Architecture & Planning

Blog #16 - Burnaby Multiplex Updates

With the Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing (aka multiplex) legislation deadline passed, some cities met their adaptation deadline, while others requested extensions due to utility issues, such as sewer and drainage upgrades. This significant change is now being implemented across British Columbia, allowing construction or conversion of homes to 3 to 6 units without undergoing long and expensive rezoning applications.

Since we’re currently working on some projects in Burnaby involving multiplex designs, we have decided to share some of our initial studies with you. This is, of course, if you’re planning on having four dwelling units on a single lot.

So, what are the key changes?

As a response to provincial legislation in British Columbia, the city of Burnaby has decided to convert all 12 R-districts into a new R1 multiplex district. What are the key changes in this bylaw?

Courtesy from the city of Burnaby

I'll be using the current lot area for our project as a basis. The lot measures 20 meters by 37 meters, which is an average size in the city of Burnaby. Let's begin.

Firstly, the most noticeable one is the ‘Lot Area’

Most residential lots in Burnaby exceed 3000 square feet, making them eligible for four dwelling units. In our current project, the lot size is 8000 square feet. If your lot is within 400 meters of a Frequent Transit Network Area (FTNA), you can build up to 6 units.

Designated FTNA from the city of Burnaby

Second is the ‘Floor Area Ratio’

Previously, floor area ratio heavily influenced building shape and volume. With the new multiplex updates in Burnaby, floor area ratio is no longer a factor. House size and buildable area now depend on setbacks, building height, and lot coverage allowances.

Courtesy from the city of Burnaby council meeting

Third is the ‘Parking Requirements’

he new multiplex bylaw significantly reduces or eliminates off-street parking requirements. For instance, lots near FTNA have no parking requirements. While it is great that parking requirements can be removed in some areas, we still feel the need to add a parking slot for each dwelling unit to provide more comfort to the users. In our project, we have decided to provide at least one parking slots for each dwelling unit.

Fourth is the ‘Universal Building Height’

The new legislation now imposes a universal maximum height of 12 meters per structure, unlike before when different districts had varying building height limits, which could be quite confusing. We have decided to make full use of the maximum height allowed by the city. This provides more ceiling height and greater comfort for the users.

Fifth is the ‘Housing Forms’

Unlike before where you’re only allowed to build 1 type or 2 types of building to your lot, now the city has given us a lot of options to choose from!

Now that we’ve given you a few key considerations when designing your multiplex, we're moving on to the different lot configurations we created, similar to those in the Vancouver R1-1 bylaw of 2023, but this time in the city of Burnaby.

So, what are the possible house configurations we can do in our lot?

There are several options: single-family with a secondary suite or laneway home, duplex, cottage court, multiplex, or row housing. For our project, as the clients aim for four units on their lot, we've designed three configurations: double duplex, multiplex, and cottage court.

We’ll go first with the cottage court design

Some consider this option ideal as each unit has its own building, offering more privacy compared to duplexes or multiplexes where units are separated by firewalls. The distance between front and rear buildings would be at least 6 meters, with a minimum of 2.4 meters between adjacent buildings. This setup typically results in smaller units due to space taken up by these distances.

Second configuration, we have the fourplex housing

In this configuration, all four units are housed in a single building with fire separation walls between them. Unlike separate buildings, there is no need for a 6-meter distance between front and rear structures. This setup creates large open spaces on the lot and allows for larger units.

Last configuration, we have the double duplex

This configuration includes two main units on one lot: a front principal building and a rear building, separated by 6 meters. It balances features of both cottage court and multiplex designs. Currently, we're working on another multiplex project in Burnaby involving two duplexes without lane access. We may share some floor plans later.

If you have a lot in the city of Burnaby and you’re planning to pursue any of these configurations, undertake renovations, add units, or engage in other types of multiplex projects but don’t know where to start, feel free to contact us by phone or email, whichever you prefer. We will do a quick feasibility review for you.

If you find this blog interesting, you can also check out our YouTube video covering this blog if you want to see more graphics. Thank you, and see you in the next one!