening in Alberta. Housing starts are quite high. We have a lot of fantastic reforms at the municipal level in both Edmonton and Calgary, but they don't have much to do with the provincial government." The cities have made a number of moves to improve zoning and increase density, Moffatt added. Edmonton was the first city in Canada to develop an automated approvals process using artificial intelligence, reducing permit processes from six weeks to six hours, Moffatt said. Moffatt said he hopes to do another report next year to highlight progress made among provinces. "Partly this is an accountability exercise, but we also want to highlight things that provinces are doing well with the hope that they could be adopted in other provinces," Moffatt said.
CBC
7 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Affordable housing report card gives Alberta gets a 'D+' grade, lowest in Canada
A new report reviewing efforts to address affordable housing has given Alberta the lowest grade among Canadian provinces. Alberta gets an overall D+ on the Report Card on More and Better Housing for failing to adopt better building codes, encourage factory-built housing and regulate construction in flood-prone areas, said author Mike Moffatt. The Task Force for Housing and Climate, a group dedicated to tackling housing and climate concerns across Canada, created the criteria last year and commissioned the report released Thursday. Quebec, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island scored the highest among the provinces with a C+, while the federal government got a B. "Alberta needs to build more social housing but there's also a lot of red tape in home building in Alberta that comes from the provincial government that could be addressed," Moffatt said during a news conference Wednesday. "It's also a lack of leadership from the provincial government when it comes to building code reform, when it comes to climate risk." The federal government earned the highest overall grade for federal tax incentives for rental construction, leasing federal land for housing and motivating municipal zoning reforms, the report says. Moffatt, also the founding director of the Missing Middle Initiative at the University of Ottawa, assessed and graded each province and the federal government in five categories. Lisa Raitt, former deputy leader of the Conservative Party of Canada is a co-chair of the Task Force for Housing and Climate. "Canada needs more homes, and they must be homes that meet the needs of today — affordable, climate aligned, and resilient to floods, wildfires and extreme heat," Raitt said in a news release. "Currently, no government is doing enough to get these homes built." Five criteria The report card focuses on five categories: Legalize density: allowing fourplexes and small apartments. Alberta scored a C- with the federal government got the highest grade of B. Improve building codes: allowing a variety of housing forms with higher energy efficiency, and things like single-stair-case apartments. Alberta got a D, while British Columbia scored an A. Accelerate factory-built housing: moving toward a manufacturing industry that can use better materials at lower cost. Alberta got a D- while the federal government received an A. Avoid building in high-risk area s: hazard maps and avoid areas prone to extreme weather events. Alberta got the lowest score of D, along with B.C., while Ontario and Saskatchewan got the highest grade of A. Fill in market gaps: finding ways to build more affordable, below market-rate housing. Alberta was again in the middle of the pack with a C, with the highest grade of A going to P.E.I. Former Edmonton mayor Don Iveson co-chairs the task force with Raitt. "Particularly in a number of the provinces and particularly when it comes to the climate outcomes there, there are huge gaps that have to be addressed," Iveson said. While Alberta ended up with an overall D+, Moffatt praises Edmonton and Calgary for their efforts. "There are a lot of great things happening in Alberta. Housing starts are quite high. We have a lot of fantastic reforms at the municipal level in both Edmonton and Calgary, but they don't have much to do with the provincial government." The cities have made a number of moves to improve zoning and increase density, Moffatt added. Edmonton was the first city in Canada to develop an automated approvals process using artificial intelligence, reducing permit processes from six weeks to six hours, Moffatt said. Moffatt said he hopes to do another report next year to highlight progress made among provinces.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Port of Moses Lake opens new maintenance facility
May 27—MOSES LAKE — Port of Moses Lake commissioners cut the ribbon Monday on the new maintenance facility completed this spring. "It's the new storage building for our maintenance department," said Facilities Director Milton Miller. "Currently, we store excess equipment in a building that we want to tear down." The $1.4 million building was funded entirely by the port and is about 8,000 square feet. The cost was higher than initially estimated, Miller told port commissioners at the May 13 meeting. Additional electrical work was needed, as well as work to meet updated building codes.
Malay Mail
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
Batu Lanchang rep: Penang has know-how to build quake-proof towers — so why haven't we used it?
