Now that 琉璃神社 city council has shown their interest in jumping on board the province鈥檚 early-adoption initiative to increase storeys in wooden buildings from seven to 12, the question arises: will noisy neighbours be an issue?

Wood is the backbone of many structures, but it isn鈥檛 the first material one would think of when considering sound insulation鈥攅specially in multi-family residential builds. But the city鈥檚 building and permitting branch manager Doug Patan said noise and wafting smells won鈥檛 be an issue thanks to the changes in the building code.

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Recent changes that came into effect in December 2018 saw improvements to sound transmission regulations in the British Columbia Building Code, he said.

鈥淏efore you had to meet a sound coefficient in the walls,鈥� he said. 鈥淣ow, it鈥檚 everything that embodies that unit; the floors, ceiling and the walls.鈥�

The updates to airborne sound transmission provisions regulate flanking noise鈥攐r sound that transmits between space indirectly by travelling around or over, rather than through it.

Patan said he has heard a lot of complaints in older units related to smells, but he said the changes to the building code will remedy this as well.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a bit costly for the developer, but for life safety it鈥檚 a great thing in case of a fire because it insulates in between the walls,鈥� he said, noting fire and smoke would be contained to one unit, protecting other homes.

The province announced it would be adopting the changes to allow for taller timber buildings back in March. With the provincial and national codes set to change over the next few years, the City of 琉璃神社 is hopping on the encapsulated mass timber train a few years early.

鈥淲e鈥檙e excited to see 琉璃神社 leading innovations in the construction industry,鈥� development services director Mo Bayat said. 鈥淏ecause many of the components are pre-assembled in mass timber, it translates to a much faster build with less disruption to the neighbourhood.鈥�

鈥� with files from Michael Rodriguez

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Caitlin.clow@kelownacapnews.com
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