The tile crew is on site and we are exploring the possibilities of the shapes and textures of a few new product lines from Ames. Ames is touring the world of ceramic tile and is now bringing in decorative tile made in Spain. So far it seems like a great fit for the rowhouse project. We have a few bold colours and shapes ordered (actual back-ordered), hopefully this shows up soon or we will have to reselect. More updates to come next week.
One of the interesting features of new home building is the diversity of opinion you will get among the general public toward your product. I value constructive feedback because I’d like to improve my work. I sometimes wonder if people know how much effort goes into a townhouse project. I'd love to go and visit my finest critics' personal residences and offer my opinions on the design or finishing work of their homes. I'd guess my houses are built better and much more stylishly than any critic.
The haters are out in Killarney! I wonder if this is a real person or some pseudonym. What we know for sure is this idiot cannot spell. What is a 'no talent add clown'?
One of the final components of the rowhouse exterior is now being installed. Once the railings are up we can finally get rid of that obnoxious construction fencing. Time to get on the landscaper to commit to a date as well.
UPDATE - The appeals board will not be hearing the appeal on the rowhouse dp. The appellant, a lawyer himself, someone who should have known better and acted more professionally, dropped the appeal. It seems that the theory this was launched just to punish the builder with time and financial losses was correct.
On June 21 the appeals board will consider the rowhouse project development permit on 26a st. This is a lot formerly zoned rc2 that was rezoned by the City/builder to rcg, the rowhouse zone. Once successful with the land use change, the builder then designed a very nice four unit building and had it approved by the planning department.
My understanding of the situation is an arrogant and mean spirited bully type lawyer-neighbour decided to take it upon himself to launch a last minute appeal. Note the project has been blessed by mayor and council and the staff. It was reviewed by the Killarney planning committee and the design work was generally well received. I thought the design work was good and the homes very attractive.
Other interesting information. The project approved didn’t require relaxations. The row house is a permitted use, not discretionary. The building height is well under the maximum allowed. The policy of adding some density to older grid areas is well liked by the elected leadership. Despite this, one person feels his own NIMBY bias against redevelopment should supersede that of society and its betterment through sensitive densification of a highly desirable part of the community. For a minuscule fee he has decided to try and use legal means to overturn a lot of costly design and permitted work. Is the intention here just to harass and delay the builder to punish his business with financial waste and loss? It is not clear.
The treatment of this permitted project by the appeals board will be very interesting. My preference would be to have the appeal tossed out and not even heard by the board. I’d prefer the appellant to not even have any standing before the board, and the phoney reasons for appeal be rejected.
UPDATE - The hearing agenda is now posted on the appeals board website. It appears the builder is defending himself by hiring a lawyer, no surprise here, and they are attempting to have the appeal thrown out over lack of jurisdiction. They argue, as I thought, that the board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate over a project that is a permitted use (not discretionary, no relaxations). Also, and very disappointingly, the appeal does appear hastily put together and lacking in evidence. The appeal states that the project violates the height restriction rule, but provides no evidence, as an example. You would expect better from someone trying to quash a $2.5M project that will employ many people than to fabricate nonsensical grounds for an appeal.
Here is the appeal notification. I will review the agenda once it is posted.
after some long days, unpredictable screw ups and lots of touchups, the Killarney project is in the hands of its new owners. Fantastic homes in a great neighbourhood.
The crew is now tiling the rowhouse. We have some innovative and new tile styles coming up for the dining room wall and fireplace. More pictures to come soon.
Zoning is a hot topic in many cities, and Calgary is no exception. Calgarians have their own biases and prejudices as we have discussed here before. The biggest politically acceptable prejudice in Calgary appears to remain against renters by owners. This is mostly bogus, but deeply ingrained into the Calgarian psyche. It is essentially a class based prejudice and a false assumption that by purchasing a home in an area you ‘own’ the zoning rights of your community. Pseudo arguments related to character are then crafted to disguise the raw prejudice into something an educated progressive person can publicize without fear of being shamed by an online zoning ‘me too’ backlash.
My thouhts on this issue are apparently out of the norm. I don’t believe the zoning of a community should be frozen in time. I think zoning is like mineral rights and those are owned by society not individuals and the way the rights are deployed needs to change over time. Calgary is a city that has changed more in 30 years than other cities have changed in a century yet many of our ARP documents that guide zoning at the community level are very old.
Zoning creates a lot of compliance cost. It often results in land being underutilized or built up in a way today that is a misallocation based on a best use that isn’t allowed or would take years of effort to change.
creating new Zoning rules is often needed to accommodate new types of development. it has all sorts of unintended consequences. A classic case is the redesignation of land into the rowhouse zone yet not allowing it to work on mid block lots that are the most commonly available size.
The real answer could be simpler rules and deregulation in policy documents that give some guidance to development but are less prescriptive. I don’t think anyone wants to create a hodgepodge mess in a community. But regulating of every possible built form, regulating context and character, and trying to keep up to date with a dynamic society is impossible for a slow moving bureaucracy.
Maybe we need a few more of these billboards around town?