GEORGE TOWN, May 19 — Batu Lanchang assemblyman Ong Ah Teong today proposed that technical guidelines for high-rise buildings in Penang be updated to include mandatory earthquake-resistant designs. The DAP lawmaker argued that new policies and guidelines must be formulated to compel all new high-rise projects to be earthquake-resistant. 'Adjustments to the Uniform Building By-Laws (UBBL) and the Local Plan need to be made to suit current needs and address modern disaster risks,' Ong proposed while debating his motion of thanks to the Penang Yang di-Pertua Negeri at the state legislative assembly today. He urged local councils and relevant agencies to conduct structural audits of existing buildings, particularly those exceeding 20 storeys or constructed before 2000. 'It is proposed that the state government introduce an Earthquake Protection Scheme similar to that practised in Taiwan, where earthquake disaster coverage is part of fire insurance policies,' he suggested. Ong also recommended the establishment of a Penang State Disaster Protection Fund in collaboration with the insurance and financial sectors. 'The safety of the people of Penang is our shared responsibility, so we should act before anything happens,' he said. Ong said the collapse of a 33-storey building in Bangkok, following tremors from a 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar on March 28, should be a 'wake-up call' for Penang to strengthen its structural safety policies. He noted that Penang also experienced tremors from an earthquake in North Sumatra on May 11. 'Many residents in Batu Lanchang felt anxious and shocked, considering that this area houses numerous high-rise apartments,' Ong said, adding that hundreds of densely populated high-rise residential buildings are located in the Batu Lanchang area. Ong expressed shock that local authorities reportedly do not possess specific data on buildings designed to withstand earthquakes. 'This means there is no legal requirement so far to ensure that all high-rise buildings are constructed according to earthquake-resistant specifications,' he said. Pointing out that this issue was raised in the state legislative assembly 14 years ago, in 2011, he said there has been no significant change in policies, guidelines or legislation since. 'As far as I know, only two structures in Penang have been designed to withstand earthquakes since the 1980s until now,' he said. The two structures were the first Penang Bridge and Komtar Tower, which houses the Chief Minister's Office and the State Executive Council members. He said the structures were designed based on resilience to an earthquake strength of 7.0 on the Richter scale and within a 300-kilometre radius of the epicentre. 'This shows that the technical capability and structural planning for earthquake resistance exists so it is time that this technology and requirement be extended to all high-rise residential buildings,' he said.
Malay Mail
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
Bukit Lanchang rep: Penang has know-how to build quake-proof towers — so why haven't we used it?
GEORGE TOWN, May 19 — Batu Lanchang assemblyman Ong Ah Teong today proposed that technical guidelines for high-rise buildings in Penang be updated to include mandatory earthquake-resistant designs. The DAP lawmaker argued that new policies and guidelines must be formulated to compel all new high-rise projects to be earthquake-resistant. 'Adjustments to the Uniform Building By-Laws (UBBL) and the Local Plan need to be made to suit current needs and address modern disaster risks,' Ong proposed while debating his motion of thanks to the Penang Yang di-Pertua Negeri at the state legislative assembly today. He urged local councils and relevant agencies to conduct structural audits of existing buildings, particularly those exceeding 20 storeys or constructed before 2000. 'It is proposed that the state government introduce an Earthquake Protection Scheme similar to that practised in Taiwan, where earthquake disaster coverage is part of fire insurance policies,' he suggested. Ong also recommended the establishment of a Penang State Disaster Protection Fund in collaboration with the insurance and financial sectors. 'The safety of the people of Penang is our shared responsibility, so we should act before anything happens,' he said. Ong said the collapse of a 33-storey building in Bangkok, following tremors from a 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar on March 28, should be a 'wake-up call' for Penang to strengthen its structural safety policies. He noted that Penang also experienced tremors from an earthquake in North Sumatra on May 11. 'Many residents in Batu Lanchang felt anxious and shocked, considering that this area houses numerous high-rise apartments,' Ong said, adding that hundreds of densely populated high-rise residential buildings are located in the Batu Lanchang area. Ong expressed shock that local authorities reportedly do not possess specific data on buildings designed to withstand earthquakes. 'This means there is no legal requirement so far to ensure that all high-rise buildings are constructed according to earthquake-resistant specifications,' he said. Pointing out that this issue was raised in the state legislative assembly 14 years ago, in 2011, he said there has been no significant change in policies, guidelines or legislation since. 'As far as I know, only two structures in Penang have been designed to withstand earthquakes since the 1980s until now,' he said. The two structures were the first Penang Bridge and Komtar Tower, which houses the Chief Minister's Office and the State Executive Council members. He said the structures were designed based on resilience to an earthquake strength of 7.0 on the Richter scale and within a 300-kilometre radius of the epicentre. 'This shows that the technical capability and structural planning for earthquake resistance exists so it is time that this technology and requirement be extended to all high-rise residential buildings,' he said.
