A new organization in British Columbia is challenging the status quo of demolishing homes to make way for new developments.
The Building Relocation and Deconstruction Association of B.C. (BRDABC) aims to promote sustainable alternatives that preserve housing, reduce waste, and support communities in need.
"As far as we know, it's the only one of its kind in North America," said Glyn Lewis, CEO of Renewal Development and a founding member of BRDABC. "We're starting with a significant challenge—tens of thousands of homes being demolished across British Columbia to make space for higher density."
Lewis said many of the 3,500 homes being torn down every year in B.C. are in excellent condition.
"If you look at the quality of some of these homes being demolished, the changing of our community character, and you look at all this material going to our landfills, and you think about the embodied carbon waste—our argument is that the process to achieve this density shouldn't be this wasteful."
Renewal Development specializes in relocating and repurposing homes slated for demolition.
"There are great companies out there that are essentially like recyclers—either preserving the entire building by lifting it, relocating and repurposing it, which is the work that we do," Lewis explained. "There are about six other companies in B.C. that do that work."
The association also brings together professionals in deconstruction—firms that carefully dismantle buildings to salvage materials.
"There's probably about 10 to 20 companies that do some form of deconstruction in B.C.," Lewis noted. "These two different industries... are responsible alternatives to demolition."
To guide municipalities, BRDABC has developed a Municipal Action Plan (MAP). "We just put out a report—it's got seven recommendations in it," Lewis said. "Those recommendations came from talking to municipalities and regional districts, not only here in Metro Vancouver, but across Canada, and in fact, around the world."
The plan draws inspiration from cities like Auckland, New Zealand.
“They went through a similar blanket upzoning of their single-family lots about nine years ago,” Lewis added. “They coupled that with great policies to encourage relocation or deconstruction. So every year, about 1,500 homes are relocated and repurposed.”
Michael Wiebe, a former Vancouver city councillor and BRDABC member, sees the association as a valuable resource for municipalities.
"The Municipal Action Plan is a powerful tool that will help guide municipalities across the province," he said. "It's a practical roadmap for how to permit home relocation, adopt deconstruction bylaws, and engage key stakeholders."
Wiebe also acknowledged the challenges that cities face.
"Staffing right now is... maximized,” he noted. “There's so much going on with the new building codes, new energy step codes.”
The goal of the association is to put information and the benefits of relocation and deconstruction in front of municipalities.
"Who would be able to do the work in our community, and who could help train our permit licensing staff to be able to accept one of these homes?" Wiebe said.
Lewis recalled a missed opportunity in Kelowna.
"There’s one I came across that I believe was being converted into a BC Housing project, and I think it was 11 houses—and five of them were some of the nicest homes I've ever seen—slated for demolition," he said. "They ended up getting torn down because we couldn't work it out with the developer to save them, which was unfortunate."
He added that the association's efforts are timely, as projections indicate a 35 per cent increase in demolitions over the next decade in areas like Kelowna, due to upzoning policies.
"The province is encouraging, and the municipalities are encouraging density... the process to achieve that density shouldn't be so wasteful. We know this can work. We know it could be a good business, it could be cost-effective, and it could be more responsible.”
The association is also seeking support from higher levels of government.
"Once we do that, then we'll be able to hit the road and come up to Kamloops, Kelowna, and Prince George—and all around the province—to kind of hit the pavement and have these conversations face to face,” Lewis explained.
More information on the Building Relocation and Deconstruction Association of B.C. and their initiatives can be found on their website.