This is a follow up to my year end review and predictions for 2018 posts. As of mid June and with Calgary experiencing a heat wave, the spring market is officially over. Compared to previous years it was not very strong. Mortgage rules have had a dampening effect on new home sales and it seems many builders are hitting the pause button after the construction frenzy that began last summer. The desperate urgency to acquire land and builder mania that we ruefully observed last year has been replaced by a lot of inventory to choose from and little motivation among builder buyers. Keep in mind I recorded a high selling price of just under 700k for a quality lot last winter (and at that time felt it was a huge mistake).
What hasn’t changed is the over valuation sellers are placing on land. It is reaching levels in some instances where there would be a zero or negative return for the builder. The cluelessness is quite astonishing on some of these so called deals, and I can’t really begin to comment on the ridiculous realtor descriptions promising future appreciation as if it is a certainty (on land already 100k over market). It is equally hard to understand why a realtor would want to waste time listing a property so overvalued by the owner. Perhaps they have no concept of development potential?
here is the current winner of the out of touch with the market seller award for 2018. I wouldn’t purchase this property unless it was discounted by $150k. There is zero value here to the builder. Note the 775,577 number, what a creative palindrome. I don’t think a builder will overpay by some massive amount because of a creative list price.
Following some discussions with trades where I wasn’t getting either the answers or materials I wanted at the price I was willing to pay I once again took the diy route with the hand rail brackets.
First of all I wanted a round hardwood rail. Nobody seemed to want to sell me that so I acquired my own half rounds and assembled them. Secondly the brackets available where cheap and flimsy so I custom ordered some from q railing, and they look great. Finally I was too busy to install them so I invited some carpenters in to finish it off for me. In all, a considerable amount and lead time and leg work, but reasonable cost.
handrails and brackets are all installed. Ready to stain.
making these in the garage was surprisingly easy. Much sanding was yet to take place but already we had demonstrated that this budget scheme would work well.
Integer homes accountant and project labourer is back on site doing what he does best - the really dirty jobs. Thanks again grampa j. We’ve got to get these ugly walls prepped to parge. Cribbing is not the prettiest wall finish.
grinder connected to the shop vac. Why was this work quoted at $1600? Job is done diy style for $150 in rentals and some labour.
I organized another garage project, this time at the rowhouse. I’m using the compartmentalized slab design as previously done but this time I’ve been required to build some non combustible walls. This means no wood and a lot of extra cost and effort to make the garage fire resistant. Fortunately I was able to expand my network of contacts and get a really good metal framer to come in and save the day.
Metal walls holding up wood roof.
The first townhouse cabinet install is well underway now. With cabinetry wrappIng up we will template the quartz counters and get into tile. As usual I’m getting material delivered and always observing and dealing with mistakes so I don’t waste time. Over the weekend the first kitchen should be finished and the custom hand rails and brackets I ordered will be installed.
My usual supplier of blinds and window coverings is installing the package now. The blinds are a nice addition to making the product look more complete.
Best for less blinds and shutters. Good job as usual
At this stage of the process I can really get a sense of how the interior details will come together. The rowhouse project will be getting a single dark coloured wood cabinet door front. Looks good so far.
the Finishers are now on site and will be hanging all the interior doors and trim. This work always makes the houses a lot more 'finished' looking. Next up is the interior spraying followed by cabinetry.
The concrete crew put in a long day Monday to get the remaining stairs and walks prepped for today's pour. Access to the front of the townhouses has been awkward so now that we are poured we are in way better shape for deliveries. The concrete doesn't need a lot of time to set up before it can handle foot traffic but I like to stay off it for 48 hours. The surface scuffs too easily when it is only a day old.
Dominic is happy to get this pour done so he can get to one of his many other jobs.
Ready for broom finish and we have permanent sidewalks and can landscape.
tile selections are coming together at the rowhouse. It has been a tricky affair as I’m looking to make each unit unique and special and confusing myself with lots of indecisiveness. Wouldn’t it be so much easier just to do it all the same?
new arrivals are very tempting
It is always amazing what it takes to actually finish a house to a full 100% complete.
Here are a few recent updates
Just need to get these on the walls
Washer and dryer is ready to go
Use of exceptional premium product is a common occurrence on my projects. How can this be possible? Is it simply a case of reducing margins to offer better quality to the clients? Or some proprietary builder genius that allows me to trespass in the domain of mansions while retaining affordability? The answer is none of the above. In some instances the desire for durability and craftsmanship or quality can overcome budgetary reality.
Maybe the question buyers should ask is ‘how can I (operating on a tiny budget) offer better or more durable materials on a build to lease rowhouse than may be found on a multi milion dollar estate home? Perhaps these pricey homes are having specification shortcuts that don’t make any sense given the scale of the investment.
Case study today is the Eavestrough product out of Europe from Lindab. This exceptional product is now managing roof runoff and will no doubt be functioning flawlessly over the decades to come.
colour match is exact. Unfortunately nobody can see this from the street.
durability starts here
rigid downpipe.
concrete flatwork preparation is underway now at the rowhouse. Garages, sidewalks, patio slabs and stairs are planned to be poured soon. Lots of prep work needs to be done here. The garage is a thicker than normal compartmentalized slab design. This necessitates cutting a trench around the perimeter for a 16” edge. The patios get a lot of rebar and the sidewalks bracketed to avoid settlement problems.
Step 1 is excavating and compacting gravel in the slab edge.
patio slab prep
pile of brackets ready to go