Architects on Affordable Housing

The City of Vancouver has launched an initiative to tackle the growing issue of housing costs, with the intent of increasing the supply of affordable housing in Vancouver with a broad range of dwelling types to meet the needs of the city’s increasingly diverse population. Part of the Mayor’s Task Force on Housing Affordability is a working group led by select members of the architectural community along with leading local developers. The Working Group on Form and Design’s primary goal is to identify existing design and building code requirements that may be unnecessarily adding to the cost of various forms of affordable housing including social housing, laneway housing, rental, and home ownership units catering to more modest income households. It will also be considering other building form and design issues that may assist the task force in its deliberations.

In researching and preparing a report for the Mayor’s Task Force on Affordable Housing, this working group, chaired by Michael Geller MAIBC FCIP, invites input from design and construction experts including architects, engineers, code consultants and others who work in the built environment. AIBC members and other registrants are invited to take part in an open forum on Tuesday, March 6, 4:00 to 5:30 at the AIBC Office, #100 – 440 Cambie Street, Vancouver.

This is your opportunity to share insight, opinions and ideas for how to improve the efficiency and applicability of standards and requirements that impact the long-term  affordability of housing in Vancouver. To confirm your participation in this important discussion, please r.s.v.p. via e-mail by Friday, March 2 to michaelarthurgeller@gmail.com.

Building Envelope Education Program

For those wishing to complete the AIBC’s Building Envelope Education Program (BEEP), now is your chance. The first offering of the year, BEEP Module II, is scheduled for March 22 – 23, 2012. Go to http://www.aibc.ca/member_resources/professional_dev/index.html to check out the course descriptions and scheduled dates, and to register online. You can also access the AIBC’s course schedule and register for select courses directly from the AIBC home page by clicking on the  “Course Registration” quick link. BEEP courses are only offered once a year, so don’t miss out.

12 Core LUs

The WikiHouse Revolution

Will open-source DIY architecture usher in a new age of architectural innovation?

By Jeremy Kingsley, Slate

February 22, 2012

In the early half of the 20^th century, Sears, Roebuck and Co. sold tens of thousands of self-assembly homes to customers across the United States by mail order. A “Sears Modern Home” came in a railroad-delivered kit complete with more than 30,000 component parts, along with nails, paints, and fittings, and a weighty leather-bound instruction manual to help you put together the designs yourself. The plans were designed to be simple enough to be assembled without help from architects, carpenters, or any specialist contractors—in most cases, Sears homes were assembled solely by the buyer, with the help of friends, family, and neighbors, in communal, barn-raising fashion. More … 

Sustainable Region Initiative – Sustainable Community Breakfast: Affordable Home Ownership in Metro Vancouver

The Future of the Region Sustainability Dialogues and Sustainability Community Breakfasts are outreach components of Metro Vancouver’s Sustainable Region Initiative (SRI). They involve a series of high-profile debates and discussions intended to help decision makers shape the future of the region by presenting a range of views and stimulating fresh thought on regional issues such as housing, industry, labour and immigration, drugs and crime, regional economy, transportation, energy and agriculture. Please check the website often to find out about future dialogues in your community.

Sustainable Community Breakfast: Affordable Home Ownership in Metro Vancouver

The need for affordable home ownership in the region is increasing, with many families and young professionals being priced out of the housing market. Businesses need to attract employees; without affordable homes to purchase in the region, it will be more difficult to compete for talented workers. What are the economic impacts of this? How can we increase affordability and create financial equity to enable mid-income people to purchase a home so they can live and work in the region? Plan to attend this breakfast to hear about projects, partnerships and innovations that can be part of affordable home ownership solutions. Featured speakers include: Jeff Fisher, Deputy Executive Director – Urban Development Institute; Peter Ladner, Fellow – Simon Fraser University Centre for Dialogue; Heather Tremain, Principal – Urban Fabric; and Marla Zucht, General Manager – Whistler Housing Authority. It takes place Tuesday, February 28, 2012, 7:30 – 9:00 a.m. at the British Columbia Institute of Technology – Downtown Vancouver Campus, 555 Seymour Street. Register online at http://apps2.metrovancouver.org/sustainability/Smailing_list/EventRegistration.asp?EventID=161.

Sustainable Region Initiative – Future of the Region Sustainability Dialogue: Dematerialization – Transitioning to an Economy Without Waste

The Future of the Region Sustainability Dialogues and Sustainability Community Breakfasts are outreach components of Metro Vancouver’s Sustainable Region Initiative (SRI). They involve a series of high-profile debates and discussions intended to help decision makers shape the future of the region by presenting a range of views and stimulating fresh thought on regional issues such as housing, industry, labour and immigration, drugs and crime, regional economy, transportation, energy and agriculture. Please check the website often to find out about future dialogues in your community.

Future of the Region Sustainability Dialogue: Dematerialization – Transitioning to an Economy Without Waste

Economic growth brings challenges as society attempt to reconcile the consumption of materials with the finite limits of resources extracted from the earth. There is a growing need to increase resource productivity, improve quality of life, and ensure continued economic prosperity that is not based on increased consumption of materials and energy throughput. This need signals significant changes to our current economic system, changes that mark the transition to an economy without waste. What would such a transition look like? What societal impacts might such a transition entail? What is the role of businesses and organizations, for producers and consumers, in transitioning to a new economic system? Panelists at the various lunch sessions include: Werner Antweiler, Associate Professor, Strategy and Business Economics Division, Sauder School of Business – University of British Columbia; Juergan Baumann, Director, Environmental Programs – Port Metro Vancouver; Tracy Casavant, Executive Director – Lighthouse Sustainable Building Centre; Maurie Cohen, Associate Professor & Director, Environmental Policy Studies / Science, Technology & Society, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Sumeet Gulati, Associate Professor, Faculty of Land and Food Systems – University of British Columbia; Joji Kumagai, Executive Director – Strathcona Business Improvement Association; Marc Lee, Senior Economist – Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives; Richard Lipsey, Professor Emeritus, Department of Economics – Simon Fraser University; Vanessa Timmer, Executive Director – One Earth Initiative; and Peter Victor, Professor, Faculty of Environmental Studies – York University.

Tuesday, March 6, 2012      

South of the Fraser

Eaglequest Coyote Creek Golf Club, 7778 152nd Street, Surrey

11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012       

Vancouver

Segal Graduate School of Business, Simon Fraser University Vancouver Campus, 500 Granville Street

11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012    

Central Northeast

Inn At The Quay, 900 Quayside Drive, New Westminster

11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012       

North Shore

Hollyburn Country Club, 950 Crosscreek Road, West Vancouver
11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Unbuilt

You are invited to “Unbuilt”, an exhibition of selected works by Fall 2011 M.Arch graduates of the University of British Columbia’s School of Architecture + Landscape Architecture. There is an opening reception from 7:00 – 10:00 p.m. on Friday, February 24 followed by a one-day public exhibition on Saturday from 12:00 noon to 6:-00 p.m. It all takes place at 1727 3rd Avenue West, Vancouver (formerly the Third Avenue Gallery). For more information, e-mail unbuilt2011@gmail.com.

Flatiron-style Tower Proposed for Howe-Beach

By Tracy Sherlock, Vancouver Sun

February 17, 2012

The developer that built Vancouver’s tallest building, the Shangri-La, has applied to the city of Vancouver to build a 49-storey condominium tower at the corner of Howe Street and Beach Avenue near the north end of the Granville Bridge. The tower proposed by Westbank Projects Corp. starts as a triangle at the lower level and then becomes a square as it rises above the bridge. More …