SHBC

New Poll: British Columbians Back Gentle Density – But Want More Action
A year on from BC’s landmark Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing (SSMUH) legislation, new independent polling commissioned by Small Housing shows that British Columbians are clear: they want practical, family-friendly housing options in their neighbourhoods — and they want governments to keep pushing forward.

What People Told Us

• 80% say the Province should do more to restore housing affordability — with nearly half saying it should do a lot more.
• 83% support gentle density solutions like laneway houses, small multiplexes, and suites.
• 42% of homeowners with the right property would add a secondary unit if the process were simpler and cheaper.
• Yet most British Columbians (57%) have never heard of the Province’s standardized designs for small-scale housing — showing there’s still work to do to turn policy into real homes.

Unlocking the Potential

The appetite is there — but barriers still stand in the way. Our research highlights what’s working, what’s not, and what’s needed next to make gentle density a real solution for affordability across BC’s neighbourhoods.

Explore the Findings

Get the full picture in our survey snapshot. See what British Columbians really think, where the gaps are, and how we can keep the momentum going — together.

Keywords:
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Outils pratiques pour les communautés locales

Vous songez à offrir davantage d’options de logement à votre communauté ? Les Considérations réglementaires relatives à la densification douce – élaborées par Small Housing et la SCHL – est votre feuille de route pour y parvenir.

Cette ressource présente l’histoire de l’habitat à densification douce et propose des mesures aux communautés locales, aux urbanistes, aux élus et aux défenseurs du logement. Qu’il s’agisse d’entamer la conversation ou d’affiner les politiques, ce guide offre des conseils clairs et pratiques pour aider à façonner des quartiers plus inclusifs et plus agréables à vivre.

Qu’y a-t-il à l’intérieur ?

• Qu’est-ce que la densification douce ? Découvrez comment les communautés définissent et mettent en œuvre ce type d’habitation à petite taille.
• Stratégies d’engagement communautaire – Obtenez des outils pour entamer des conversations productives et répondre à des préoccupations communes.
• Plan de travail étape par étape – Suivez une approche structurée pour évaluer les besoins en logement et planifier une densification douce.
• Modèles de statuts et meilleures pratiques – Découvrez des exemples et des modèles de politiques pour simplifier votre processus.
• Ressources supplémentaires et études de cas – Découvrez comment différentes municipalités font de la densification douce une réalité.

Pourquoi ce guide ?

• Pratique et actionnable – Conçue pour aider les communautés locales à mettre en œuvre le changement dès maintenant.
• Centré sur la communauté – Il s’agit de rendre le logement plus accessible sans perturber le caractère du quartier.
• Facile à utiliser – Un format structuré, étape par étape, vous permet de vous y plonger à n’importe quel stade de votre parcours..

Prêt à passer à l’étape suivante ?

Téléchargez le guide pour commencer à façonner l’avenir de votre communauté dès aujourd’hui !

Thinking about bringing more housing options to your community? The Gentle Density Bylaw Guide—developed by Small Housing and CMHC—is your roadmap to making it happen.

This resource captures the “story so far” of gentle density housing and provides actionable steps for local governments, planners, elected officials, and housing advocates. Whether you’re just starting the conversation or refining policies, this guide offers clear, practical advice to help shape more inclusive, livable neighborhoods.

What’s Inside?

• What is Gentle Density? Learn how communities define and implement small-scale, multi-unit housing.
• Community Engagement Strategies – Get tools to start productive conversations and address common concerns.
• Step-by-Step Workplan – Follow a structured approach to assess housing needs and plan for gentle density.
• Model Bylaws & Best Practices – Explore real-world examples and policy templates to simplify your process.
• Additional Resources & Case Studies – See how different municipalities are making gentle density a reality.

Why This Guide?

• Practical & Actionable – Designed to help local governments implement change now.
• Community-Centered – Focused on making housing more accessible without disrupting neighborhood character.
• Easy to Use – A structured, step-by-step format means you can dive in at any stage of your journey.

Nestled near the Elders Centre in the Tl’etinqox Community, six cabin-like homes are placed to form a circle to represent the four sacred directions, the cycle of the seasons, the cycle of life and more, and to encourage community gathering.

Tl’etinqox began to develop Elders Cabins in 2019 to honour the intentions, prayers, and needs of their Elders by providing safe and affordable living spaces for them to age in place, at the heart of the community. Elder tenancy applications opened for the cabins in September 2020.

Key insights:

Single-family zones – which cover three-quarters of residential areas in many Northern American cities – can produce harmful side effects such as inflated land values, racial and economic segregation, and urban sprawl. In response, many communities are looking at ways to introduce “missing middle” housing into existing single-family neighbourhoods.

One of the most notable reforms in recent years was the Minneapolis 2040 Plan, implemented at the beginning of 2020. Housing policies in the plan made headlines as it meant Minneapolis became the first major city in the US or Canada to abolish single family- zoning, allowing duplexes and triplexes to be built on most residential blocks. The Plan also included several provisions related to denser housing, including eliminating parking requirements and upzoning transit corridors and downtown areas.

This Small Housing Case Study shares key details of the Plan, its impact to date, and what other communities can learn from it.

Key insights:

This guide paper addresses the ownership and operations of gentle density housing in British Columbia. It was created in collaboration with industry experts and includes key recommendations to remove barriers that reduce the viability and uptake of gentle density housing.

The actionable recommendations contained in this guide paper provide specific and clear direction to the responsible parties on how they can support the removal of barriers and enhance the viability of gentle density projects for the homeowner-developer in British Columbia.

Supporting and incentivizing homeowner-developer-led projects is, in the opinion of the roundtable, the most likely model to succeed at implementation at scale, while putting community and affordability first.

Single Egress Stairs: Unlocking Missing Middle Housing Potential

The National Building Code’s two-egress requirement, introduced in the 1940s, limits the design and cost-efficiency of “missing middle” housing. Modern fire safety technology — from sprinklers to fire-rated materials — means single-egress wood-frame buildings can now match or exceed the safety of older two-egress designs.

This case study examines the growing movement to update the NBC, spotlighting efforts by LGA Architectural Partners and David Hine Engineering to permit single-egress residential buildings up to six storeys.

Read how code reform could open new pathways for affordable, small-scale multi-unit homes.

Keywords: Single egress stairs; National Building Code Canada; NBC building code reform; Missing middle housing; Small-scale multi-unit housing; Affordable housing design solutions; Low-rise apartment safety; Fire safety building codes Canada; Gentle density housing; Wood-frame multi-unit buildings

Edmonton’s Fire Flow Assessments: Cutting Costs for Infill Development
In older Edmonton neighbourhoods, redevelopment was often tied to costly infrastructure upgrades — especially for fire flow capacity. But density and fire flows aren’t always linked, and mandatory upgrades can become a major barrier to building new infill homes.

This case study highlights Edmonton’s innovative site-by-site fire flow assessment, which determines whether upgrades are truly needed. In many cases, the result is significant avoided costs without compromising safety.

Learn how targeted infrastructure assessments can unlock more cost-effective gentle density housing.

Keywords: Edmonton infill development; fire flow assessment; infrastructure cost savings; gentle density housing; small-scale multi-unit housing; building code and fire safety; urban redevelopment Edmonton; affordable housing solutions; site-specific infrastructure assessment; missing middle housing