Industry experts and several B.C. mayors are championing modular homes as a fast, efficient, and cost-effective solution to the province's housing crisis.
Mayors from Burnaby, Penticton and Prince George joined representatives from Modular BC at a media conference Friday (Nov. 22) at modular home manufacturer SRI Kelowna, to announce an initiative supporting the streamlining of factory-built homes and rapid delivery of affordable housing.
The Mayors' Task Force on Standardized Modular Factory-Built Homes also includes Nanaimo and Williams Lake.
"This is about building a pathway for municipalities," said Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley, chair of the task force. "To get on board with the project to fully understand what modular homes are, but more importantly, to find a way that can get them on site quickly and operational within our cities."
Hurley added that modular housing can help meet provincial home-building goals while providing more affordable options. "We’re already discussing this with other municipalities," he said.
Paul Binotto with Modular BC highlighted the efficiency of modular construction and noted that legislative and zoning changes in B.C. already support faster housing development. "This is not instead of; this is in addition to," Binotto said. "We're creating something in British Columbia that's not done anywhere else. We look at affordability, speed, and quality homes."
He emphasized the environmental benefits of modular housing, such as a 42 per cent reduction in emissions compared to traditional construction and a 50-70 per cent reduction in waste. "When you look around the plant, this is B.C. lumber going into B.C. homes—how good is that?"
Darren Bassett, general manager of SRI Homes and Moduline Penticton, described modular housing as a turning point in helping address B.C.’s housing needs — a faster, more efficient way to build thousands of homes.
He explained that building a two-story, four-unit duplex takes about four weeks in the factory, while site preparation occurs simultaneously. "Start to finish, a project could take as little as two months."
Bassett noted that the two plants currently produce 500 homes annually but have the capacity to triple production.
“There are multiple modular manufacturers across the province so you can do the math on how quickly modular can help the housing crisis. The effort is about more than just building homes; it's about building communities," Bassett said.
Penticton Mayor Julius Bloomfield, who has over 30 years of real estate experience, said the stigma surrounding modular housing is fading.
"The quality is there," he said. "I’ve seen developments where customers were astounded by the quality compared to regular housing. Modular housing may well become regular housing."
Prince George Mayor Simon Yu, a structural engineer, sees an opportunity to export B.C.-built modular homes to other provinces and territories. "We have lots of wood in this province, and we need to use the factory setting to add value, create jobs, and make sure this is a vibrant industry known around the world,” Yu said.
Binotto added that other modular manufacturers are taking notice of the initiative. "I had a call from one manufacturer last night asking what the program entails. "This is about all of British Columbia," he said.
Kelowna Mayor Tom Dyas did not attend the event but is part of the BC Urban Mayors' Caucus as are the mayors on the task force.
"I'm sure the mayor of Kelowna will be looking at the task force," Binotto said. "He's done a lot in this city to look at modular."
