Buildings in B.C. that are under six storeys will no longer be required to have more than one egress staircase, a change that has firefighters concerned about safety.

B.C. Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon announced the change to the provincial building code last week.

He says the change will help with the province’s housing crisis.

Requiring only a single staircase leaves more space for housing units, and makes six-storey buildings viable on smaller lots.

  • Well if we make building an already solidly profitable lot half a percent more profitable then suddenly all the developers will start selling units for far under market rate, obviously. It’s not like developers will continue to sit on land instead of risking completely supplying the market and thus causing unit prices and profit margins to fall, after all they can now add another closet to each floor instead of an interwoven staircase./s